Easy Arch Linux

Easy Arch Linux is a lightweight, Arch-based distribution that stays close to upstream. It's built for ease of installation, allowing users to quickly set up and reproduce their development environment. It starts off stable, with the option to easily update to a rolling release using sudo pacman -Syu.

It comes with only the essential packages needed for any system. The desktop environment is a stripped-down, minimal version of KDE Plasma, designed to stay out of your way and let you get straight to work.
No bloat. No distractions.

💽 How to Install Easy Arch Linux

1. Download the ISO
   The ISO is hosted on Google Drive (GitHub does not allow files larger than 2 GB).

   📥Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18nclTLo05_KU7uOfYd_WTnI0LK--mGE6/view?usp=sharing

2. Create a Bootable USB
   Use one of the following tools to write the ISO to a USB drive:

   • balenaEtcher (Windows/macOS/Linux)
   • Rufus (Windows only)
   • Or use the dd command (Linux/macOS):

     sudo dd if=easy_archlinux-2025.07.28-x86_64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress && sync

     ⚠️ Replace /dev/sdX with your actual USB device (this will erase the disk).

3. Boot from USB
   Reboot your machine and use your BIOS/UEFI boot menu to boot from the USB drive.

4. Live Environment and Installation
   The ISO boots into a live session. A terminal window (Konsole) will appear, offering to begin disk installation.
   You can either:

   • Use the live environment temporarily
   • Or start the installation immediately by following the terminal prompts

🧰 How to Compile Easy Arch Linux

You can clone this repository and compile the ISO yourself. This requires an internet connection to download all the components needed to build the ISO.

Packages will be the latest version so there is a possibility for bugs/issues to appear unlike the provided ISO which was briefly examined before being uploaded.

There are two ways to compile the ISO:

🐋 Option 1: Compile Using Docker (Highly Recommended)

🪟 Windows

1. Open CMD/Powershell as administrator and install WSL

   wsl --install
   

2. Install Docker

3. Open the Microsoft Store app, then search for and install Ubuntu

4. Open Ubuntu, then confirm Docker is working

   docker --version
   

5. Updates package index and install git

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt install git
   

6. Clone repository and enter directory

   git clone https://github.com/devbyte1328/easy-arch-desktop-iso.git
   cd easy-arch-desktop-iso
   

7. Build the Docker image

   sudo docker build -t easyarch .
   

8. Compile the ISO

   sudo docker run --rm -t --privileged -v "$PWD/out:/build/out" easyarch
   

9. (Optional) For debugging

   { sudo docker build -t easyarch . && sudo docker run --rm -t --privileged -v "$PWD/out:/build/out" easyarch; } 2>&1 | tee logs.txt
   

10. After compiling the ISO, navigate to File Explorer and retrieve the ISO

    \\wsl$\Ubuntu\home\<your-username>\easy-arch-desktop-iso\out
    

🍎🐧 Linux/macOS

1. Install Docker

2. Clone repository and enter directory

   git clone https://github.com/devbyte1328/easy-arch-desktop-iso.git
   cd easy-arch-desktop-iso
   

3. Build the Docker image

   sudo docker build -t easyarch .
   

4. Run the Docker container to compile the ISO

   sudo docker run --rm -t --privileged -v "$PWD/out:/build/out" easyarch
   

5. (Optional) For debugging

   { sudo docker build -t easyarch . && sudo docker run --rm -t --privileged -v "$PWD/out:/build/out" easyarch; } 2>&1 | tee logs.txt
   

🖥️ Option 2: Compile Natively on Arch Linux or an Arch-based Distro (Not Recommended)

⚠️This method is not recommended because the script:

• Installs packages directly to your system
• Creates temporary build files
• Leaves dependencies behind

Use Docker unless you know what you're doing.

1. Clone repository and enter directory

   git clone https://github.com/devbyte1328/easy-arch-desktop-iso.git
   cd easy-arch-desktop-iso
   

2. Run the build script

   sudo ./compile-iso.sh
   

3. (Optional) For debugging

   sudo ./compile-iso.sh 2>&1 | tee logs.txt