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Thread: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info)

  1. #1
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    Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info)

    Hi,

    Ubuntu's page https://help.ubuntu.com/community/In...esktop_Edition says:

    The Recommended Minimum System Requirements, here, should allow even someone fairly new to installing Ubuntu or Gnu&Linux to easily install a usable system with enough room to be comfortable. A good "rule of thumb" is that machines that could run XP, Vista, Windows 7 or x86 OS X will almost always be a lot faster with Ubuntu even if they are lower-spec than described below. Simply try Ubuntu CD as a LiveCD first to check the hardware works.

    Ubuntu Desktop Edition
    700 MHz processor (about Intel Celeron or better)
    512 MiB RAM (system memory)
    IMHO this info is outdated; it might have been true for Ubuntu 10.04, but for the current Ubuntu Desktop version (12.04+), I would recommend 2 GHz with 2GB RAM as a minium to run it comfortably.
    FWIW: I do use Ubuntu 12.04 on a Netbook (1.6 GHz Atom, 1 GB RAM), and technically that works, but not "comfortable". So I'm considering to install Lubuntu on that system.

    So: what do you think about the Recommended Minimum System Requirements to run Ubuntu 12.04+ comfortably for someone fairly new?

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PrecisePango...m_Requirements

    The minimum memory requirement for Ubuntu 12.04 is 384 MB of memory for Ubuntu Desktop.
    But
    Systems with less memory may be able to select "Install Ubuntu" from the boot menu to run just the installer, rather than the whole desktop, or may be able to use the alternate install CD.
    Umm...
    I wouldn't like less than 1GB RAM myself
    Ubuntu 18.04

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    Yep. And if 512 MB were enough, it makes you wonder why the Ubuntu Edge Phone had 4GB RAM ... (http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ubuntu-edge)

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    Quote Originally Posted by sanderj View Post
    Hi,

    Ubuntu's page https://help.ubuntu.com/community/In...esktop_Edition says:



    IMHO this info is outdated; it might have been true for Ubuntu 10.04, but for the current Ubuntu Desktop version (12.04+), I would recommend 2 GHz with 2GB RAM as a minium to run it comfortably.
    FWIW: I do use Ubuntu 12.04 on a Netbook (1.6 GHz Atom, 1 GB RAM), and technically that works, but not "comfortable". So I'm considering to install Lubuntu on that system.

    So: what do you think about the Recommended Minimum System Requirements to run Ubuntu 12.04+ comfortably for someone fairly new?
    I am running Ubuntu 10.10 here. The info above may be true "strictly speaking", although I haven't tried out the latest desktop version yet. But that's useless for a newbie cause simply running the system is not what they want. They expect to be able to open and use at least 3 to 4 apps simultaneously and comfortably, and there, anything less than 2 Gb will give a bad experience these days. It's not so much the fault of the base system as all the GUI layers and apps. Firefox or Chrome guzzles memory. I would imagine Unity or KDE to also be memory heavy. OpenOffice would take quite some RAM, as would GIMP, Thunderbird, Adobe PDF Reader and the like... common apps which any newbie will expect to run, and often simultaneously.

    I have 1 Gb of RAM here on a 1.6 GHz dual core, and the base 10.10 system (including the GNOME desktop) uses roughly 25% of RAM after a fresh start. But open Firefox and already RAM use is at 65-70%. Maybe one more app, but that's all before swapping starts.

    For normal comfortable use of the latest Ubuntu Desktop version these days I'd say go get at least 2 Gb of RAM, and don't even try to run the base system alone without at least 1 Gb.

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    If you're running 10.10 and you are online you are running a vulnerable system and running a security risk. But we have told you that already in another thread if memory serves ...

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    Greetings,
    I have Raring running on my wife's Toshiba 10" with Atom dual core 1.6G and 2G RAM. It has the same speed as my 2.16Ghz Laptop with 4Gig of memory. I don't think we have reached critical mass yet. Perhaps Saucy Final will do the job.

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    Quote Originally Posted by Bucky Ball View Post
    If you're running 10.10 and you are online you are running a vulnerable system and running a security risk. But we have told you that already in another thread if memory serves ...
    I know that but the problem is my current hardware (1.6 GHz dual core + 1 Gb RAM, Integrated graphics) is just enough to run 10.10 as it is, and even then I can't have too many heavy apps open at once. At least until I've added one more Gb RAM I don't think I'd get a useful experience from either 12.04 or upwards. I could go the Xubuntu/Lubuntu route, but I decided on staying with 10.10 till I can add RAM and try the latest Unity.

    To mitigate risks I've all ports closed, run Firefox with NoScript + Adblock + RequestPolicy, and all plugins disabled, and I don't run s/w like Adobe Reader. With cautious browsing I hope to minimise risks.

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    ibjsb4 is offline Ubuntu addict and loving it
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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    Maybe you would be a good candidate for something new

    http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2172971

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    Quote Originally Posted by santosh83 View Post
    I know that but the problem is my current hardware (1.6 GHz dual core + 1 Gb RAM, Integrated graphics) is just enough to run 10.10 as it is, and even then I can't have too many heavy apps open at once. At least until I've added one more Gb RAM I don't think I'd get a useful experience from either 12.04 or upwards. I could go the Xubuntu/Lubuntu route, but I decided on staying with 10.10 till I can add RAM and try the latest Unity.

    To mitigate risks I've all ports closed, run Firefox with NoScript + Adblock + RequestPolicy, and all plugins disabled, and I don't run s/w like Adobe Reader. With cautious browsing I hope to minimise risks.
    Probably the wrong choice.
    I've used Mint Mate where customers are in similar needs as yours.
    Ubuntu 18.04

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    Re: Run Ubuntu 12.04+ *comfortably* on a "700 MHz CPU with 512 MB RAM"? (=Ubuntu info

    See also this post comparing different versions and flavours

    http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.p...6#post12769646

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