Before self-hosting web apps became one-click install away, Ubuntu was a lot more convenient with newer technologies, readily available documentation, and a clear update schedule. At least, that was my case.
Familiarity (my client distro is Pop and is based on Ubuntu), and I like the LTS life cycle (predictable).
I do uninstall snaps, though, and mostly just use Docker for things. I could use Debian, but again, for me it was about familiarity and support (a lot more Ubuntu specific documentation).
I used Ubuntu for a while and distro-hopped before deciding to land on Debian. I figured major distros used it as their base for a reason. The older I get the more I appreciate the “it’ll release when its ready” approach that Debian takes. There’s no economic pressure to release with major bugs hoping the next sprint will fix most issues, like a lot of “enterprise” software. The Debian release cycle is not 100% predictable, but it is reliable. I’ve had a server go through a few major upgrades for nearly a decade before the hardware itself gave out. The OS was rock solid the entire time. Additionally, with flatpak, outdated desktop apps are no longer an issue and I use docker for hosting services.
I will admit that Debian is pretty “bland” from a fresh install, but I don’t mind that at all.
Started with RaspiOS and transitioned to vanilla Debian + OMV5 later on.
So far I never had issues whatsoever withy server. If there was an issue usually not due to debian but me learning to work with linux.
Didn’t try anything else like TrueNas so take it for what you want.
OMV5/6 are pretty good NAS softwares with an out of the box working interface. Nothing really you don’t want.
Upside: It’s Debian under the hood. So if you want to dip into Linux I think it’s great.
My only gripe is, it’s impossible to upgrade between versions. You’d need to wipe the OS and restart (afaik).
To a typical user/newcomer to servers it’s easier to find some solution for Ubuntu, than for Debian. And boy, can Debian users be full of themselves… 😑
In my limited experience, that’s pretty accurate unfortunately. But with so many Debian tools becoming more popular, I bet that attitude will change soon
I’m not OP, but probably supported in the sense that the filesystem is part of the kernel.
Edit Although that’s a Linux issue not a distro issue. A distro can “support” it in the sense of making it easier to use, but it not being part of the kernel I would still consider unsupported.
It is preinstalled and precompiled on ubuntu so you don’t need to use dkms to compile the module. IIRC you can even use zfs as root filesystem right from the installation.
Because that one GitHub project that solves your needs but has sparse documentation and only works if it’s as close to what I assumed it was created on.
I don’t think it matters but I usually pick Ubuntu as the base for my server(s) just because I tend to always go back to an Ubuntu spin as my daily driver. It’s better to just have it be the same.
Historically I’ve done exactly that. Debian for servers, Ubuntu for workstations (because I like GNOME). But my hate for Snap runs so deep that I’ve started using Debian w/ GNOME more and more often over the last year or so.
When I last used Debian, I found myself very annoyed with the lag in the package manager. This is a very long time ago (15 years?), so probably isn’t the case any longer. However, due to laziness (or proactively avoiding a bikeshed rabbit hole) I didn’t check and just chose Ubuntu over Debian the other day because of that.
If you are in an enterprise environment, it is easier to sell Ubuntu - at least there is a company that can provide support for it behind. Companies want to make sure someone is on the hook to fix an issue that would be blocking to them, and this is much harder with something like Debian.
That’s why Red Hat is used that much in companies, and what Canonical main revenues are coming from.
But as a selfhoster, I use Debian by default for my servers. Only if there is a very specific need for Ubuntu would I switch, and I am frankly tired of the Snap shenanigans on my desktop (thinking of migrating to PopOS or KDE Neon).
Most people only relate Linux to Ubuntu, Linux init system to SysVInit or SystemD, Containerisation to Docker or Kubernetes, Linux desktop to Gnome.
In some cases, it may be due to official support being available but most of the time it’s just that people are being taught Ubuntu first as “THE Linux” and that’s what they use since then.
