Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

whiteman808 · 2025-11-27 12:48:35

Are here people who use Arch everywhere, virtual machines, servers, and of course PCs, laptops? Currently I have Debian on my servers and Arch on PC. I consider switching entirely all machines to Arch because it's convenient and want to have one distro to administer in my home lab. Where you wouldn't put Arch Linux?

Last edited by whiteman808 (2025-11-27 12:49:01)

system72 · 2025-11-27 13:58:33

i have arch on every device i own (including my server which hosts my website) except my pixel which runs graphene

Muflone · 2025-11-27 14:37:01

My 9 servers run Arch Linux

All applications are containerized though as ABI instability can cause outages.

cryptearth · 2025-11-27 14:46:04

with the exception of my phones (using Sony Xperia only, since the very first Arc when it still was Sony/Ericsson) I moved to Arch back in fall 2022
as for my servers: i have a working arch boot to handle updates of main os (suse leap, currently still 15.x until 16.x gets some issues fixed) (suse doesn't like in-place updates even for minors within a major) as my hosters emergency system has some weird quirks - but for a server i don't see arch as a rolling release fit for that task
I would rather prefer some sort of monthly update: at each 1st a stable collection is released and during the month the next one gets prepared; sure this would likely fall out of sync but daily updates isn't what i want for my servers (although i do check them regular at least ecery other week)

likely a "it depends" question
looking at other servers with uptimes 300+ days wouldn't be my style either - but seems common for gaming clans hosting thier own server with it's "admin" merely know how to use some web panel and nobody havin any clue about proper server administration

can arch be used as server os? sure - does it require more maintenance? unlikely - but due to daily updates i would push risk of failure due to some update a bit higher than more slower paced distributions

256 · 2025-12-02 09:41:02

I run Arch on both my machines, my PC and my server, although I don't do much with the latter at this point.

You can run whatever OS on your server you want. No one can stop you. Whether it's a good idea is a different question.

Banjo536 · 2025-12-13 10:46:22

Many users run Arch on all their personal devices, including desktops, laptops, and some servers, often using containers to mitigate ABI instability. Arch can be used on servers but requires more maintenance due to daily updates, so some prefer slower-update distributions for critical uptime. For home labs and personal administration, Arch is convenient, but for production servers where stability is key, it may not be ideal.

joensuulainen · 2026-01-25 23:44:53

I run Arch on all of my _actual_ personal-use computers. Arch isn't nearly as unstable as it used to be in the days of yore, and I believe for a computer you just want to turn on and have it just work it's excelled in that goal. Plus, for laptops, it gets better battery life than any other distro on the market!
Though, for servers, I feel like the use case is different. Servers often have up-times of tens to hundreds of days, and I would prefer a LTS distro that has the backbone of "we promise this won't break no matter what, we tested it extensively"; this is why I run Debian and Alpine on my servers.

Celsuss · 2026-01-27 12:36:19

I run arch linux on my desktop PC and laptop. Currently running Debian on my work laptop but I got a big itch of moving to arch on my work laptop but have not decided yet.

brumaire · 2026-01-29 11:39:34

I have Arch (arm for the rpi server) everywhere.

For desktops, laptops, workstations etc, it's great. There is nothing really to say about it as it has already proven itself as one if not the best distro choice for people who cares about OSes.

For server, it depends. It's still a viable option if you are willing to do the maintenance but I'd absolutely recommand :
- using containers with podman or whatever for prod to avoid headaches with system dependencies, ABI breakages…
- avoiding AUR packages like the plague (they are 90% of the trouble on Arch, if you are careful)
- read the news !
Otherwise, Arch is crazy stable and can easily outperform distros like AlmaLinux and even compete with debian in this matter.

Last edited by brumaire (2026-01-29 11:41:41)

Tommahs · 2026-02-12 23:57:47

Hey hey,

I try to run Arch everywhere since falling in love somewhere in 2010. Haven't really found a use-case for ArchLinux on containers besides it being cool or when testing arch-specific pieces of software. Would love to hear others' suggestions about this!

I see OP mention "servers" and "Home lab". You've succesfully triggered my enthousiasm! I've been running Arch on laptops, desktops, ARM devices like raspberry pi's and physical/virtual servers for well over a decade in both personal and professional setting. ArchLinux has come a long way since I first start using it and the wiki has been a blessing many times. The last machine I converted was my main gaming PC in 2021 (removed duo-boot win7 option). My oldest installation originated in 2013 and is still my daily driver. I believe I currently manage ~40 unique installations.
I do not run ArchLinux in containers (yet) as I haven't had a use-case for it. When building containers I prefer Scratch as it has a very low attack surface and is usually sufficient for what I create. If I think the container needs more functionality I would pick Alpine images (Base size 8MB) over Arch images (Base size 168MB for base version) basically due to base size and attack surface.

If you are going to run ArchLinux on "all" devices, here are some opinionated tips / unasked advice from a long time Archlinux user and a Linux sysadmin/devsecops engineer;
- Make a "canary" server -> Make sure this server has the same packages as most (if not all) packages your servers have. Update this server first. If it fails, you can troubleshoot without having an impact on your running machines. Saved me multiple times as I forgot to read the ArchLinux frontpage and changes were made to split the linux-headers package into multiple
- Host one or multiple git repositories to manage your .dotfiles and required applications -> This eases the management of users and workflow on multiple machines ---
Do not put any sensitive stuff in the git repo's like password or sshkeys...
- Manage a self-hosted PXE with an autoinstall.sh -> Automate the "basic" installation of a machine, provide this service over local network to client machines for installation
- Manage a caching server for packages -> Download packages on a single machine and add "CacheServer=$ip_of_this_machine" to the mirrorlist of other arch machines. Helps lessen the load on the upstream mirrors. see Package proxy cache
- Automate many things (like automatically pushing changes to servers)
- Add redundancy for every layer you add. Failover is fine, cluster is best
- Add monitoring on day 1 or at least very fast. Don't make it become an after-thought
- Security is a thing. Make it a habit to default deny all traffic in the firewall and only allow access to what you need (both traffic going in and out)

But i digress from the original question. If you need someone to spar with, hit me up~

Last edited by Tommahs (2026-02-12 23:58:56)

Xylerfox · 2026-02-19 18:59:13

I just swapped my desktop to run a dual-boot Arch/Windows setup (Still need Windows for VR).
I run Arch exclusively on my laptop. Best decision I ever made. Arch's efficiency is off the charts.
I run Arch as a Reverse Proxy server. I honestly often forget to do updates. I try to check every week, but honestly I've gone a month or two without doing updates. Haven't had any Arch related issues. I also run a web server with Debian, simply to check which will give me issues first. Neither are!

Arch Linux

#1 2025-11-27 12:48:35

Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#2 2025-11-27 13:58:33

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#3 2025-11-27 14:37:01

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#4 2025-11-27 14:46:04

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#5 2025-12-02 09:41:02

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#6 2025-12-13 10:46:22

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#7 2026-01-25 23:44:53

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#8 2026-01-27 12:36:19

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#9 2026-01-29 11:39:34

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#10 2026-02-12 23:57:47

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

#11 2026-02-19 18:59:13

Re: Switching entirely to Arch on all machines

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