The question “Is Arch Linux stable?” is one I see asked on a regular basis with a wide variety of different answers given so here is my response on why there may be many different answers which are all valid.
The issue in part is because the word “stability”, especially as it applied to Linux, means different things to different people.
- Some people define stability as a lack of hard crashing. If the system stays up and is running it is stable.
- Sometimes stability is defined as a fully functional core system. In other words, the OS boots up and works.
- Stability can also be described as every application in the system working 100%. Especially for people who use their desktop for business purposes. i.e. Everything “just works”
- The word stability can also be used to refer to package stability. This means that packages that other packages depend on, such as libraries, have a mostly unchanging interface. In other words, if a piece of software runs on a release, it will do so for the life of the release.
- As it relates specifically to Arch, stability is often used to describe the update process. Is the update a process clean and not requiring any manual intervention.
- Another way the word stability is used, which seems like an odd use of the word to me, is how frequently you need to reinstall the OS to keep it running cleanly.
Here would be my answers to the above:
- Is Arch Linux stable?
- Yes, Arch Linux is very stable
- Is Arch Linux stable?
- Yes, with a couple of caveats
- Use the LTS kernel. Very new kernels are often not perfect and since the non-LTS kernels have a very short lifespan, the LTS kernel is the way to go if stability is a priority. This doesn’t mean that your system will be a mess if you don’t use the LTS kernel it just means there might me occassional breakage. Most commonly in drivers for specific devices.
- Things like releases of DEs will often come with minor inconveniences. The standard to be released from testing isn’t perfection so there can be short times after release where something is imperfect with a DE. It will work, but some minor elements may be broken.
- Yes, with a couple of caveats
- Is Arch Linux stable?
- No, not completely. For a couple of reasons
- The rapid rolling nature of Arch means that any applications which don’t aggressively keep up with the latest libraries will sometimes become broken for a time until they catch up.
- The fact that Arch gets very new versions of applications means they are more likely to introduce bugs.
- No, not completely. For a couple of reasons
- Is Arch Linux stable?
- No, not even a little
- Arch has a rapidly rolling base. This means new versions of core components and libraries are introduced regularly. An application that worked yesterday can be broken tomorrow unless it is updated. This is what keeps the Arch package maintainers working so hard, keeping all the applications up-to-date and rebuilt with current libraries.
- No, not even a little
- Is Arch Linux stable?
- No, because sometimes updates will require manual intervention
- That being said, it isn’t nearly as bad as it it often portrayed. A very small percentage of updates require manual intervention as long as you do a good job keeping your system up-to-date.
- If you let your system fall behind and don’t update, the chance of manual intervention increases.
- No, because sometimes updates will require manual intervention
- Is Arch Linux stable?
- Yes, extremely. An Arch install can be kept running for as long as the hardware continues to run and is supported. Even longer if you replace the aging/failed components.
Other considerations:
- Being stable doesn’t mean it is easy to configure initially. Some hardware drivers can be tough to get working at first.
- System complexity matters. If you install lots and lots of applications and never remove the ones you don’t need package management gets increasingly complicated.
- Use the package manager to install software! If you install software via other means, you can absolutely break your system or cause the update process to fail
- If you are using out of tree driver modules, those drivers may or may not be stable. It depends how well they are maintained.
- People make mistakes. No OS is perfect. There will always be some degree of human error involved.
Lastly, in most situations, especially for a desktop, stability is hopefully not the only thing that matters when selecting a Linux distribution. It should be weighed against a number of other considerations.