The Linux Mint team has announced the arrival of a new Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) release, LMDE 7 with the nickname "Gigi." This full release, following the LMDE 7 beta just over a month ago, is the first in the series to drop 32-bit support. It also updates the LMDE experience to keep up with other Linux Mint releases.
LMDE 7, also called Linux Mint 7, is dropping 32-bit (technically i386) support. That means if you have an i386 processor , you won't be able to install LMDE 7 on it, and if you're already running LMDE 6 on one, you won't be able to upgrade. LMDE releases typically get about three years of support, so I wouldn't keep using LMDE 6 on any machine past October 2026. It's a sad change considering LMDE is one of our top-recommended distros for 32-bit PCs .
This happened because LMDE is a Linux distribution based on Debian Linux. The latest version of Debian, Debian 13 "Trixie," was the first version to end 32-bit support. Debian is the foundation for many Linux distributions, so if it kills a base-level feature, that feature will almost always disappear in downstream distributions too. Patching features like architecture support is a significant task that most distribution maintainers (who are usually volunteers) don't have time for.
In terms of added feature updates for Gigi, the Linux Mint development team didn't have much to say. They simply wrote:
Linux Mint 7 comes with updated software and brings refinements and many new features to make your desktop experience more comfortable.
The release notes for LMDE 6 were similarly reticent. Keep in mind that the primary purpose of LMDE is to be a fallback in the scenario that Ubuntu Linux—the distro that regular Linux Mint is based on—were to cease to exist for some reason. So you can generally expect little difference between the LMDE and conventional Linux Mint distros. If you look at Debian 13 changes and the Linux Mint 22.2 release announcement , you'll get an idea of what to expect in LMDE 7.
To learn about potential issues you might have installing it and some tips for getting started, take a peak at the LMDE 7 release notes . When you're ready to install, head to the LMDE 7 download page and grab the ISO file. You'll need at least 20GB of storage space and 2GB of RAM, though the Mint team recommends 100GB of storage and 4GB of RAM. They also say you'll want a resolution of at least 1024×768 to avoid windowing issues.
If you're already running LMDE 6, you can upgrade by running these two commands:
When that installation process completes, you can launch the graphical upgrade wizard by running this command:
See the LMDE 7 upgrade notes for a full walkthrough and cleanup information.
While it's sad to see 32-bit support going away, Linux Mint in all its forms remains one of the best desktop Linux distros out there, especially if you're new to the Linux community. Seeing a new LMDE release is an encouraging sign of progress and resilience, especially as Windows 10 reaches its official end of life . In fact, LMDE 7 is probably a great first consideration as a Linux replacement for Windows 10 .
Source: Linux Mint blog via GamingOnLinux
