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24 Linux Desktops You Should Know About

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As a system administrator, understanding the nuances of each Linux desktop environment is crucial when making an informed decision about which to deploy. Each environment offers distinct advantages in terms of system resources, customization, user experience, and compatibility with various distributions and use cases. Below is a breakdown of what system administrators should know about each of these desktop environments and window managers, along with insights into their popularity and relevance in the broader Linux ecosystem.

1. GNOME

  • What to Know: GNOME is known for its simplicity and modern look. It prioritizes a clean, consistent user interface and workflow, often regarded as the "default" Linux desktop. However, it can be more resource-intensive, so it's less ideal for older or less powerful hardware.
  • Popularity: GNOME is one of the most popular desktop environments, often the default in distributions like Ubuntu (GNOME Shell), Fedora, and Debian.
  • Relevance: GNOME is a popular choice for users seeking a polished, user-friendly desktop, and for enterprises or professional environments where usability and consistency matter.

2. KDE Plasma

  • What to Know: KDE Plasma is highly customizable, offering a rich user experience with advanced features. It's feature-packed but can be demanding on resources, although recent versions have optimized it significantly. Ideal for power users who want control over their desktop.
  • Popularity: KDE Plasma is widely used and is the default for distributions like Kubuntu, KDE neon, and openSUSE.
  • Relevance: KDE is suitable for users who need a visually appealing, full-featured desktop with extensive customization options.

3. Xfce

  • What to Know: Xfce is known for being lightweight while still offering a traditional desktop experience. It's ideal for older hardware or users who want a fast, stable, and customizable environment without heavy resource usage.
  • Popularity: Xfce is one of the top choices for lightweight Linux distributions such as Xubuntu and Manjaro Xfce.
  • Relevance: It’s an excellent choice for low-resource systems and users who want performance without sacrificing essential functionality.

4. Cinnamon

  • What to Know: Cinnamon is a user-friendly, full-featured desktop that provides a traditional desktop layout (similar to Windows). It’s known for its balance of usability and performance.
  • Popularity: Cinnamon is the default desktop for Linux Mint, one of the most popular Linux distributions.
  • Relevance: Cinnamon is great for users migrating from Windows who want a similar desktop experience with the power of Linux.

5. MATE

  • What to Know: MATE is a continuation of GNOME 2, focusing on simplicity and stability. It’s lightweight but still offers a traditional desktop experience, making it a solid choice for users who prefer classic interfaces.
  • Popularity: MATE is the default for distributions like Ubuntu MATE and is appreciated in the lightweight desktop niche.
  • Relevance: MATE is perfect for those who prefer classic desktop paradigms without requiring significant system resources.

6. LXQt

  • What to Know: LXQt is the successor to LXDE, designed to be a lightweight and fast desktop environment. It’s still evolving but has already gained traction due to its minimal resource consumption.
  • Popularity: It’s the default for Lubuntu and is used by some lightweight distributions.
  • Relevance: Ideal for low-end hardware, it offers a simple, efficient desktop experience with a low footprint.

7. LXDE

  • What to Know: LXDE (Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) is another lightweight desktop for low-resource systems. Though it has been largely superseded by LXQt, it’s still available and widely used for older systems.
  • Popularity: LXDE is used in lightweight distributions like Lubuntu and Debian LXDE.
  • Relevance: LXDE is perfect for users with older or resource-constrained systems.

8. Pantheon

  • What to Know: Pantheon is a sleek, modern desktop environment designed for the elementary OS distribution. It’s visually appealing and focused on simplicity, providing a macOS-like experience.
  • Popularity: Pantheon is the default for elementary OS.
  • Relevance: It’s a great choice for users who prefer a simple, intuitive, and attractive desktop.

9. Deepin

  • What to Know: Deepin is a visually rich and user-friendly desktop, designed to provide a modern, polished experience with deep integration of multimedia and system settings.
  • Popularity: Deepin is the default for the Deepin Linux distribution.
  • Relevance: This is an excellent choice for users who want a beautiful, easy-to-use desktop with strong multimedia features.

10. Budgie

  • What to Know: Budgie offers a clean and modern desktop, focused on simplicity and efficiency. It provides a visually appealing interface and integrates well with the GNOME stack.
  • Popularity: Budgie is the default desktop for Solus and is growing in popularity in other distributions.
  • Relevance: Budgie is ideal for users who want a simple and beautiful desktop with a modern user experience.

11. Enlightenment

  • What to Know: Enlightenment is highly customizable and offers a lightweight, minimalistic experience with advanced visual effects. It’s not for beginners due to its steep learning curve.
  • Popularity: Enlightenment is used in some distributions like Bodhi Linux.
  • Relevance: This is a good option for users who want to experiment and need maximum customization.

