Debian 不会超出 Linux 内核与 GNU 工具集所支持的硬件范围之外。因此，任何被移植了 Linux 内核、libc、gcc 等，并拥有对应的 Debian 移植版的硬件体系或平台都可以运行 Debian。请参考移植页面 http://www.debian.org/ports/mips/ 以了解更多已被 Debian GNU/Linux 测试过的 Mipsel 体系。
本章仅包含一些通用的信息，以及在何处可以获得更多信息的指导，而不是试图列出支持 Mipsel 的所有不同硬件配置。
Debian GNU/Linux 8 supports eight major architectures and several variations of each architecture known as “flavors”.
| 体系 | Debian 命名 | 子体系 | Flavor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intel x86-based | i386 | ||
| AMD64 & Intel 64 | amd64 | ||
| ARM | armel | Intel IXP4xx | ixp4xx |
| Marvell Kirkwood | kirkwood | ||
| Marvell Orion | orion5x | ||
| Versatile | versatile | ||
| 带 FPU 的 ARM | armhf | multiplatform | armmp |
| multiplatform for LPAE-capable systems | armmp-lpae | ||
| 64bit ARM | arm64 | ||
| MIPS (big endian) | mips | SGI IP22 (Indy/Indigo 2) | r4k-ip22 |
| SGI IP32 (O2) | r5k-ip32 | ||
| MIPS Malta (32 bit) | 4kc-malta | ||
| MIPS Malta (64 bit) | 5kc-malta | ||
| MIPS (little endian) | mipsel | MIPS Malta (32 bit) | 4kc-malta |
| MIPS Malta (64 bit) | 5kc-malta | ||
| IBM/Motorola PowerPC | powerpc | PowerMac | pmac |
| PReP | prep | ||
| IBM PowerPC (little endian) | ppc64el | ||
| 64bit IBM S/390 | s390x | 来自 VM-reader 和 DASD 的 IPL | generic |
Debian GNU/kFreeBSD 8 支持两种架构。
| 体系 | Debian 命名 |
|---|---|
| Intel x86-based | kfreebsd-i386 |
| AMD64 & Intel 64 | kfreebsd-amd64 |
本文档主要讲述的是 Mipsel 体系下的安装。如果您在寻找其他 Debian 所支持的体系的信息，请访问 Debian-Ports 网页。
Debian on Mipsel supports the following platforms:
MIPS Malta: this platform is emulated by QEMU and is therefore a nice way to test and run Debian on MIPS if you don't have the hardware.
Complete information regarding supported mips/mipsel machines can be found at the Linux-MIPS homepage. In the following, only the systems supported by the Debian installer will be covered. If you are looking for support for other subarchitectures, please contact the debian-mips mailing list.
对显卡和其他定点设备的具体支持情况，见 http://xorg.freedesktop.org/。 Debian 8 包含 X.Org 7.7 版。