Software:Tiny Core Linux

From HandWiki
Short description: Lightweight Linux distribution
Tiny Core Linux
Logo of TCL
Tiny Core Linux 7.1 screenshot.png
Tiny Core Linux 7.1
OS familyLinux (Unix-like)
Working stateCurrent
Source modelOpen source
Initial releaseJanuary 5, 2009; 15 years ago (2009-01-05)
Available inEnglish
Package managerappbrowser (GUI) / tce (CLI)
Platformsx86
x86-64
armv7
Raspberry Pi
Kernel typeMonolithic
UserlandBusyBox
Default user interfaceFLWM
LicenseGNU GPLv2
Official websitetinycorelinux.net

Tiny Core Linux (TCL) is a minimal Linux kernel based operating system focusing on providing a base system using BusyBox and FLTK. It was developed by Robert Shingledecker, who was previously the lead developer of Damn Small Linux.[1][2] The distribution is notable for its small size (11 to 16 MB) and minimalism; additional functions are provided by extensions. Tiny Core Linux is free and open-source software licensed under the GNU General Public License version 2.[3]

Types

  • Tiny Core (23 MB) is the recommended option for new users who have a wired network connection. It includes the base Core system and a dynamic FLTK/FLWM graphical user interface.[4]
  • Core (17 MB) (also known as "Micro Core Linux") is a smaller variant of Tiny Core without a graphical desktop, though additional extensions can be added to create a system with a graphical desktop environment.[4]
  • dCore (12 MB) is a core made from Debian or Ubuntu compatible files that uses import and the SCE package format,[5] a self-contained package format for the Tiny Core distribution since 5.x series.
  • CorePure64 is a notable port of "Core" to the x86_64 architecture.
  • Core Plus (106 MB) is "an installation image and not the distribution".[clarification needed][4] It is composed of Tiny Core with additional functionality, most notably wireless support and non-US keyboard support.[4]
  • piCore is the Raspberry Pi port of "Core".

System requirements

Minimal configuration: Tiny Core needs at least 46 MB of RAM in order to run, and (micro) Core requires at least 28 MB of RAM. The minimum CPU is an i486DX.[6]

Recommended configuration: A Pentium II CPU and 128 MB of RAM are recommended for Tiny Core.[6]

Design philosophy

The developers describe TCL as "a nomadic ultra small graphical desktop operating system capable of booting from cdrom, pendrive, or frugally from a hard drive."[7] As of version 2.8.1, the core is designed to run primarily in RAM but with three distinct modes of operation:

  • "Cloud" or Internet mode — A "testdrive" mode using a built-in appbrowser GUI to explore extensions from an online application extension repository loaded into RAM only for the current session.
  • TCE/Install — A mode for Tiny Core Extensions downloaded and run from a storage partition but kept as symbolic links in RAM.
  • TCE/CopyFS — A mode which installs applications onto a Linux partition like a more typical Linux installation.[8]

Release history

Version Stability Release date
1.0[9][1] Stable version January 5, 2009
2.0[9][10] June 7, 2009
3.0[9] July 19, 2010
4.0[9][11] September 25, 2011
4.7.7[9] May 10, 2013
5.0[9][12] September 14, 2013
5.0.1[9] October 1, 2013
5.0.2[9] October 18, 2013
5.1[9] November 28, 2013
5.2[9] January 14, 2014
5.3[9] April 19, 2014
5.4[9] September 10, 2014
6.0[9] January 5, 2015
6.1[9] March 7, 2015
6.2[9] May 3, 2015
6.3[9] May 30, 2015
6.4[9] September 8, 2015
6.4.1[9] November 4, 2015
7.0[9][13] February 23, 2016
7.1[9] May 22, 2016
7.2[9] July 4, 2016
8.0[9] April 10, 2017
8.1[9] September 3, 2017
8.2[9] September 22, 2017
9.0[9] February 26, 2018
10.0[9] January 20, 2019
10.1[9] June 11, 2019
11.0[9] February 9, 2020
11.1[9] April 1, 2020
12.0[9] February 17, 2021
13.0[9] January 31, 2022
14.0 Latest version April 12, 2023

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Interview with Robert Shingledecker, creator of Tiny Core Linux". March 23, 2009. https://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?issue=20090330#feature. 
  2. Shingledecker, Christopher (July 4, 2020). "Prof. Dr. Christopher N. Shingledecker, Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Benedictine College". Benedictine College. http://www.shingledecker.org/. 
  3. Shingledecker, Christopher. "Frequently Asked Questions". http://tinycorelinux.net/faq.html. 
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Robert Shingledecker (2012). "Downloads - Tiny Core Linux". http://distro.ibiblio.org/tinycorelinux/downloads.html. 
  5. Juanito. "dCore-5.0.alpha1 released". http://forum.tinycorelinux.net/index.php/topic,15612.0.html. 
  6. 6.0 6.1 Robert Shingledecker. "Frequently Asked Questions: What are the minimum requirements?". http://distro.ibiblio.org/tinycorelinux/faq.html#req. 
  7. Robert Shingledecker (December 1, 2008). "Welcome to The Core Project - Tiny Core Linux". http://distro.ibiblio.org/tinycorelinux/welcome.html. 
  8. Robert Shingledecker. "Tiny Core: Core Concepts". http://distro.ibiblio.org/tinycorelinux/concepts.html. 
  9. 9.00 9.01 9.02 9.03 9.04 9.05 9.06 9.07 9.08 9.09 9.10 9.11 9.12 9.13 9.14 9.15 9.16 9.17 9.18 9.19 9.20 9.21 9.22 9.23 9.24 9.25 9.26 9.27 9.28 9.29 9.30 Final Releases – Release Announcements and Change log from Tiny Core Linux Forum
  10. Smart, Christopher (2009-08-06). "Tiny Core: The Little Distro That Could | Linux Magazine". http://www.linux-mag.com/id/7457/. 
  11. DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 440, 23 January 2012
  12. DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 527, 30 September 2013
  13. Tiny Core Linux 7.0 [LWN.net]

External links