Welcome to SpiralLinux
SpiralLinux is a selection of Linux spins built from Debian GNU/Linux, with a focus on simplicity and out-of-the-box usability across all the major desktop environments. SpiralLinux serves as an alternative live installation method for a highly reliable customized Debian system using only official Debian package repositories.
SpiralLinux features
- Installable live DVD / USB images around 2GB in size and carefully configured for a wide array of popular desktop environments
- Built from Debian Stable packages with newer hardware support preinstalled from Debian Backports
- Easily upgradable to Debian's Testing or Unstable branches with just a few clicks (instructions)
- Optimal Btrfs subvolume layout with Zstd transparent compression and automatic Snapper snapshots bootable via GRUB for easy rollbacks (instructions)
- Graphical manager for Flatpak packages and preconfigured Flatpak theming
- PipeWire and other low-level system configurations unique to SpiralLinux, providing low-latency JACK audio compatibility out-of-the-box as well as standard PulseAudio compatibility
- Font rendering and color theming preconfigured for optimal legibility
- Preinstalled proprietary media codecs and non-free Debian package repositories ready to use
- Broad hardware support with a wide array of proprietary firmware preinstalled
- Extensive printer support with relaxed permissions for printer administration
- Optimal power management with TLP preinstalled
- VirtualBox support available out-of-the-box
- Enables zRAM swap by default for better performance on low-end hardware
- Normal users can operate and administer the system without recurring to the terminal
- Depends entirely on the Debian infrastructure, thus avoiding the "developer-hit-by-a-bus" concern
- Installed system can be smoothly upgraded to future Debian releases while retaining its unique SpiralLinux configuration
Why another Debian-based distro?
Great question. Debian does an excellent job of providing the fundamentals needed for a highly reliable and flexible operating system. However, it is a sprawling and impersonal organization that does not focus on being friendly for the end-user. So a plethora of Debian-based distributions have arisen with the objective of adding a layer of polish, albeit with varying degrees of success. Most of these efforts depend on a single developer or a small group of developers with far fewer resources than the official Debian project. Many such projects create custom packages and supplemental package repositories that will cease to exist and leave their users stranded in the event that the project ever ceases to function. SpiralLinux, on the other hand, has been carefully designed to be completely dependent on the extensive development resources and excellent package infrastructure of the upstream Debian project. Debian itself provides a base system that is capable of being very user-friendly when properly configured. This is where SpiralLinux comes into play. Great effort has been expended in polishing the SpiralLinux default configuration for all the major desktop environments using the packages and mechanisms that Debian itself provides. So in effect, a SpiralLinux installation is actually a legitimate Debian installation that can be infinitely upgraded from the official Debian repositories while retaining its unique SpiralLinux configuration.
Download SpiralLinux
⚠️ Important: Rufus, LinuxLive USB Creator (LiLi), Ventoy, and Unetbootin are NOT recommended by SpiralLinux for creating the bootable USB device due to many reported issues.
ℹ️ Please verify your download checksums by clicking the (i ) icon next to your download in the Sourceforge directory listing.
Who are you?
I've used Linux on the desktop since approximately 2001, with Debian-based distributions playing a key role in that experience. I have always appreciated Debian's extreme flexibility, reliability, speed, and excellent core infrastructure. But for desktop usage, Debian's lack of polish and geeky nature always led me to avoid it for myself and other users that I support. This projects sets out to change that. I am also the creator and maintainer of the GeckoLinux set of spins built from openSUSE.