Message-ID: <d456b3d5628646346f093eb768058fa5ddd9382d.camel@riseup.net>
Subject: Re: Why'd you go with Alpine Linux?
From: Ralf Mardorf <ralf-mardorf@riseup.net>
To: ~alpine/users@lists.alpinelinux.org
Date: Thu, 02 Apr 2026 07:24:04 +0200
In-Reply-To: <OpA1zgz--F-9@tuta.io>
References: <OpA1zgz--F-9@tuta.io>
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Hi,

I installed Alpine to get a sense of the limitations I would face if I
ever found myself in the position of having to set up an embedded
system.

To set up a tailored OS for everyday use on my desktop PC, I chose Arch
Linux, partly because it has a build system comparable to FreeBSD ports
and probably the most up-to-date, comprehensive wiki. If I absolutely
wanted to avoid systemd but also wanted to avoid the limitations of
BusyBox and musl, I would probably consider Gentoo or something similar.

In any case, you can customize Ubuntu yourself to be similar to Alpine
or Arch by choosing the simplest installation option (server or
something similar) then deselecting everything else you can in the
installer, and after installation, immediately disabling all the systemd
services that aren=E2=80=99t necessary. Starting from there, you=E2=80=99ll=
 have
something like Alpine or Arch with Ubuntu, with the exception that
building .deb packages is a bit of a hassle, but still doable.

Regards,
Ralf

--=20
The Moon=E2=80=94forget all the nonsense they spread about it. It merely of=
fers
us more space for destruction, exploitation, and war. We=E2=80=99re destroy=
ing a
turnkey ready Earth and believe we can build new habitats on other
celestial bodies and gain insights there. Bathing in champagne would be
less arrogant and decadent=E2=80=94and, above all, cheaper.