I started using Linux in 2016, I stopped distro hopping with arch and I'm using it since 2019. But I'm looking forward to try nix like OSes like guix. I see the value of it, it's just too much hassle right now. Meanwhile I'm using aconfmgr for tracking my modifications in my system.
this post was submitted on 31 Mar 2026
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Arch on my personal machines, Debian on my servers.
This is also my setup. I've tried nix a few times on desktop and servers, but didn't stick. Keep going back to arch and debian
Ive swapped around but for now im good on Arch, I like the AUR too much and tbh it does what I need (other distros are great and I installed Debian on my families computers but for me I use Arch).
Debian on everything (well except the router is on OpenWrt).
First installed Debian more than 25 years ago. Tried some other stuff, Debian is still best for me.
voidlinux now exclusively. previously: fedora, redhat, gentoo, ubuntu (briefly when it first released), yggdrasil, SLS
I started using Linux in '98 with Red Hat 5.2. I have swapped between many, many different distros. But for the last 10 years or so, I've mostly stuck with Fedora. It generally just works, is up to date, and I've never had issues upgrading on their 6 month release cycle. My desktop probably started on Fedora 20-something and has been upgraded to the latest (43) without ever doing a reinstall!
My primary computer is my Frame.work laptop running Fedora 43.
Debian.
Recently switched to Arch, the archinstall script is amazing and gets you all set up. much better onboarding nowadays and is great to use.
Idk maybe I'm bad luck but that's always broken my computer
Debian stable, it works fine for a workstation and for the few games I play
Arch, diving slowly in NixOS
If you have been using Linux for +10 years, what are you using now?
I distro-hopped every few years until about 2015. Since then I've been trending toward Debian for everything.
Been using linux for 7+ years, first distro was mint, then I moved to manjaro, for the last couple years I've been using Guix, a Nix inspired distro.
Arch since years. Never had issues
After years of distro-hopping, I settled with NixOS 7 years ago and kept on expanding my setup to accommodate for my new demands from it. I might be hopping to GNU Guix at some point in the future because of their choice to use scheme as the configuration language for the Guix setups.
Guix is very interesting to me. If fedora didn't just work, I think that's where I'd want to move to.
Debian on the streets (servers), Arch on the sheets (laptop).
I hopped around a little but settled into Debian a long, long time ago. My son loves Arch, I like my stuff to be a bit more stable and don't have the time to update between commands all the time (its a joke but has a little truth to it).
I think I started back in the day with Ubuntu Gnome, with some dabbling in Manjaro and then Arch.
But since then I have used Fedora Workstation, and then Fedora Silverblue / Fedora Kinoite (immutable versions of fedora, with the past several years on Kinoite [kde] over Silverblue [gnome])
On the server side of things, I am using Debian (with everything running in podman containers).
If I were to consider migrating, it would be to migrate my laptop to secureblue (likely, rebasing the OS image rather than clean-installing) and migrate my Windows 11 desktop to bazzite. Both of these are still based on Fedora's immutable base, albeit with changes to the base OS image. At some point in the future, I would also consider migrating my server to an immutable OS, however, which one remains to be seen.
Debian and alpine. Coming up on 27 years of linux for me.
Slackware. In 27-ish years of using it, it's never once crashed or failed to install
My Linux journey began with Fedora before I transitioned to Manjaro. Following the issues there, I switched to Debian, though I eventually moved on due to its slow update cycle in favor of openSUSE. I’ve now settled on CachyOS, and I couldn't be happier. It is exceptionally stable, benefits from timely Arch-based updates, and performs incredibly fast. Ironically, even though I'm not a gamer, I find that CachyOS simply makes everything work perfectly.
For almost 30 years Debian somehow.
Arch, btw
I started with Slackware in the early 90s, moved to Gentoo in 2004 after using FreeBSD for a while, and Arch linux since 2007. Gentoo was too much work (both for my and for my CPU's) in the long run. It has been more predictable (in spite of being a rolling release) for me than anything else,
Nice, I'll post mine as a reply since it's very similar :)
Work: when I started we were Centos/RHEL with some Debian, then pivoted to primarily Debian, now we have pivoted to Ubuntu.
Work Desktop: Besides obligatory Windows I have been on Gentoo +KDE for the last 10 years, but the Chromium portage build times as well as some weird performance degradation finally became too much and I just recently switched to NixOS (with newer hardware).
