As an experienced home office worker who relies on Linux as my primary operating system, I’ve tried numerous distributions over the years and narrowed it down to five top choices that excel in reliability, simplicity, and usability.
For those new to Linux, choosing a suitable distribution can be daunting. However, with these top picks, you’ll find an ideal home office OS that meets your needs. Here’s my list of top 5 Linux distributions for home office desktops:
1. openSUSE
openSUSE stands out due to its powerful tool, YaST (Yet Another Setup Tool), which makes configuring Linux easy and efficient. Its rolling release version, Tumbleweed, offers the latest software updates, while its Leap version provides stability. With YaST’s GUI for Samba configuration, sharing folders across your home network is a breeze.
2. Fedora Silverblue
Fedora Silverblue’s atomic OS feature ensures that you can easily choose a working state from the boot menu, minimizing downtime in case something goes wrong. This distribution also offers “one-go” upgrades, ensuring that any issues with individual packages won’t halt the entire system. Its reliability and ease of use make it an excellent choice for home office desktops.
3. Ubuntu LTS
Ubuntu LTS is a rock-solid and user-friendly distribution that’s reliable and easy to set up. With its Long Term Support (LTS) release, you can expect incredible hardware support, tons of free software available, and a vast community for help when needed. Its Snap preinstallation feature also gives you access to proprietary software like Slack.
4. Linux Mint
Linux Mint is an excellent distribution for new users and daily use, with its user-friendly interface and rock-solid performance. It comes with Timeshift, a built-in system restore tool, ensuring that you don’t have to worry about forgetting critical security patches. The Xfce version of Linux Mint also runs perfectly on lower-end hardware.
5. Zorin OS
Zorin OS is a polished distribution that offers a customizable desktop layout and fast performance. Its Pro version ($48) includes six additional layouts, making it an excellent choice for those who value flexibility. With its impressive features and speed, Zorin OS is exactly what you need from a home office desktop operating system.
Each of these distributions excels in their own way, making them perfect choices for your home office desktop needs.
Source: https://www.zdnet.com/article/my-5-favorite-linux-distros-for-home-office-desktops-and-ive-tried-them-all