Product Guide

21-in-1 Linux USB

Twenty-one different operating systems on one drive. Try any of them without touching what's already on your computer — then install the one you like, if you want to.

Jump to the steps Which one should I pick?

Trying is completely safe. Installing is not.

Every system on this drive runs in live mode — entirely from the USB stick, in your computer's memory, without touching your hard drive. Look around, browse the web, decide if you like it. Restart and everything is exactly as it was, with nothing saved and nothing changed.

Only when you click something explicitly labelled Install does anything get written to your computer — and that can erase Windows and all your files. Back up first.

Using the drive

Haven't started your computer from the drive yet? Do that first — the five steps are here.

  1. Pick a system from the list

    A plain menu appears listing every system on the drive. Move with the arrow keys and press Enter. Your mouse won't work in this menu.

    Sometimes a second, shorter menu follows — choose the option mentioning live, Try, or the plain first entry.

  2. Wait for it to load, then explore

    Running from a USB stick, first load takes two to five minutes, and everything feels slower than it would once installed. That's the USB connection, not the system itself.

    If you're asked to log in during a live session, try these — they cover almost every distribution on the drive:

    • Username live, user or the system's own name, with the password left blank
    • Password live or toor
    • Simply press Enter without typing anything

    No Wi-Fi in the live session? Common, and usually a missing driver for that specific wireless chip. Plug in an ethernet cable, or try a different system from the menu.

  3. If you decide to install it

    Back up everything first

    An option worded like “Erase disk and install” does precisely that — Windows, your photos, your documents, all of it. Copy anything you want to keep onto a separate drive before you begin.

    1. Find the Install icon on the desktop and double-click it.
    2. Follow the prompts for language, keyboard and time zone.
    3. Connect to the internet when asked — it makes the rest go more smoothly.
    4. At the disk step, read carefully:
      • Erase disk and install — wipes everything, including Windows
      • Install alongside Windows — keeps both, and you choose at each startup
      • Something else / Manual — only if you're confident with partitions
    5. Create your username and password. Write them down. There's no reset link.
    6. Let it finish, then restart and remove the USB drive when prompted.

    Installing alongside Windows is the cautious choice while you make up your mind.

Which system should you try?

Twenty-one is a lot of choice. If you're new to this, start here:

Coming from Windows

Linux Mint is the gentlest landing. The desktop, menu and taskbar all work the way you already expect. Zorin is a close second.

The popular default

Ubuntu is the most widely used, so nearly every guide, forum answer and video online assumes it. Easiest to find help for.

An old, slow computer

Puppy or TinyCore are built for very limited hardware and will run on machines Windows gave up on years ago.

Arch, Kali, Tails and FreeDOS are specialist tools aimed at experienced users — interesting to look at, but not a first choice for everyday use.

List of the 21 systems on the drive: Arch, BunsenLabs, CentOS, Debian, Fedora, FreeDOS, Kali, Mint, Manjaro, Neptune, Netrunner, openSUSE, PCLinuxOS, Pop! OS, Puppy, PureOS, Tails, TinyCore, Ubuntu, Windows 11 and Zorin.
Exact systems and version numbers vary between production runs.

Common questions

Will this remove Windows from my computer?

Not unless you tell it to. Trying a system in live mode changes nothing whatsoever. Windows is only removed if you run an installer and choose an option that erases the disk.

Can I save my work in a live session?

No — a live session forgets everything at restart, which is what makes it safe to experiment with. To keep files, save them to a second USB stick or an external drive during the session, or install the system properly.

One of the systems won't start, or the screen goes black

Not every distribution supports every piece of hardware — graphics chips are the usual sticking point.

  • Try a different system from the menu. Ubuntu and Mint have the broadest hardware support.
  • Look for a safe graphics or nomodeset option in the second menu.
  • Check Secure Boot — some distributions need it disabled.

A system that won't start is a hardware compatibility issue, not a fault with the drive.

Why is it so slow?

Everything is being read from a USB stick, which is many times slower than your computer's internal drive. This is normal for live mode and it is not how the system performs once installed — an installed system runs at full speed.

There's a Windows 11 entry — can I install Windows with this?

Yes, the drive includes Windows installation media. You'll need a valid licence — though if this computer ran an activated copy of Windows before, it reactivates automatically. Our 4-in-1 Toolkit guide covers Windows installation in full.

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