PorteuX is a lightweight and portable Linux distribution built on Slackware, inspired by Slax and Porteus. It is designed for speed, simplicity, and modularity. The system can boot directly from USB drives or SSDs and run completely in RAM, making it ideal for live sessions, recovery tasks, or everyday use without leaving any traces on the host machine unless persistence is enabled.

PorteuX uses a modular architecture where software is packaged as .xzm modules. These modules can be easily added or removed, providing flexibility and control over the installed applications. A built-in PorteuX App Store offers quick access to additional software, including web browsers, Steam, VirtualBox, Wine, and development tools.

It is available in seven desktop editions—Cinnamon, GNOME, KDE, LXDE, LXQt, MATE, and Xfce—allowing users to choose the environment that best suits their needs. Each desktop flavor is independently maintained and optimized for performance and low resource usage.

PorteuX follows both stable and current branches. The stable branch is ideal for users who prefer reliability, while the current branch provides a rolling release experience with the latest Slackware updates and features.

With ISO sizes just a few hundred megabytes and ultra-fast boot times (LXQt can boot in about 3 seconds on modern hardware), PorteuX is suitable for users who need a portable operating system, a lightweight daily driver, or a versatile rescue toolkit. It is actively maintained and regularly updated, with source code and releases available on GitHub.

PorteuX Linux featured image Image courtesy - DistroWatch
Type Linux
Status Active
Home Page https://github.com/porteux
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Base distributions
  • Slackware
Desktop Envrionments
Releases