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Fedora provides three primary Editions tailored for some specific use cases. https://getfedora.org offers https://getfedora.org/en/iot/[Fedora IoT] as a trusted open source platform for IoT ecosystems, https://getfedora.org/en/server/[Fedora Server] for organizational infrastructure, and https://getfedora.org/en/workstation/[Fedora Workstation] for the developer and desktop user. Further, there are three emerging editions: Fedora CoreOS is an automatically updating, minimal, container-focused operating system, and https://silverblue.fedoraproject.org/[Fedora Silverblue] (GNOME desktop) and https://kinoite.fedoraproject.org[Fedora Kinoite] (KDE desktop) are for desktop use cases with container-focused workflows.
For default desktop use cases comparable to Fedora Workstation but with alternative desktop environments (e.g., KDE), check out Fedora Spins.
Additionally, there are https://labs.fedoraproject.org/[Fedora Labs] for special use cases (Labs should be used only for their respective use case!). Further, there are https://alt.fedoraproject.org/[alternative downloads], which are intended for experts: you should only use the alternative downloads if you are sure.
Each of these downloads provides a different set of default packages, but you can add more packages to your system after the installation to customize it for your needs. Also, you can remove unneeded packages later cleanly: dnf removes packages without leftovers.
If you are not sure about your architecture, you should have a look on the table below: this could help you to indicate what you have.
Changing a Fedora installation from one architecture to another is not supported. Use the following table to determine the architecture of your computer according to the type of processor. Consult your manufacturer’s documentation for details on your processor, or resources such as https://ark.intel.com/ or https://products.amd.com/, if necessary.
| Processor manufacturer and types of computer | Architecture type for Fedora |
|---|---|
Most computers with Intel and AMD processors; Mac computers before Apple M1; most server, workstation, desktop and laptop type computers; some netbooks and tablets |
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Most processors other than Intel and AMD; Mac computers beginning with Apple M1; Raspberry Pi and most comparable devices; most tablets; some netbooks |
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ARM devices often require special setup procedures that aren’t covered in this guide. Start learning about Fedora ARM at https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Architectures/ARM
Additionally, there is an armhfp architecture image for Fedora IoT available: if you are not sure, it is unlikely that you have armhfp because this is a specialized architecture that is not in common use by average people.
If you already use a Linux distribution on the respective computer, you can enter uname -m within a terminal to identify your architecture. If you use another operating system, use your preferred search engine to find out how to identify the architecture on the respective computer. Alternatively, you can search for your hardware (e.g., processor/cpu model, vendor product number of the computer): the processor/cpu determines the architecture.
Fedora Workstation, the Fedora Spins and the Fedora Labs are provided as live images.
- Live Images
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Live images ("Live ISO") allow you to preview Fedora before installing it. Instead of booting directly into the installer, a live image loads the same environment you’ll get after installation. Live images provide an offline installation source.
Use a live image to install your favorite system, test Fedora on new hardware, troubleshoot, or share with friends.
Fedora Server, Fedora IoT, Fedora CoreOS, but also Fedora Silverblue and Fedora Kinoite are available as standard images.
- Standard Images
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Standard images ("Standard ISO") boot directly into the installation environment, and allow you to choose from a variety of packages that are provided with it.
The standard images allow more customizations in Fedora installations and provide an offline installation source. However, they do not provide an live environment.
Additionally, Fedora Server is also provided with netinstall images.
- Netinstall Images
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Netinstall images ("Netinstall ISO") boot directly into the installation environment, and use the online Fedora package repositories as the installation source. This means that the system needs to be online throughout the installation. However, once installed, the packages are immediately up to date (with other images, after installing, you should run an update as soon as an installation is online). Officially, Netinstall images are currently intended only for Fedora Server installations. You should only use these images to install other editions if you are sure about what you are doing!