Tiny Core (23 MB) is the recommended option for new users who have a wired network connection. It includes the base Core system and a dynamicFLTK/FLWMgraphical user interface.[6]
Core (17 MB) (also known as "Micro Core Linux") is a smaller variant of Tiny Core without agraphical desktop, though additional extensions can be added to create a system with a graphical desktop environment.[6]
CorePure64 is a port of "Core" to the x86_64 architecture. 64-bit kernel and 64-bit extensions.[7]
dCore (12 MB) is a core made fromDebian orUbuntu compatible files that uses import and the SCEpackage format,[8] a self-contained package format for the Tiny Core distribution since 5.x series.
Core Plus (248 MB) is "an installation image and not the distribution".[6] It is composed of Tiny Core with additional functionality, most notably wireless support and non-US keyboard support.[6]
The developers describe TCL as "a nomadic ultra small graphical desktop operating system capable of booting fromcdrom,pendrive, or frugally from ahard drive."[10] As of version 2.8.1, the core is designed to run primarily inRAM but with three distinct modes of operation:
"Cloud" or Internet mode — A "testdrive" mode using a built-in appbrowserGUI to explore extensions from an online application extension repository loaded into RAM only for the current session.
TCE/Install — A mode for Tiny Core Extensions downloaded and run from a storagepartition but kept assymbolic links in RAM.
TCE/CopyFS — A mode which installs applications onto a Linux partition like a more typical Linux installation.[11]
