Vanilla OS Initial Release Is Now Available
A stock GNOME experience with on-demand immutability finally sees its first production release.
A brand new Linux distribution is now available with a unique feature you won't find in many operating systems. This distribution is called Vanilla OS and offers a stock GNOME experience (using GNOME 43) and is based on Ubuntu 22.10.
The key features of Vanilla OS include its own installer (written in GTK4 and libadwaita), a handy first setup application to guide users through the first steps, an OS Control Center to help you run things like critical updates and installing drivers, and on-demand immutability.
It's the on-demand immutability that should excite many users. With this feature, core bits of the system are locked to prevent unwanted changes. This is achieved using ABRoot which works in conjunction with the apt replacement, apx. Apx installs packages inside a managed container without modifying the root file system.
You'll also find VSO (Vanilla System Operator) which is a tool that periodically checks for an update and then downloads and installs it in the background but only if the system isn't under heavy load.
You can read more about Vanilla OS on the official Kinetic announcement page and then download an ISO for installation from the distribution Github page.
Issue 269/2023
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