Recently, the official website of the Loong Arch Linux distribution announced the end of the beta stage and official support for LoongArch. Arch Linux is a lightweight, customizable, and flexible Linux operating system. As a simple, modern, and open-source operating system, Arch Linux aims to provide a minimal core system based on the "KISS principle" (Keep It Simple, Stupid), allowing users to highly customize and optimize software according to their needs.

The Arch Linux package manager, pacman, is capable of managing, installing, upgrading, and removing software packages with ease, and supports packages customized by users using the Arch User Repository (AUR). Arch Linux also provides extensive documentation and community support for users to find and solve common problems, and allows them to participate in the development and maintenance of the operating system.

As it is lightweight, simple, and flexible, Arch Linux is often seen as the first choice for advanced users, developers, and Linux enthusiasts.

In order to facilitate the development and testing of patches, Loongson Technology ported Arch Linux to the LoongArch platform during the process of submitting patches to the upstream community in 2021. As the user base of Arch Linux grew, Loongson continued maintenance and development, releasing alpha in July 2021, beta 1 in March 2022, and beta 2 in September 2022. Starting with the beta 2 version, Arch Linux promptly tracks and integrates the latest porting achievements from upstream and delivers updates to users by following a rolling release model.

So far, Loong Arch Linux has undergone rolling releases for three quarters. Its software repositories have ported numerous open-source software and desktop environments including Gnome, KDE, Mate, XFCE, LXDE, Cinnamon, DDE, and UKUI. Additionally, Loong Arch Linux allows users to directly install AUR packages, catering to the diverse needs of users.

Overall Porting Progress

According to statistics, the current Arch Linux x86_64 version contains 13588 packages in total, with 263 in the core repository and 13325 in the extra repository. The Loong Arch Linux version has 10520 packages in total, with 261 in the core repository and 10259 in the extra repository. The overall porting progress is approximately 77% of the x86_64 version. Subsequently, there will be plans to continuously improve the package repositories while executing rolling updates.