Abstract: Single-phase-to-ground-fault arcs in distribution networks may frequently cause forest fires and burning of electrical equipment. The magnitude and composition of the ground-fault current change profoundly with the increasing scale and nonlinear load of the distribution networks. This poses a huge challenge to the suppression of ground arcs by traditional arc suppression devices. However, flexible arc suppression technology can be adopted to effectively solve the problems of traditional arc suppression devices. This paper analyzes the adaptability and economy of flexible arc suppression technology from the view of arc suppression theory and multifunctional collaborative control strategy. At the same time, the existing flexible arc suppression devices, arc suppression principles and multi-functional integration methods at home and abroad are sorted out. And the key technical characteristics of existing flexible arc suppression technology are summarized. Then the main problems of existing flexible arc suppression technology are discussed. Finally, the future research direction is expected to provide a reference for the engineering application and promotion of flexible arc suppression technology after analyzing the development trend of the distribution networks towards flexibility and the user's requirements for power supply reliability.