Home Server: Slackware/Gentoo for a while starting in the mid 2000's, then stuck with FreeBSD for over a decade. Since then I've just happy with Raspian on an rpi, but looking at switching it to NixOS
Home Desktop: Wasn't much of a category for me and usually just a Windows junkie at home, but recently been very pleased with SteamOS
I have been using unixes since 2000 and technically a bit before that as a user in school systems and linux since 2005. I am currently using zorin but have a long term trial to go towards and image type of system like bazzite. Thing is I have been doing this stuff to long and now I prefer to have stuff that just works and go rather than having to futz around. So my emphasis is on lazy linux. Its kinda funny because I sometimes talk about why I do and don't do things at the command line and I will get responses about learning it more and I kinda got to roll my eyes.
As someone who threw themselves into Bazzite, it really is worth it, such a great system. If you are familiar with Docker and the dev container workflow, you really will love it on all your devices, especially laptops.
Question to users and distro hoppers. I've grown to love Mint used it for years. But sometimes it updates and moves my game folders, loses my saves and I have to hunt in my system and hope I find my precious years long game saves.
Is there such thing as a distro that never changes the structure where truly all my files, system files, games will all be the same over years?
I've tried NIX and liked it, I've tried LMDE and Stock Mint with Ubuntu bugs yay, I've tried base Debian 13, and lastly Fedora kinoite..
Whats a system that updates but doesn't lose my shit when I just want to game and use my PC? I like having all my files never move, structure of system never change, but having the ability to run steam and heroic games of all types. I'm still back to Stock Mint Ubuntu but dammit if they don't introduce bugs sometimes. Like suspend / resume audio doesn't work after sleeping my desktop and back on without restarting.
Immutable distros are at the point where I'd recommend Bazzite over Mint or PopOS now, you should try it out, it's a new paradigm for linux that matches with what you want.
I am not a distro hopper, but I think you're asking the wrong question
I would keep your saves backed up and synchronized with a tool like rsync or git (not too great if they are larger sized files). It's what most Linux users do with their config files for example.
Other solutions are having a separate partition for /home (or /Games) so that you can even distrohop without worrying about this. If the game looks for saves in a specific folder you can create a symlink (a sort of "shortcut" that tells the game to look for saves in a certain directory)
Not sure how experienced you are but I can try to explain it better if this seems suitable.
This seems like the way that and maybe an immutable. Mint is just so damn intuitive which is why I keep going back. Nothing else makes a machine work with you than mint. Others you have to work against.
I still believe my ask is on point. Some distros like Ubuntu based move system folder locations every few years. I don't like a changing pc. I hate having to keep up with things. I'm a jump in and know how. I do wildly appreciate your XY link and think ultimately I do that often none the less. Thanks.
KDE is ideal to me given performance and polish, things like fractional scaling and Wayland are all top tier. I use Kubuntu but am waiting on "KDE Linux".
LMDE on desktop. MX Linux on laptop. Nextcloud server runs Ubuntu. Homelab server on Debian.
i've been using arch as my daily driver for 4 years. but i am thinking of switching to chimera linux. i really like apk, i think using dinit, llvm, musl and *bsd core utils would be great. for server, i use proxmox as my hypervisor, and debian for most vm's, starting to use alpine on lxc. I am using openwrt on my router.
Debian on every last one of my computers and servers
Been on Linux for 20 years and I'm on Debian and Arch. Both are very different but equally great systems.
I tried Slackware a couple of times cause it combines the simple design of Arch with the stability of Debian, but it's a bit too much in both regards.
As for desktop environments, I used to use Gnome on laptops and Plasma on desktops, but I recently stumbled upon Niri with Dank Material Shell and feel like it combines the advantages of both (fast keyboard/touchpad control, fully featured, lots of GUI customization options).
Started out on Linux Mint 17.3 Cinnamon ten years ago. Looked around, got into other distros and DEs, window managers, file systems, bash scripting and server administration. Yet here I am, still on Linux Mint. It just works extremely well for me, never broke down (unless I broke it) and stayed out of my way to let me focus on my actual work.
I'm at 9 years myself, I use Ubuntu on desktop, Mint on my home ThinkPad, Ubuntu on my work ThinkPad, and a mix of Debian/Proxmox and Ubuntu for my servers. I'm hoping to switch my desktop to Mint at some point.
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