this post was submitted on 09 Mar 2026
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Hej lemmings! (Hoping this is relevant enough for the selfhosted commjnity)

Quick question for you all: do you stick with the same distro across your PC, laptop, and server, or do you pick different ones based on the device and what you're doing?

For me, I've been mixing and matching depending on the use case, but I'm starting to think it'd be nice to just have one distro (or at least one family like Fedora or Debian) running everywhere. That way I wouldn't get confused about default settings or constantly have to look up flags for different package managers.

Right now my setup is:

  • Gaming rig: CachyOS
  • Laptop: AuroraOS
  • NAS: Unraid
  • Various project servers: DietPi, Debian, Alpine etc..

I feel like NixOS might be the only distro that could realistically handle all these use cases, but I'm a bit scared of the learning curve and the maintenance work it'd take to migrate everything over.

Am I the only one who feels like having "one distro to rule them all" would be nice? How do you guys handle your setups? All ears! 😊

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[–] tuckerm@feddit.online 1 points 22 minutes ago

I've thought about it, but I like having Bazzite for my gaming PC and Debian for my laptop, so I'll probably keep using multiple distros. For me it's:

  • Gaming PC: Bazzite (it's plugged into my TV, like a console, and goes straight to Steam's big picture mode)
  • Laptop: Debian with KDE Plasma
  • Home Server: Debian (a little single board computer, no desktop environment)
[–] Nalincah@feddit.org 1 points 47 minutes ago

Work notebook runs Linux Mint

My private desktop PC runs Cachy OS with Wayland/KDE but Wayland crashes all the time, so my private notebook bot Cachy OS with Gnome. Love it. Now I need to reinstall my desktop to also install Gnome. Dont want the hazzle to install it Next to wayland

[–] Treczoks@lemmy.world 1 points 1 hour ago

Basically, I do. Kubuntu everywhere. Only exception are the servers that run a UI less version of Ubuntu.

[–] Ravenmark@lemmy.world 1 points 1 hour ago

I normally install Linux based upon what I am doing. Gaming wise is usually popos. (I have eyed up CachyOS). I use Endeavor for a lot of old mac stuff. etc.

[–] shark@lemmy.org 1 points 1 hour ago

My laptop was, as of a couple of minutes ago, running Windows 11 (for AutoCAD before anyone says anything), but I just installed Fedora again so I’m free!

My server is running RHEL, which I don’t have an excuse for β€” I thought it’d be fun, but I’m going to switch over to Proxmox (hopefully) later this year.

So as it stands, currently, kinda.

[–] osanna@lemmy.vg 1 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

I was HEAVILY into the apple ecosystem, so I have a lot of macs. I have a macbook, running MacOS, and i have a desktop computer that i was using for my server, but instead bought a ras pi, and now use my desktop AS a desktop (partly because i want to dump apple because of all the bootlicking that Tim Apple is doing towards drumpf), which runs linux mint. My ras pi runs ubuntu server. Aside from that, that's the extent of my home computing. I have an iphone too. But my mac mini goes unused now, and thinking of selling it, but not sure. /rambling

[–] osanna@lemmy.vg 2 points 2 hours ago

I usually stick with ubuntu/debian based distros, because it was the first distro system i used when i first used linux. so I stick with what i know. Though I did support a RH server once when i worked in IT.

[–] timmytbt@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 hours ago

Debian home server, macOS desktop, newer laptops run Arch and Fedora, and the two old MacBooks both run Mint DE. Oh, and OpenWrt on the router.

[–] g_blob@programming.dev 3 points 4 hours ago

Debian always. Stablility is good, good is stability. But i am open to trying fedora in the near future

[–] sbeak@sopuli.xyz 4 points 4 hours ago

For me, I am running EndeavourOS on my laptop (for its rolling release updates and its customisability) and Debian on my homeserver (for its stability). I have also set up a secondary laptop with Linux Mint that is now being used by somebody else for its ease of use :)

yes, it's Arch all the way for me. it's flexible in the way that I can configure it for any system I need, and I usually know what I want from it.

my installations on my desktop and laptop look fairly similar, but my server and test computers can look different depending on the hardware specifications they have.

plus, with BTRFS snapshots, if anything breaks I can simply roll back to a previous version of the system.

[–] K3can@lemmy.radio 6 points 6 hours ago

Debian on my servers. No drama, it just works.

Fedora on my laptop and desktop. Still solid, but quicker updates.

[–] PumpkinEscobar@lemmy.world 3 points 5 hours ago

Arch everywhere. LTS kernel on servers and zen kernel on desktop and laptop. I love the idea of nixos but in practice it felt like more work than it was worth (to me).

I originally did Debian on servers but after using arch for long enough and never having stability problems, it was easier to move to the same distro.

