π₯οΈ Reusing Old Computers with Arch Linux and DWM
π 2026-04-04 12:20
Old computers don't need to die. They just need less. I already wrote a post about
β»οΈ Why you should buy and re-purpose old tiny PCs
Modern operating systems assume fast CPUs, lots of RAM, and constant background activity. Older machines can't keep up - but that doesn't mean they're useless.
With the right tools, they become fast and usable again: as servers or as a personal computers. Today we're not focusing on home labs or servers. We're gonna make an usable personal computer even if it's considered obsolete by modern standards.
Most "slow computer" problems are not hardware problems. They're software problems. Heavy desktop environments, background services, and bloated apps eat resources. Remove them, and suddenly:
- boot times drop
- RAM usage shrinks
- the system feels responsive again
This is where Arch Linux and DWM come in. In 2026, reclaiming an old machine with Arch Linux and DWM means getting back a truly personal computer again. Instead of a locked-down, resource-hungry system deciding how your hardware is used, you run something minimal, transparent, and entirely under your control. Even aging hardware becomes fast, responsive, and distraction free - not because it's powerful, but because nothing unnecessary stands in your way. Let's get started
Step 1: Install Arch Linux
Start with a minimal base system. Follow this guide:
The goal is simple:
- no desktop environment
- no unnecessary services
- just a clean, minimal system
Arch gives you exactly what you install - nothing more. That's perfect for old hardware.
Step 2: Add a lightweight graphical environment
Instead of installing a full desktop environment, use a window manager like DWM. Follow this guide:
πͺ Install DWM (Dynamic Window Manager)
dwm is extremely small and fast. It's designed to do one thing: manage windows.
With dwm you should also install:
- dmenu (app launcher)
- st (simple terminal)
These are part of the same minimal philosophy.
Why dwm?
dwm is different from typical desktop environments:
- no configuration files - you can edit the source code
- extremely small binary
- tiling window management by default
- almost zero overhead
It's fast because it avoids complexity. On old machines, this makes a huge difference.
What you gain
After setting this up, even very old hardware becomes usable again:
- 10β20 year old laptops can browse the web with a browser like Firefox or Brave ( yes, they can do it)
- old desktops become coding machines as they can easily handle vim, git, docker etc.
- systems feel instant instead of sluggish
- you also gain control over deciding what runs
What you lose
- no βplug and playβ experience
- manual configuration of services
- you build your environment yourself on every change as dwm requires recompiling to change settings, since configuration is done in source code.
Old computers are only "obsolete" if you run modern bloat on them. Strip things down, and they come back to life. Arch Linux gives you the base. dwm gives you speed.
The rest is up to you.
Check out this GitHub repo. It's my customized build of DWM. You can clone and install it or check out the code and scripts. There are a lot of comments and tips on how to make your own version: