ArcoLinux founder Erik Dubois has announced he is ▨stepping away from the project and and shutting down the popular Linux distro.

ArcoLinux is an Arch-based distro that has filled a special role in the Linux community. The d♏istro is 90% straight Arch, but includes a number of ArcoLinux-specific applicatio𓃲ns, as well as some from the Chaotic AUR.

Even more than the distro itself, ArcoLinux was a valuable source of information, with Dubois publishing thousands of inst﷽ructional videos on YouTube, as well as founding the ArcoLinux University. Dubois explained his reason for ending the distro in .

A farewell to the ArcoLinux University

Reflecting on 8 Years of Teaching, Building, and Promoting Linux

After eight years of dedication to the ArcoLinux project and the broader Linux co🌠mmunity, the time has come for me to step away.

This decision wasn’t made lightly. But as I appro🔯ach 60, I’ve found myself with less energy, less focus, and making small mistakes that remind me I’m no longer at my peak. I want to leave ArcoLinux while it’s still strong, and while I can look back with pride at everything we’ve accomplished together.

Dubois goes on to list his project’s impressive accomplishments before expounding on his reasons for stepping back and what’s next.

Why It’s Time to Step Back

Aging i🅠s humbling. As I near 60, I’ve come to realize 𒆙I simply don’t have the same mental sharpness or stamina I used to. I catch myself making little mistakes — the kind that matter when you’re maintaining an ecosystem with this many moving parts.

Rather than let that♋ diminish the quality of ArcoLinux, I choose to leave it while it’s still stable, respected, and v🦩aluable.

Dubois says he wants “to slow down, enjoy life, and maybe tinker with Linux just for fun again—without the pressure of running a large project.” He says “the code, the videos, the documentation—they’ll remain online for others to learn from, fork, or remix.”

For existing ArcoLinux users, there will be ♏transition packages in the coming weeks that make it easy transition to vanilla Arch without the need to reiဣnstall.

Moving Forward

Going forward, we will provide𒉰 you with transition packages that allows users to convert their existing ArcoLinux syst༺ems into an Arch Linux setup. This package will:

• Remove ArcoLinux branding (logos and themes) wherever needed/wanted
• Replace pacman.conf with a new one focused on Arch and Chaotic-AUR
• Change the arcolinux-mirrorlist into one source only – github (free)

You can keep on rolling as you are on Arch – no need to reinstall

While we will no longer build or maintain our own or AUR packages, we will rely on Chaotic-AUR to provide binary packages. Thisꦰ community resource will continue the heavy lifting for AUR support — a role we have fulfilled ourselves for the past 8 y𒐪ears.

The transition is expect൲ed to be complete by July 1, 2025.

While Dubois’ announcement is unfortunate for ArcoLinux users, it is also completely understandable. After years maintaining the distro, it’s understandable that Dubois wants to retire and enjoy having fun with Linux, rather than it being a job.

ArcoLinux should also serve as a cautionary tale. There are many distros in the Linux community, some of which are mainta🔯ined by companies and large communities, while others are maintained by a single individual. Relying on a distro that is maintained by a single user, or just a couple of users, always runs the risk of that distro disappearing.

At the same time, ArcoLinux also demonstrates exactly what kind of distro users do well to rely on, even if it is a smaller distro maintained by one person. While ArcoLinux is going away, the fact𝕴 that i🐈t is essentially just Arch Linux underneath means that users have an easy path forward.

At the eꦛnd of the day, ArcoLinux will be missed, but the legacy it leaves behind will ♕continue on for years to come.