[–] StellarExtract@lemmy.zip 5 points 6 hours ago

NixOS home server, gaming PC will soon move to Bazzite from Windows 10 (whenever I'm done working on my home server). I'm trying Bazzite for that machine because I use it more like a game console hooked up to the TV and don't need the same level of tweaking and customization.

[–] M137@lemmy.world 4 points 6 hours ago

Oooh, look at mr. Rich guy here with multiple devices.

/s.... (not really, cries in only computer being a dying laptop from 2011 with no way to get even just another dying 2011 laptop when this one dies.)

[–] HexaBack@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 5 hours ago)

Bazzite GNOME on my "it needs to work daily no matter what" school/work/light gaming laptop, ~250ish flatpak apps (mostly very awesome tiny GTK4-based tools)

Devuan on my desktop PC, Trinity Desktop Environment, almost entirely apt apps, I do heavy multimedia work and gaming on it, I squeeze as much speed as I can

Debian on my Linux phone (FuriLabs FLX1s running FuriOS, a fork of Droidian, which is a fork of Mobian, which is a fork of Debian), Phosh UI, almost entirely ~140ish flatpaks

I try to keep my operating systems and software as controlled and predictable as possible, but I approach that differently depending on the usecase. Yes, I've tried NixOS, fell in love with it, and quickly realized it's overengineered and makes my head hurt. I also used CachyOS with TDE on my desktop for a while, was really speedy but TDE packaging for Arch really sucks compared to their Debian packaging

Nope. Raspbian, Arch, Ubuntu, Ubuntu MATE (sorta samesies, I guess), Manjaro…I think that’s it.

[–] savvywolf@pawb.social 4 points 6 hours ago

My main desktop is Mint - I feel like most of the random pieces of software I find myself wanting to run are built for Ubuntu or at the very least a lfh distro.

My server and random devices run NixOS, and I'm acrually considering combining all the config into a monorepo...

My Raspberry PI I think runs Raspbian though. I should see if I can nixify it.

[–] huquad@lemmy.ml 3 points 6 hours ago

I run unraid for my main servers (mostly out of convenience/ease), and pop-os for everything else. I treat my laptop as my beta tester for my desktop which is stable, but both use the same underlying os. Who has the time to troubleshoot more than one?

[–] ikidd@lemmy.world 9 points 9 hours ago

Fedora KDE for anything I need a GUI for, Debian for anything headless.

I've used damn near everything else in 30 years of Linux, but I'm pretty sure my tombstone will run Debian.

[–] redsand@infosec.pub 2 points 6 hours ago

Gentoo, Qubes on desktops. Cent, Gentoo, Alpine and OpenBSD for servers.

Then there's weird stuff like MirageOS, DuskOS, openwrt, opnsense and I'm 90% sure there's a laptop with Kali purple in my trunk.

For other people I usually install fedora spins or bazzite.

[–] eco@lemmy.ml 4 points 8 hours ago

Jup, Debian stable on my three servers an on my laptop. I think its just way easier to run the same system everywhere. Also, Debian is a great distribution.

[–] lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 25 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago) (1 children)

Yep. Debian. I like apt, and I like shit that just....works. Very form after function. So what if a bunch of packages are on "old" versions. They work. The kernel works. KDE Plasma works. I can do everything I want to do without having to constantly be on the bleeding edge. If you prefer newer things, great. I prefer older, proven things. That's also why I drive Toyota cars and Honda motorcycles.

My Proxmox cluster runs...uh...Proxmox, which is based on Debian. NAS runs OMV which runs on top of Debian. Laptops all run Linux Mint Debian Edition, and so does my 5800X3D/7900XTX gaming PC. The only non-Debian machines in my house are my wife's iMac and Macbook Pro, and the Home Assistant mini PC.

[–] Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz 4 points 5 hours ago

That’s the same philosophy I’ve applied for a long time. Recently, I found out that gaming is an exception to the rule, though. While older versions are just fine for the most part, there are edge cases where that no longer applies. I also found out that I care about one of them. Until you hit that brick wall, there’s no reason to switch. Just keep on using Debian for everything.

Took me a while to realise that I was spending way too much time figuring out workarounds instead of actually gaming. I ended up using Bazzite in my gaming rig because it works so well for that purpose.

[–] PokerChips@programming.dev 6 points 9 hours ago

Laptop arch

Web servers Debian or fedora.

Looking into slackware for self hosting

[–] AsankaMan@lemmy.world 5 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

ZorinOS for the desktop and PopOS on the laptop which also serves as a Plex server.

[–] Sunny@slrpnk.net 6 points 9 hours ago

Welcome to Lemmy 🫢

[–] eksb@programming.dev 37 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago) (2 children)

Servers are all Debian. Family member's laptops are all Debian. I used Debian on my laptops for 20 years, but when Steam Deck switched to Arch, I switched my laptop to Arch to force me to learn it. I have a file with notes of differences between Debian and Arch. Next time I buy a new laptop, I will probably go back to Debian.