12. i3

  • What to Know: i3 is a tiling window manager that doesn’t focus on a traditional desktop experience. It’s minimalistic, efficient, and highly customizable.
  • Popularity: i3 is popular among advanced users and is used in distributions like Arch Linux.
  • Relevance: It’s ideal for power users and those who want to maximize efficiency with a keyboard-driven workflow.

13. Sway

  • What to Know: Sway is a Wayland-compatible replacement for i3, offering similar tiling functionality but with improved security and modern features.
  • Popularity: It’s growing in popularity among i3 users who want to use Wayland.
  • Relevance: Perfect for users who want the efficiency of i3 with the benefits of Wayland.

14. Awesome

  • What to Know: Awesome is another tiling window manager focused on advanced users. It offers a high degree of customization, but also has a steep learning curve.
  • Popularity: Awesome is used by advanced users and developers, particularly in minimalist distributions.
  • Relevance: This is for users who prioritize performance and customization over traditional desktop features.

15. Openbox

  • What to Know: Openbox is a highly customizable stacking window manager. It's lightweight and suitable for users who want a minimalist environment.
  • Popularity: Openbox is used in distributions like Arch Linux, CrunchBang++, and others.
  • Relevance: Openbox is ideal for users who prefer to build their desktop from the ground up with a focus on performance.

16. Fluxbox

  • What to Know: Fluxbox is another lightweight window manager that focuses on simplicity and speed, similar to Openbox but with different configuration styles.
  • Popularity: Fluxbox is popular in lightweight distributions and for experienced users.
  • Relevance: Fluxbox is suitable for users seeking a minimalistic approach to their desktop environment.

17. Cwm

  • What to Know: Cwm is a small, efficient window manager designed for simplicity. It has a minimalist design but includes some useful features.
  • Popularity: It’s favored by users who appreciate simplicity and speed.
  • Relevance: Ideal for users who want a no-frills, fast environment with minimal resource consumption.

18. JWM (Joe’s Window Manager)

  • What to Know: JWM is a lightweight window manager with a focus on performance. It has a simple, classic interface and is suitable for older hardware.
  • Popularity: It’s used in lightweight distributions like Puppy Linux.
  • Relevance: JWM is ideal for users with limited resources and those looking for a minimal desktop setup.

19. Herbstluftwm

  • What to Know: Herbstluftwm is a tiling window manager known for being scriptable and highly customizable, suitable for users who want to automate their desktop setup.
  • Popularity: It’s used by advanced users and enthusiasts.
  • Relevance: Great for users who want a highly personalized, lightweight, and efficient window manager.

20. Blackbox

  • What to Know: Blackbox is a minimal window manager that provides a lightweight and basic environment, focusing on simplicity and speed.
  • Popularity: It's used in lightweight Linux distributions and by advanced users.
  • Relevance: Blackbox is for users who value simplicity and performance above all else.

21. Window Maker

  • What to Know: Window Maker is a window manager that mimics the NeXTSTEP environment. It is lightweight and provides a simple desktop experience.
  • Popularity: Window Maker is often used in older Linux distributions.
  • Relevance: It's suitable for users who want a retro, efficient desktop with minimal resources.

22. IceWM

  • What to Know: IceWM is a lightweight window manager that provides a simple desktop environment. It supports several visual themes and is ideal for older systems.

  • Popularity: Used in lightweight

    Linux distributions like AntiX and Slitaz.

  • Relevance: Ideal for users who want a minimalist environment on very low-resource hardware.

23. AfterStep

  • What to Know: AfterStep is a window manager that emphasizes simplicity and efficiency, providing a desktop that can be customized through configuration files.
  • Popularity: Used in niche, minimalistic distributions.
  • Relevance: It’s a great choice for those who prefer a very lightweight, resource-conserving setup.

24. Sugar

  • What to Know: Sugar is designed specifically for educational purposes, with a focus on learning and child-friendly interfaces. It’s part of the OLPC project.
  • Popularity: Mostly used in educational setups, particularly in the OLPC (One Laptop per Child) project.
  • Relevance: Sugar is vital in contexts where the desktop environment needs to be tailored to educational and developmental environments.

Conclusion on Relevance of Having Multiple Desktop Environments in Linux:

The diversity in desktop environments and window managers for Linux reflects the flexibility and versatility of the Linux ecosystem. For system administrators, this range of options is crucial, as it allows customization based on the following factors: - Resource Constraints: Environments like Xfce, LXQt, and i3 are ideal for lightweight setups, while GNOME and KDE Plasma offer feature-rich environments. - User Experience: Linux provides choices that cater to different user preferences, from traditional interfaces (Cinnamon, MATE) to modern, minimalistic setups (i3, Sway). - Use Cases: Some environments like Pantheon and Deepin are perfect for users seeking a polished, modern look, while others like Sugar focus on specific purposes (education).

The broad array of desktop environments makes Linux adaptable for nearly any use case, whether for personal, enterprise, or educational purposes, while ensuring users can tailor their desktop to fit the needs of the hardware and workflow.

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