Too convoluted, fit into bureaucracy and contains incentive for RedHat to not make it easier to understand. I say we shoot the entire project but that’s not going to happen with Debian and Arch using it (I cried the days they made the switch, respectively)
Our misery indeed. But will doing that give Suse the monopoly over RPM-based distributions in the enterprise space? I don’t know. I’m happy as long as Rocky and Alma figure something out
You’re not wrong, but at the same time suse is one of the oldest distros, and having worked with them they seem to have the best attitude, I’ve never seen them be dicks about anything to anyone.
Still, never good to depend on anyone lest they turn out evil, but I’ve hated redhat since they started, they wanted to become Microsoft from the beginning and all their code looks like it came straight out of Redmond.
You are not logged in. However you can subscribe from another Fediverse account, for example Lemmy or Mastodon. To do this, paste the following into the search field of your instance: !selfhosted@lemmy.world
A place to share alternatives to popular online services that can be self-hosted without giving up privacy or locking you into a service you don’t control.
Rules:
Be civil: we’re here to support and learn from one another. Insults won’t be tolerated. Flame wars are frowned upon.
No spam posting.
Posts have to be centered around self-hosting. There are other communities for discussing hardware or home computing. If it’s not obvious why your post topic revolves around selfhosting, please include details to make it clear.
Don’t duplicate the full text of your blog or github here. Just post the link for folks to click.
Submission headline should match the article title (don’t cherry-pick information from the title to fit your agenda).
No trolling.
Resources:
selfh.st Newsletter and index of selfhosted software and apps
deleted by creator
10? I thought lts is 5y?
But yeah, 10y on a version would have all sorts of versioning issues. Though I have seem some old industrial pcs running on xp for a long time!
It’s 10 with a pro license. And everybody can register 5 machines to pro for free
deleted by creator
5 yrs for free is LTS, 10 for “Pro” enterprise subscription ($$$).
Before self-hosting web apps became one-click install away, Ubuntu was a lot more convenient with newer technologies, readily available documentation, and a clear update schedule. At least, that was my case.
Familiarity (my client distro is Pop and is based on Ubuntu), and I like the LTS life cycle (predictable).
I do uninstall snaps, though, and mostly just use Docker for things. I could use Debian, but again, for me it was about familiarity and support (a lot more Ubuntu specific documentation).
I used Ubuntu for a while and distro-hopped before deciding to land on Debian. I figured major distros used it as their base for a reason. The older I get the more I appreciate the “it’ll release when its ready” approach that Debian takes. There’s no economic pressure to release with major bugs hoping the next sprint will fix most issues, like a lot of “enterprise” software. The Debian release cycle is not 100% predictable, but it is reliable. I’ve had a server go through a few major upgrades for nearly a decade before the hardware itself gave out. The OS was rock solid the entire time. Additionally, with flatpak, outdated desktop apps are no longer an issue and I use docker for hosting services.
I will admit that Debian is pretty “bland” from a fresh install, but I don’t mind that at all.
Started with RaspiOS and transitioned to vanilla Debian + OMV5 later on.
So far I never had issues whatsoever withy server. If there was an issue usually not due to debian but me learning to work with linux.
How are you liking OMV5? Pros/cons?
Didn’t try anything else like TrueNas so take it for what you want.
OMV5/6 are pretty good NAS softwares with an out of the box working interface. Nothing really you don’t want.
Upside: It’s Debian under the hood. So if you want to dip into Linux I think it’s great.
My only gripe is, it’s impossible to upgrade between versions. You’d need to wipe the OS and restart (afaik).
Support & community come to mind.
To a typical user/newcomer to servers it’s easier to find some solution for Ubuntu, than for Debian. And boy, can Debian users be full of themselves… 😑
Ubuntu solutions are Debian solutions
Ubuntu is what grew out of Debian.
But it’s radically different ENVIRONMENT these days.
Yeah, but the essentials still map like 90% of the time, unless you are using their paid stuff
I agree, but the question wasn’t about the percentage of cases, but about the possible reason to choice Ubuntu over Debian…
In my limited experience, that’s pretty accurate unfortunately. But with so many Debian tools becoming more popular, I bet that attitude will change soon
Hard to tell.
