Which Linux Distribution Should You Use?

A few months ago, I wrote an article detailing how to set up a dual boot of Windows and Linux.In the article, I suggested  you spend some time researching different distributions before deciding which one you’d like to use. Since the article focused on dual booting and installation of Linux, I didn’t spend much time talking about the different distros, so I’d like to discuss more in-depth  different Linux distributions and the advantages some will have and the disadvantages  they bring as well.

A quick disclaimer before diving into the article, I am in no way an expert in the world of Linux distributions, and everything stated in the article is merely suggestive. I encourage everyone reading to do their own research before downloading and installing their chosen operating system. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy the article.

You might be reading this and wondering why installing Linux on your computer is important and what benefits it might bring you. The first reason is that learning the OS now will benefit you in the future since moststudios use a distribution of Linux instead of Mac or Windows. I’m sure you will find some that don’t use Linux, but when you are already familiar with Linux distribution, it will look much better for you in the interview and when you start at a company.The second reason is that Linux runs smoother and faster for most software since Linux naturally has less substance  than Mac or Windows, effectively making simulations run smoother.

Until now, you have readthe phrase “Linux distribution” a few times, and you might be wondering what I mean by that. One of the biggest things that separate Linux from Mac and Windows is that there are many different options of Linux. With Windows, there is only one distribution of Windows, which at the moment is Windows 11; the same can be said with Mac OS. Many different companies have worked to create their own version of Linux with over 300 distributions that are actively maintained. A great website  you can visit to see all of them is Distro Watch (https://distrowatch.com/) which will tell you a synopsis of the distribution, which package manager it uses, and its end of life. The important thing to know is that most  distributions are built from 3 different foundations:  Debian, Red Hat, and SUSE.

Let’s focus on Debian for a moment. Debian is one of the oldest Linux distributions that is still maintained to this day, and some of the most popular Linux distros are built from Debian, including Ubuntu. At this moment, Distrowatch has Ubuntu ranked 6^th in terms of popularity, but in terms of VFX studios, it’s either one or two. One of the reasons that Ubuntu is so popular is that it is a great distribution to use for someone just getting into Linux since it has a great community of people online that you can find if you need help. I have used Ubuntu for a little while, but I  wasn’t very fond of it. I didn’t find it easy at all to download the VFX software that I needed especially anything from Autodesk since I learned that Ubuntu is actually missing some the libraries needed to run it. In order to get it running, I had to watch a YouTube video of a guy detailing a step-by-step guide on how to obtain those libraries. However, I still got frustrated, so I decided to delete the distribution altogether. This is not saying that Ubuntu is a bad distro for VFX artists, especially considering that many studios are currently using it; I’m just saying that I personally had a bad experience with it.

The other major distribution that I would like to focus on is Red Hat. The 3 major distributions  built off of Red Hat are Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), CentOS, and Fedora. Between the three of them, CentOS is either the first or second most used distribution in the industry and is the distribution that is installed on Montgomery Hall computers. Unfortunately, CentOS has reached its end of life, and the company has stated that they are not creating a new version, so VFX studios are going to have to migrate to a new distro for future projects. Fortunately, for fans of CentOS, there is another distribution that claims to be a bug-for-bug copy of CentOS  called Rocky Linux, which  I am currently using. After booting into Rocky, the first thing that came to mind was how similar it looked to Ubuntu, but that’s because the version of Rocky that I picked uses the GNOME desktop environment, which is what Ubuntu uses as well. The difference between the two is significant since Ubuntu uses a DEB package manager, and Rocky uses an RPM package manager. While both distributions are quality choices for completing VFX work, it is my belief that any Linux distro built from RHEL is better suited since it is much more compatible with software made by AutoDesk, especially since recently, AutoDesk has added support for Rocky Linux. The question of which distribution  VFX studios are planning to migrate to now that CentOS has reached its end of life is hard to say, but I think Rocky Linux is one that has potential.

Throughout this article, I have mostly focused on two main distributions, Ubuntu and Rocky Linux, but I would like to take some time to talk about a few others. While doing research for this article, I joined a few chat rooms full of VFX artists who were responding to a question posted on Reddit asking which distribution was best to run Houdini. After reading through it, I found many different recommendations. Pop!OS was a distro that I saw mentioned which is Debian based. Fedora was another one mentioned which is Red Hat-based, and MX Linux which is based on Debian.

Before making any decision on which Linux distribution you would like to use, there are a few things that you should consider. The first is what kind of work  you would like to do because if you primarily need  to use Adobe-based software, then I would advise sticking to Windows or Mac because Adobe is not supported on any Linux distribution. If you are working in the Unreal Engine,  research which distribution best supports Unreal; based on my research, I believe they are any Debian-based distros, but I haven’t read anything that doesn’t say Red Hat doesn’t work as well. Also, research how active the community who uses the distro is because you might need to rely on their support when you are trying to learn your way around Linux. Ubuntu has a great community behind it, and  plenty of YouTube videos troubleshoot various issues.

First diving into the world of Linux might be a little scary, and I know I felt very lost the first time I used it. I think the biggest reason for using Linux now is that you can go through the growing pains of learning a new OS now instead of your first day on the job. At least in SCAD, you are surrounded by plenty of people who are learning just like you and staff who will help you. By reading this article, I hope you have become at least a little bit more familiar with Linux and all that it can offer. If you are interested in learning how to install Linux alongside Windows so you can use the two interchangeably, I encourage you to read our previous article detailing how to dual-boot Windows and Linux.