I ram across this long article. It is free to read for all:

https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also
be looking to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I
will be a bit sad to see it go.

--
[t]csh(1) - "An elegant shell, for a more... civilized age."
- Paraphrasing Star Wars

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On 02/09/2025 16:43, John McCue wrote:

I ram across this long article. It is free to read for all:

https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also
be looking to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I
will be a bit sad to see it go.

It's alive and well on ARM and likely to remain that way.

--
Microsoft : the best reason to go to Linux that ever existed.

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On 02/09/2025 16:43, John McCue wrote:

I ram across this long article. It is free to read for all:

https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also
be looking to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I
will be a bit sad to see it go.

There are distributions committed to 32 bit Linux, so I don't think that
will be a problem for the next few years. Browsers OTOH might end up being
a problem, but then again, a thing doesn't need a desktop and browser to
sit in a place and do something useful :-).

--
--
A PICKER OF UNCONSIDERED TRIFLES

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On 02/09/2025 19:58, Jason H wrote:

On 02/09/2025 16:43, John McCue wrote:

I ram across this long article.  It is free to read for all:

https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted.  I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also
be looking to remove all 32 bit support.  *But* as a user I
will be a bit sad to see it go.

There are distributions committed to 32 bit Linux, so I don't think that
will be a problem for the next few years. Browsers OTOH might end up being
a problem, but then again, a thing doesn't need a desktop and browser to
sit in a place and do something useful :-).

Indeed. IIRC it was the ghastliness of browsers in general that lead me
to ditch 32 bit...
--
There is something fascinating about science. One gets such wholesale
returns of conjecture out of such a trifling investment of fact.

Mark Twain

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On Tue, 2 Sep 2025 15:43:17 -0000 (UTC), John McCue wrote:

I ram across this long article. It is free to read for all:

https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also be looking
to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I will be a bit sad to
see it go.

I'm running 32-bit Debian Bullseye at work. While the sites run the legacy software on Windows using the Nutcracker runtime they're dependent on the legacy Esri 32-bit API and 32-bit DB2 drivers.

I don't remember the release numbers but for a while we could build on 64-
bit Ubuntu by setting the compiler flags and loading 32-bit libraries. The
next Ubuntu release made it impossible to find all the libraries so it was easier to go to a 32-bit distro.

i386 was removed from the kernel and many would like to remove 32-bit completely but I think it will be a while yet.

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On Tue, 2 Sep 2025 15:43:17 -0000 (UTC), John McCue wrote:

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also
be looking to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I
will be a bit sad to see it go.

I wonder if big-endian support is not similarly on its last legs. Even architectures that started out firmly big-endian eventually gave in and
added little-endian operation modes.

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On Wed, 3 Sep 2025 00:08:08 -0000 (UTC), Lawrence D’Oliveiro wrote:

On Tue, 2 Sep 2025 15:43:17 -0000 (UTC), John McCue wrote:

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also be looking
to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I will be a bit sad to
see it go.

I wonder if big-endian support is not similarly on its last legs. Even architectures that started out firmly big-endian eventually gave in and
added little-endian operation modes.

I doubt network byte order will go away anytime soon.

We use ONC RPC with XDR for serialization. It made sense when the system
ran under AIX on RS/6000 boxes. When the sites switched to Windows
desktops and servers the double reordering made much less sense.

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On Tue, 2 Sep 2025 19:35:24 +0100, The Natural Philosopher wrote:

On 02/09/2025 16:43, John McCue wrote:

I ram across this long article. It is free to read for all:

https://lwn.net/SubscriberLink/1035727/4837b0d3dccf1cbb/

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also be looking
to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I will be a bit sad to
see it go.

It's alive and well on ARM and likely to remain that way.

Maybe. The OS selection in the Raspberry Pi Imager recommends the 64-bit Bookworm version although it does have 32-bit Bookworm and Bullseye
options.

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On 02.09.2025 18:58 Jason H wrote:

There are distributions committed to 32 bit Linux, so I don't think
that will be a problem for the next few years.

They rely on the upstream kernel. If x86 is being dropped there, those distributions will come to an end.
LTS kernels might give them some months/years, but the end is near.

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On 02.09.2025 15:43 John McCue wrote:

The way I read it, the day may soon come 32 bit Linux will be
sun-setted. I know if I was maintaining Linux I would also
be looking to remove all 32 bit support. *But* as a user I
will be a bit sad to see it go.

A bit yes, but just a bit.

All computers that have an x86 only CPU are more than 10 years old (the
last ones were Intel Atoms in Netbooks around 2011). Most of them are
now out of service and way too slow for most basic office tasks.

Just try to run a current webbrowser on an x86 only Intel Atom and play
a YouTube video. Very slow, if it plays at all. Same for the Core Duo
(not Core 2 Duo, they have x86_64) from the middle 2000s.

It is possible to use such systems as small servers, but the power
consumption is much higher that for a new cheap one - with x86_64.

TLDR: x86 Linux is almost obsolete in most areas.

I still have 2 laptops with Pentium M, mostly useless, as most software/websites run that slow or make the system freeze.

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On 9/3/25 3:06 AM, Marco Moock wrote:

On 02.09.2025 18:58 Jason H wrote:

There are distributions committed to 32 bit Linux, so I don't think
that will be a problem for the next few years.

They rely on the upstream kernel. If x86 is being dropped there, those distributions will come to an end.
LTS kernels might give them some months/years, but the end is near.

There is not much 32-bit hardware out there
anymore. Even cheap stuff like PIs handle
64-bit.

DO encourage at least ONE distro to hang on to
a 32-bit version for a few more years though.
After that ....... the past is the past.

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