Whole Linux movement has plenty of classes to take, if it wants to become more relevant. And social skills is one of the most important among these…
Could be worse, could be Arch users
https://media.tenor.com/GTwhrOg0gT8AAAAM/shocked-scream.gif
Humans are creatures of habit.
ZFS support
I’m confused. I have been running debian with ZFS for years. How is it unsupported?
I’m not OP, but probably supported in the sense that the filesystem is part of the kernel.
Edit Although that’s a Linux issue not a distro issue. A distro can “support” it in the sense of making it easier to use, but it not being part of the kernel I would still consider unsupported.
It is preinstalled and precompiled on ubuntu so you don’t need to use dkms to compile the module. IIRC you can even use zfs as root filesystem right from the installation.
Remember that time I got salty because I was using a distro that’s always 10 years out of date and is actively user hostile?
Because that one GitHub project that solves your needs but has sparse documentation and only works if it’s as close to what I assumed it was created on.
I don’t think it matters but I usually pick Ubuntu as the base for my server(s) just because I tend to always go back to an Ubuntu spin as my daily driver. It’s better to just have it be the same.
Historically I’ve done exactly that. Debian for servers, Ubuntu for workstations (because I like GNOME). But my hate for Snap runs so deep that I’ve started using Debian w/ GNOME more and more often over the last year or so.
As a Linux Mint user I’ve seen the writing on the wall and will be switching to Linux Mint Debian Edition next time I reinstall my desktop.
When I last used Debian, I found myself very annoyed with the lag in the package manager. This is a very long time ago (15 years?), so probably isn’t the case any longer. However, due to laziness (or proactively avoiding a bikeshed rabbit hole) I didn’t check and just chose Ubuntu over Debian the other day because of that.
If you are in an enterprise environment, it is easier to sell Ubuntu - at least there is a company that can provide support for it behind. Companies want to make sure someone is on the hook to fix an issue that would be blocking to them, and this is much harder with something like Debian.
That’s why Red Hat is used that much in companies, and what Canonical main revenues are coming from.
But as a selfhoster, I use Debian by default for my servers. Only if there is a very specific need for Ubuntu would I switch, and I am frankly tired of the Snap shenanigans on my desktop (thinking of migrating to PopOS or KDE Neon).
I’ve really enjoyed Neon. It still has snaps, but everything going through the Discovery app makes installs of flat oaks or snaps seamless.
PopOS is great but threw me for a loop with its lack of GRUB.
Having experienced Canonical’s support, if anyone actually needs it they go to RHEL.
This is the best answer.
Cuz it doesn’t really matter that much
Ubuntu has a bigger market share in the support department. Makes it easier to find advice that applies specifically to your setup.
Most people only relate Linux to Ubuntu, Linux init system to SysVInit or SystemD, Containerisation to Docker or Kubernetes, Linux desktop to Gnome.
In some cases, it may be due to official support being available but most of the time it’s just that people are being taught Ubuntu first as “THE Linux” and that’s what they use since then.
I’d be happier with just SysVInit and not SystemD
That’s fine, or someone with a brain come to pipewire systemd into decent software, either way.
Too convoluted, fit into bureaucracy and contains incentive for RedHat to not make it easier to understand. I say we shoot the entire project but that’s not going to happen with Debian and Arch using it (I cried the days they made the switch, respectively)
Hopefully IBM kills redhat with their shit touch like everything else and put them out of our misery.
Our misery indeed. But will doing that give Suse the monopoly over RPM-based distributions in the enterprise space? I don’t know. I’m happy as long as Rocky and Alma figure something out
You’re not wrong, but at the same time suse is one of the oldest distros, and having worked with them they seem to have the best attitude, I’ve never seen them be dicks about anything to anyone.
Still, never good to depend on anyone lest they turn out evil, but I’ve hated redhat since they started, they wanted to become Microsoft from the beginning and all their code looks like it came straight out of Redmond.
So I don’t see it getting worse at least.