Summary
- Neofetch has been archived due to developer inactivity.
- Fastfetch, hwinfo, cpufetch, ramfetch, and Onefetch are suitable replacements.
- Your distro will likely decide the fate of the Neofetch package.
The popular Linux screenshot utility NeoFetch has finally been archived after several years of inactivity. What should you do if you need system information to show off in your Linux desktop shot? Are the alternatives any good? Let’s find out.
What Is Neofetch?
Neofetch is ostensibly a tool to gather system information on an operating system. It displays details like the Linux distribution, CPU, and the desktop environment or terminal emulator you’re using.
But the most popular feature is the display of the OS logo in ASCII art. This is what makes Neofetch so popular for making screenshots; ASCII art just looks cool.
Neofetch isn’t an exclusive Linux program, but it’s widely associated with Linux systems, whose users still make extensive use of the terminal.
What Is Happening to the Project?
On April 26, 2024, Neofetch’s developer announced that they were archiving the Neofetch project, putting the code into a read-only state and ceasing future updates. This follows several years of apparent inactivity on the project.
Using the handle @dylanaraps on GitHub, the developer also maintained the Kiss Linux distribution, another project they have archived. It seems dylanaraps has stepped away from software development altogether, leaving a message on their GitHub page that they had “taken up farming.”
Since it’s open source, anyone can take the existing code and fork it to continue development. At least one developer has already done so, announcing it on Hacker News.
Plenty of open-source programs, like Neofetch, are maintained by small teams or even individual developers, usually unpaid. This can lead to developer burnout. It’s even resulted in security problems slipping by without notice.
Can I Still Use Neofetch?
If you have Neofetch installed on your Linux system, you don’t need to find a replacement right away.
Since most regular-release distros tend to lag behind the current development state of the upstream software, if you use one of these distros, you’re most likely using an older version anyway.
While there are alternatives available, it will likely take some time for your distro to add any forks or newer replacements to its repositories. If you want them, you may have to install them manually, possibly even by compiling them from source.
Over time, Neofetch may not be able to detect newer distros and could become a security risk. If you use a popular distribution like Ubuntu, this is less likely to be an issue. Your distro’s maintainers will likely make a decision about the Neofetch package.
Where Can I Find a Replacement for Neofetch?
There are several programs you can use to replace Neofetch.
1. Fastfetch
Screenshot by David Delony -- no attribution needed.
If you use Neofetch for screenshots, this looks like the most promising replacement.
2. hwinfo
This is a useful tool if you use Neofetch to obtain information about your hardware. The information is detailed and technical, to the point where it may be more than most casual users will need. It can be useful for troubleshooting your Linux installation, though.
3. cpufetch
cpufetch is similar to Neofetch, but it displays the logo of your CPU manufacturer instead of the distro logo.
4. ramfetch
ramfetch is a similar idea to cpufetch, but with info on your RAM instead of the processor. You even get an ASCII art RAM stick in your terminal. What’s not to love about that?
5. Onefetch
Onefetch is another twist on Neofetch, but with information on Git repositories instead of operating systems. This is of more use to developers than regular users.