[–] Tanoh@lemmy.world 1 points 5 hours ago

Servers are debian, desktop debian. Why swap when you found the best already? 😁

I guess technically steam deck is not on debian, but I didn't choose it so it doesn't really count.

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[–] eodur@piefed.social 2 points 8 hours ago

All my kubernetes nodes are Ubuntu but when I rebuild my cluster I'll probably moved to Talos. My Gaming Rig/Workstation runs Bazzite. My Dev laptop runs Aurora. The little differences between Aurora and Bazzite are a little irritating so if I ever have a reason to rebuild one I'll probably switch it.

The PIs run whatever is most convenient for their purpose.

My next NAS will probably run Unraid or TrueNAS, but for now its Synology.

[–] Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works 8 points 12 hours ago

I do, but it's more out of laziness than anything else. I hate having to remember sixteen different ways of doing things, so I tend to configure all my stuff as identical as reasonably possible. Is this the best way of doing things? Probably not. But it keeps my blood pressure down.

[–] djdarren@piefed.social 2 points 8 hours ago

My work PC and gaming PC are Kubuntu, my media server is Debian, and my Home Assistant server is macOS, because it's an M1 mini. So yeah, kinda. I thought about putting the server on Kubuntu, but in the end figured I'd go for as stable as possible.

[–] Decq@lemmy.world 13 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago) (4 children)

I've converted everything to NixOS (Desktop, laptop, nas and 3d printer, rpi with home assistant) only my router is still pfSense (and thus BSD). It just makes configuration and updating so much easier from one central configuration. And I don't have to remember what and how I installed something. It's just there in my flake.

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[–] NewOldGuard@lemmy.ml 6 points 12 hours ago

I used to use a variety. I’d use Arch on my desktop/gaming machine, Fedora on my laptop, and Debian on my server. But I got the NixOS bug a few years back and now I use that everywhere. It’s great to have every change and configuration documented and available for easy review or modification, and built in generation rollbacks are a lifesaver.

Thinking of building an HTPC from some spare parts, and I think that’ll be the machine to buck the trend. Bazzite will be everything I need out of the box for that purpose without any effort for maintenance. It’s not getting customized or doing anything but games and media

[–] smiletolerantly@awful.systems 22 points 16 hours ago (5 children)

Yes. Everything is NixOS. Because it's perfect for everything.

[–] panda_abyss@lemmy.ca 9 points 13 hours ago (2 children)

What is the learning/on-boarding curve for this?

I ask because my home folder has a giant just file I use to script everything. I feel like I’m 80% there to just migrating.

[–] StellarExtract@lemmy.zip 2 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

I'd say that if you're an experienced developer, the learning curve is probably overstated, at least based on my limited experience. I'm still a relatively new user, but I'm feeling pretty comfortable with it so far.

[–] Martineski@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 6 hours ago

Hitting obscure issues with limited documentation and barely any forum discussions on it in search results is killing me though. But at the same time NixOS makes a lot of things incredibly easy and offloads having to remember any changes so it's worth all the effort for me.

[–] smiletolerantly@awful.systems 10 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

It's a very steep curve to start, with some additional minor steep parts along the way, but it's not a long curve. Once you got the core concepts and the basic language constructs, you've learned most of what you'll ever need.

Two nice resources: search.nixos.org is super handy, and you can search GitHub with language:nix and a search term to get tons of examples from other people.

Oh, and nix and just is actually a pretty common combo!

[–] StellarExtract@lemmy.zip 2 points 5 hours ago

Nice, I'll have to remember that GitHub trick. The main thing I've found lacking so far is config examples.

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[–] BladeFederation@piefed.social 6 points 12 hours ago

No, and that's the beauty of Linux.

Desktop gaming PC: Fedora KDE (might try Bazzite if I stop dual booting Windows, but I already got Nvidia set up and that's the hard part)

Old laptop: Zorin OS

Old as dirt laptop: antiX

Wife's Surface: Pop!_OS 22.04. Maybe change it eventually to something lighter.

I will likely go with Ubuntu Server or Debian when I set up my home server. Ubuntu seems like it has better Docker support.

[–] Telodzrum@lemmy.world 9 points 14 hours ago (3 children)

Arch on user PCs and Debian on anything else. This is with the exception that our big server is on Proxmox and the NAS (as well as off-site backup) are on unRaid.

[–] Cyber@feddit.uk 3 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I'm kinda with you, with a slight change: raspberrys that can't run Arch Linux on Arm run Raspberry Pi OS, so, almost Debian.

Everything else: Arch.

(Oh... and pfSense on FreeBSD... but let's not muddy the water)

[–] Telodzrum@lemmy.world 1 points 7 hours ago

Oh, good call out. I’m also running OPNsense which is a BSD system.

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