I've been running the main Manjaro Linux edition with Xfce for several months on a machine I like to tinker with (it's not my main machine). I wanted to install Arch, but was in over my head on my own. I was thinking I would uninstall the Manjaro packages as much as I can and be left with as close to an Arch base install. Is this possible? Or is there another route I should consider to get Arch?

Hi and welcome to LQ, jridgers.

You can install Arch alongside Manjaro as an alternate boot. You also can explore Arch via live boot by booting off of a DVD or memory stick, or you can try Arch using Virtual Box. I'd give it a try first to explore and see what you like about it, and then look into installing Arch as a second boot for your system if you decide you wish to keep Manjaro.

What you're describing about un-installing packages and trying to attain a minimal installation to get near an Arch install is definitely a very difficult and painful method which seems unlikely to be successful for most average, or even talented Linux persons.

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i'd say no.
first you should define what are "manajro packages". you can't? exactly.
but, afaik manjaro uses its own repositories, so you would have to change from that to the standard archlinux repos, make a full sync & update, and see which packages cause trouble or are orphaned and what to do about it.
...yes, very painful...
comparable to trying to change a ubuntu install "back into debian".

fwiw, there are a few pure archlinux installers, i.e. installers created from the (hopefully latest) archlinux .iso, that take that burden off you.
archbang used to be one, and i consider the installed result to be archlinux, because it doesn't use any external repositories. it's just an installer.

but really, going through the process is the best thing about arch linux!
think about it: you do it ONCE and never, ever have to reinstall (ok, supposing you don't bork it and are happy with it).
and you will KNOW your system!

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Just to interject a different opinion, I like ARch. I DESPISE the install. I swap hardware ~ every 6 month - 12 months, so I reinstall A LOT. If not for the systems like Antegros (my personal favorite Arch installer) or ArchBang, I hate the installer so much I wouldn't use Arch. It's not that it's hard (you do it once or twice and it's not), it's that it's SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO time consuming. Absolutely not worth it. I haven't used it in like 3 years, and will never probably use it again.

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You might want to check the Manjaro site. They have a minimal install available without a gui. While this may not be pure Arch, it might be the kind of minimal install you can build the system you want on. I just installed Manjaro with XFCE. I'm going to play with that for a while then I'm considering installing the minimal version as a dual boot. Anyway, it's an idea you might consider.

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Perhaps this will help the next person with such a (newbie) question.
Manjaro Linux is Arch Linux which is to say it is 100% compatible and the difference is they add the installer, a few tools and change some names here and there while providing one of the best/friendliest group of developers and users one will find anywhere.

If one's idea is to get raw Arch without actually spending the long, tedious time installing Arch on a system where Manjaro Linux is already installed, then at a CLI of choice do
and follow with
That installs the latest Arch, hot off the presses, with very few changes by Manjaro dev's and all the Arch issues, if any exist, hence why it is labeled as "unstable" repo. One can further 'archysize' the Manjaro by using AUR to install and run a different kernel, say linux-ck or linux-mainline.

If the results are satisfactory and one wants to keep the 'raw' then follow the instructions here:
https://wiki.manjaro.org/index.php?t...itory_Branch_2

...

If one is looking for a new minimal install, get the Manjaro 17 LXQt ISO in desired/needed x86 version, and choose the packages to install. If one does not choose any, a bare tty(CLI)-based system gets installed.

...
c-ya

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manjaro is a good distro with a friendly community, i am with you so far.
but it simply and factually is not archlinux, and is not 100% compatible.
please also re-read this post.
it is a pacman-based distro that has developed from archlinux.
it uses different repos for a start. that means not only additional programs, scripts and utilities, but also different versions of common software.

this command is not part of pacman on archlinux.
do 'pacman -Qo pacman-mirrors' and see yourself.

what presses? that's nonsensical.
i don't know what the previous pacman-mirrors command does, so i cannot say much.

there, you said it yourself.
i personally resent that people label archlinux as inherently unstable.
it has been the most stable distro i've used since i started using linux.

nonsense again.
you cannot "archize" something by installing something that is, by definition, not part of mainline archlinux (i.e., the arch user repository).


again, the command pacman-mirrors is not part of archlinux.
also nowhere does it sday in that wiki that that process would bring you "close to a bare arch install".
also i notice that they label their own manjaro repos (!) stable, testing, unstable. again, nothing to do with archlinux. sounds more like debian/ubuntu to me.


on a constructive note, i think what op really wanted is this.
install CLI only, then install what they need only on top of that.
i guess manjaro has a cli-only installer option?

and i say it again, i have nothing against manjaro!

but people have to understand that there is a difference.
manjaro is to archlinux what ubuntu is to debian.

Pheeew !!!.
You must update more often then me ...
And then they went and snuck KDE5 in on me unnoticed. That was a PITA - but yes I too am an Arch fan. I don't recall the install being that big a deal - was a while ago since I've done one from scratch tho' ...

This is truth. Arch is theoretically my favorite distro, but I cannot bear the thought of spending the time to install and configure it. The base install and graphical environment install are pretty straight forward. But, all the reading and checking and configuring is too time-consuming, especially considering Manjaro gives many of the same benefits without the headache. I appreciate having taken the time to get to know Arch and install it and use it fairly long-term (longer than any other distro). But my time is not worth treading that ground (installing from scratch) again for no additional gain.

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