Linux From Scratch ends SysVinit support
by cf100clunk on 2/2/2026, 5:45:27 PM
https://lists.linuxfromscratch.org/sympa/arc/lfs-announce/2026-02/msg00000.html
Comments
by: cf100clunk
This is a mindblower. To quote Bruce Dubbs:<p>''As a personal note, I do not like this decision. To me LFS is about learning how a system works. Understanding the boot process is a big part of that. systemd is about 1678 "C" files plus many data files. System V is "22" C files plus about 50 short bash scripts and data files. Yes, systemd provides a lot of capabilities, but we will be losing some things I consider important.<p>However, the decision needs to be made.''
2/2/2026, 5:47:14 PM
by: eikenberry
SysV init was the overengineered cousin to BSD init and I never liked it. Easily my least favorite of all init systems I've worked with over the last 30 years. On the flip side, daemontools or maybe runit were my favorites. Lots of good options for init/supervision tooling over the years and SysV was not among them.
2/2/2026, 6:33:03 PM
by: antonyh
All I want is init scripts and X11, but the horizons are shrinking. I've already compromised with systemd, and I don't like it. I see BSD in my future, or at least a linux distro from the list here <a href="https://nosystemd.org/" rel="nofollow">https://nosystemd.org/</a> - probably Gentoo. Nothing to stop me, absolutely nothing at all. I just need a few days free to backup/wipe/reinstall/reconfigure/restore_data and I'll be good. Better make that a few weeks. Maybe on my next machine build. It's not easy, but I build machines for long term use.<p>As for Linux from Scratch - This is something that's been on my radar, but without the part I'm truly interested in (learning more about SysV) then I'm less inclined to bother. I don't buy the reason of Gnome/KDE - isn't LfS all about the basics of the distro than building a fully fledged system? If it's the foundation for the other courses, but it still feels weak that it's so guided by a future GUI requirement for systemd when it's talking about building web servers and the like in a 500Mb or less as the motivation.
2/2/2026, 6:46:15 PM
by: smartmic
It's a pity. It's also a step back from valuing the Unix philosophy, which has its merits, especially for those with a "learning the system from scratch" mindset. Sorry, but I have no sympathy for systemd.
2/2/2026, 6:22:20 PM
by: mid-kid
I was considering forking the base book and maintaining it, as I have kept an eye and occassionally built the project over the years (I use it a lot for package management/bootstrapping/cross compilation experiments), but it appears there already is one: <a href="https://lists.linuxfromscratch.org/sympa/arc/lfs-dev/2026-02/msg00001.html" rel="nofollow">https://lists.linuxfromscratch.org/sympa/arc/lfs-dev/2026-02...</a><p>I believe maintaining the base book is the most important part, BLFS has some really good hints but a very significant amount of packages have few differences, collecting these in a separate hints file or similar would help a bit, at least for things that don't hard-depend on systemd like gnome.
2/2/2026, 7:13:49 PM
by: spudlyo
That's funny, I did LFS a few years ago and specifically chose the systemd version so I could better understand it. I don't think this is a huge deal, I believe the older versions of the document that include SysVinit will still be available for a long time to come, and people who want it will figure out how to muddle through. If at some point in the future things diverge to such a point where that that becomes untenable, someone will step up and document how it is to be accomplished.
2/2/2026, 6:27:07 PM
by: byte_0
From a completely technical standpoint, is systemd really better than SysVInit? I ask this question in good faith. I have used both and had no problems with either, although for personal preference, I am more traditional and favor SysVInit.
2/2/2026, 7:12:36 PM
by: haunter
So this will be the final SysVinit version <a href="https://www.linuxfromscratch.org/lfs/downloads/12.4/" rel="nofollow">https://www.linuxfromscratch.org/lfs/downloads/12.4/</a>
2/2/2026, 6:46:12 PM
by: JCattheATM
> Understanding the boot process is a big part of that. systemd is about 1678 "C" files plus many data files. System V is "22" C files plus about 50 short bash scripts and data files.<p>Systemd is basically the Windowsfication of Linux. I'm always surprised by the people that champion it who also used to shit on Windows with the registry or whatever.<p>Cognitive dissonance is a hell of a thing.
2/2/2026, 6:39:00 PM
by: abhisek
LFS. Brings back so many painful memories. But then, learned so much.
2/2/2026, 6:27:33 PM
by: SockThief
I hate it when a website assumes the language I'm speaking based on my IP. There is no apparent way to change it as well. It's just lazy and hostile design in my opinion.
2/2/2026, 6:56:14 PM
by: 1vuio0pswjnm7
What does "support" mean
2/2/2026, 5:58:03 PM
by: WhereIsTheTruth
Just rename Linux to SystemD OS at this point..
2/2/2026, 6:58:10 PM
by: jmclnx
>The second reason for dropping System V is that packages like GNOME and soon KDE's Plasma are building in requirements that require capabilities in systemd<p>Do people who really uses LFS even want GNOME or KDE on their system ?
2/2/2026, 6:23:57 PM