> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://itsfoss.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Return of The Meme! Hannah Montana Linux Lives Again in 2026 - URL: https://itsfoss.com/news/return-of-hannah-montana-linux/ - Published: 2026-07-06T10:21:12.000Z - Updated: 2026-07-06T10:21:12.000Z - Description: A curious developer took it upon himself to revive this *iconic* gem. - Author: Sourav Rudra - Tags: News Hannah Montana Linux (HML) has become a conversation starter in the land of FOSS (*aka FOSSLand?*), and somehow, the year is 2026\. The remaster, released by [Noah Cagle](https://www.decacagle.com/?ref=itsfoss.com), a developer/YouTuber, has taken us by surprise. This [new avatar of HML](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKx5UZsX9jw&ref=itsfoss.com) is a combination of Debian Live tooling and the Calamares installer, with most of the makeover happening inside KDE Plasma, the desktop environment of choice here. **For anyone unfamiliar**, the original [Hannah Montana Linux](https://linux.fandom.com/wiki/Hannah%5FMontana%5FLinux?ref=itsfoss.com) was *bestowed* upon us in 2009, riding on Kubuntu 9.04 and KDE 4.2, drenched in hot pink Disney Channel branding. It might sound like a fever dream, but it was a real, functioning operating system, and that absurdity is precisely what turned it into a long-running Linux meme that never quite died. ## HML in 2026!? ![a kde plasma interface with pink themeing all over is shown here with the app launcher open and a linux-themed hannah montana wallpaper in the background](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2026/07/hannah-montana-linux-desktop.jpg) This variant of HML is built on [Debian 13](https://itsfoss.com/news/debian-13-release/), with non-free repositories enabled from the beginning for easy access to proprietary hardware drivers. Noah used [live-build](https://manpages.debian.org/testing/live-build/live-build.7.en.html?ref=itsfoss.com), Debian's tool for building custom distributions, and a few custom flags to get this up and running. Most of the visual changes you see here are the result of cloning Plasma assets and manually editing them. The "*pretty pink*" color scheme is a copy of [Breeze](https://github.com/kde/breeze?ref=itsfoss.com) with only the window header and button highlight colors changed. The wallpaper is rebuilt from the original 2009 PNG file, resized for widescreen screens, with a recreated glitter effect and Hannah's cutout pasted back in. ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2026/07/hannah-montana-linux-themes.jpg) ![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2026/07/hannah-montana-linux-calamares-installer.jpg) **The theme options and Calamares installer on HML.* Similarly, the icon pack ships with only one replacement icon for the kickoff start menu button, which was taken from the Hannah Montana logo. The panel's pink color comes from a separate Plasma theme, copied and recolored from [Noir Dark](https://github.com/L4ki/Breeze-Noir-Dark?ref=itsfoss.com)'s panel background SVG in [Inkscape](https://inkscape.org/?ref=itsfoss.com). All of these pieces are bundled into one *Global Theme* for quick access. For the installer, the default Debian installer was replaced in favor of [Calamares](https://calamares.io/?ref=itsfoss.com), with the distro's existing Calamares-specific assets being reused and redesigned for use in HML to match the rest of the theme. ## Grab an image Noah has not hosted a dedicated website for this project, so you will have to make do with the [GitLab](https://gitlab.com/DecaCagle/hannahmontanalinux26?ref=itsfoss.com) repository that hosts the source code as well as [the latest release](https://gitlab.com/DecaCagle/hannahmontanalinux26/-/releases?ref=itsfoss.com) of Hannah Montana Linux (*v26.1 at the time of writing*). [Hannah Montana Linux](https://gitlab.com/DecaCagle/hannahmontanalinux26/-/releases?ref=itsfoss.com) *Btw, the main release isn't the only option on offer.* πŸ‘‡ The [HML26 Lite](https://gitlab.com/DecaCagle/HannahMontanaLinux26Lite?ref=itsfoss.com) image swaps Plasma and SDDM for **LXQt** and **LightDM**, making HML a more suitable option for people running RAM-constrained, older hardware. And **if you already run Plasma** and just want the look without needing to install a whole new operating system, the *exquisite* pink theme has its own [standalone repository](https://gitlab.com/DecaCagle/hannah-montana-kde-theme?ref=itsfoss.com). I must say, **this is mostly a passion project**, and only time will tell how maintained this new avatar of HML will be. If you just want to [distrohop](https://itsfoss.com/distrohopping-issues/) and see what this offers, then this is a great fit, but if you intend to daily drive it, your mileage may vary. --- **Suggested Read πŸ“–:** [*14 Discontinued Linux Distros I Still Miss*](https://itsfoss.com/discontinued-linux-distros/) [14 Discontinued Linux Distros I Still Miss in 2025Some popular Linux distributions did not make it. Let’s take a look at some of them!![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/icon/android-chrome-512x512-8203da0c-e39c-431b-884c-d6b7c3a028ec.png)It's FOSSAnkush Das![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/thumbnail/discontinued-popular-linux-distros-0630cd3d-0282-435b-aa9b-74ebe246bfd2.png)](https://itsfoss.com/discontinued-linux-distros/)