Lubuntu

The lightest official Ubuntu flavor, built on the Qt-based LXQt desktop specifically to keep running well on older or resource-constrained machines.

Beginner-Friendly DesktopdesktopLXQtlightweightold-hardwareUbuntu flavorDownload ↗Official site ↗Docs / Wiki ↗

Based on

Ubuntu

First released

2009

Package manager

APT (.deb)

Desktop environments

LXQt

Lubuntu switched its desktop from LXDE to LXQt in 2018, moving to a modern Qt-based toolkit while keeping the same core mission: give Ubuntu's package base and hardware support to machines too old or too weak to comfortably run GNOME or even Xfce. It ships a deliberately minimal default application set to keep the install footprint and RAM usage low, though every Ubuntu/Debian package remains just an `apt install` away. It's a common choice for reviving old laptops and low-spec mini PCs that would otherwise be headed for a landfill.

MirrorNest doesn't mirror distro ISOs — installation media should always come straight from the project's own official download page (linked above), so you get the correct checksum/signature to verify against.