Choosing the right edition
From Mandriva Community Wiki
Contents |
Comparison table
This table is for informational purposes: it is not comprehensive and concerns only the latest stable version available.
| Edition | No. CD / DVD | Knowledge | Special | Free |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mandriva One | 1 Installable LiveCD | None | Allows you to test without risk in the first instance and then install it in order to obtain improved performance. Contains most of the proprietary drivers. It is supported for 18 months security updates. | Free but contains non-free drivers |
| Mandriva Free | 1 DVD | Good Linux knowledge[1] | References to other editions, created by the community. It is supported for 18 months security updates. | 100% Free |
| Mandriva Powerpack | 2 DVD | Knowledge Base[1] | Features all the drivers and software additional and Services | Commercial, available at Mandriva Store |
| Mandriva Flash | 1 USB key bootable 8 GB | None | Office Linux transportable with a 6GB for data | Commercial, available at Mandriva Store |
Mandriva Linux One
One edition of Mandriva Linux is a (single) LiveCD that can be installed on hard disk.
A Live CD is an operating system that boots and runs directly from CD without installing any software and without changing the system on which it operates. Mandriva One, however, is a Live CD hybrid, meaning it also has an installer that lets you install Mandriva Linux on the HDD system if the user desires.
It is the perfect edition to try Mandriva Linux until you are confident enough to install Linux on your hard drive. In addition, because of its small size, it downloads quickly (and exchanged with friends easily ...).
You can boot Mandriva One in "Live" mode for trying. After your use, if you want your system to be intact, just remove the CD and restart your computer : you will see that nothing has been changed. If you like Mandriva, you can install it on your hard drive and you will benefit from enhanced performance and an impressive amount of software Mandriva (excluding commercially available in the Powerpack) after having configured the official repositories.
Moreover, the small size of Mandriva One (750 MB or 1 CD) makes it ideal for users with a low-speed Internet: it is the only CD you need. You do not have the full Mandriva applications, but will have enough software for your routine: office, internet browsing and mail.
Several sub-versions of Mandriva One is available and there are two essential elements to differentiate them: the desktop environment used and supported languages. Some sub-versions use the desktop environment KDE and other GNOME, they are named ONE-ONE-KDE or GNOME. As the space of a CD makes the presence of all languages, they are spread over several sub-versions of the One. English and french are obviously supported.
The latest version of Mandriva One (KDE version) is always available to the official download website.
More information on Installing Mandriva Linux One...
Mandriva Linux Free
The Free edition of Mandriva Linux is so called because it contains only free software as defined by the Free Software Foundation and the Open Source Initiative (Free has a double meaning in English). For this reason, it is also an edition slightly more difficult for a beginner especially by the lack of proprietary drivers. They can be installed by configuring official repositories and by activating the "non-free" sources. Mandriva Free is a fully functional edition and comes with a wide variety of applications in many areas (office, internet, multimedia, etc.).. It is ideal if you want to use only free software on your computer.
This edition is also the outcome of the Cooker project which Mandriva involves developers and contributors in the same time. This is the basis of other issues described in this page.
This edition, in CDs or DVDs, is available for download (only) for 32-bit processors (i586) and 64-bit (x86_64) architectures.
It is also available in "Mini CD" for both architectures (dual-arch). This compact, includes only very few applications (certainly not enough for daily use) but has the need to install a Mandriva base on which to add the official repositories. It is very interesting if you want to do a minimal installation, or if you have a high speed (to complete the minimum installation).
To download this issue, go to the official download site.
More information on Installing Mandriva Free...
Mandriva Linux Powerpack
The Powerpack edition is the commercial edition of Mandriva Linux. It is available with complete documentation and support in a "box" (see against) on the Mandriva Store and certain retailers. It is also available (download only, without physical support, documentation or support) with an annual subscription.
It is intended for users who want to fully enjoy what Mandriva does the best. It may also be useful to people with limited or no Internet access, everything needed is included in the box. It contains a large number of applications (more than those included in the edition or One Free). As published by trade, the Powerpack contains proprietary software including packages of proprietary drivers and firmware support for improving the equipment, applications and plugins for browsers, codecs, etc..
This edition is available for each version of Mandriva Linux with i586 and x86_64 architectures, as a single DVD.
Since the 2008 version, you have two ways to get the Powerpack:
- Either by purchase on the site of the store
- Either by subscription to a subscription that entitles you to all versions of the Powerpack for 1 year
More information on Installing Mandriva Powerpack ...
Mandriva Flash
This distribution is fully installed on a 8 GO USB stick and offers you the possibility of booting on any computer without hard disk installation, while it is as configurable as a normal distribution. One can indeed add and delete packages, user accounts, etc. In addition, data can be used on other operating systems, for example you can retrieve documents and run Firefox from Windows and use the same bookmarks, passwords, and access all your files from Windows.
It is similar to the One for its ease of use, but you are able to write on the USB key which allows you to adopt a nomadic profile and take your office everywhere you want with the documents accompanying. Wherever you are, you can always use your flash key and you just feel at home!
Mandriva Flash is available from the Mandriva Store.
For more information, see the page devoted to it : Mandriva Flash.
Other editions
Other editions of Mandriva are available for specific requirements:
- Professional Products (Corporate Desktop Corporate Server, Pulse, Clustering, LinBox) provided with long term professional support
- Edutice specific distribution for education
- Cooker : This is not an issue itself, but the development version of Mandriva Linux
- Some unusual architectures also have their version of Mandriva (not supported)
