A performance and security operating system on a clean Arch Linux base. It ships a native package manager, a live arsenal of security tools, a tuned kernel, fail-closed anonymity, and a Control Center that runs the whole machine.
Kernel, package manager, tools, privacy, and the desktop are built to work as a whole and tested together on real hardware before every release. The result is a machine that feels fast, stays quiet, and keeps your work yours.
The heavy paths are compiled native code, so searches and installs return in milliseconds and the desktop stays responsive under load.
The base install is lean with a default loadout of essential tools. Pull the full 2,858-tool arsenal only when a job needs it.
Full-disk encryption, a command guard that vets every command, and fail-closed anonymity compiled into the kernel itself.
Offense, defense, and forensics share one tuned base, so you switch tasks without switching computers.
Each part is an ArxOS-native tool, self-updating, tested on the machine before it ships. No grab-bag of unmaintained scripts.
One command for the official repositories, the AUR, and local .deb / .rpm / .AppImage files. It self-heals keyring, mirror, and database errors, and shows a clean per-package loader while it works.
A native app that runs the whole system: live stats, updates, the arsenal, kernels, direct CPU control, a live network panel with port hardening, and privacy, all in one glass deck.
2,858 security tools, organised by category. Grab a ready loadout (default, top 10, or the full set) or install a single category live, with the repository set up on the fly and torn down when it finishes.
Two ArxOS kernels on the latest base: a responsive default and a real-time build. Live patching, kernel-level privacy primitives, and fast device access are compiled in.
Whole-system anonymity, fail-closed: the kill switch is armed before Tor and removed last, DNS is pinned to Tor, IPv6 is dropped, and an optional i2p overlay rides alongside. It proves each layer before it reports active.
A zero-trust command guard scans every command before it runs and blocks the dangerous ones, so a bad paste or a hostile script does not get a free shot.
Both share the same tuning and the same tools. They differ in one thing: how they handle timing. The default is installed and starts on its own; the real-time build sits next to it, ready at the boot menu.
The daily driver. Balanced, fast, and responsive for desktop use, security work, and servers: high throughput with low latency. This one starts by default.
Use it for almost everything.
Hard real-time timing. Predictable, bounded response for radio, SDR, and wireless capture, where a late sample is a lost sample. It trades a little raw throughput for timing you can count on.
Use it for RF, SDR, and live signal work.
arx remembers what it reads and refreshes the moment your package databases change, so a repeated search or lookup returns in milliseconds with results that stay exactly correct.
Measured on ArxOS against the standard Arch tools on the same package databases. The first search of the day matches the standard tool; every repeat after it is near-instant.
# update the system, the kernel, and the ArxOS tools, in one step $ arx update # ask for several at once. arx finds each one for you: $ arx install obs vlc google-chrome arch repo (2) obs vlc AUR (1) google-chrome (build from source) proceed? [Y] all found [s] select [n] stop # grab a whole category of security tools, live $ arx weapons install default
arx installs from the official repositories and the AUR without any extra helper. Ask for several packages at once and arx sorts them for you: what is in the repositories, what needs building, and what was not found. You choose how to proceed.
The ArxOS look carries all the way through: the boot splash, the menu, the lock screen, the desktop, the terminal, and the native Control Center that runs the whole system. Tap any shot for the full view.
ArxOS runs on any 64-bit PC from the last decade, and on virtual machines. These are comfortable minimums; more memory and an SSD make it noticeably snappier.
New to Linux? Follow these in order. You will download one file, put it on a USB stick, boot from it, try ArxOS live, then install it. It takes about twenty minutes, most of which is the computer copying files.
The ISO is one file (about 7.6 GB) that contains the whole operating system. Download it from the ArxOS releases, then, on the same page, download the SHA256 checksum next to it.
sha256sum arxos-*.iso (or shasum -a 256) and check the number matches the checksum file. On Windows: certutil -hashfile arxos.iso SHA256. If they match, the file is intact.This "flashes" the ISO onto an 8 GB or larger USB stick and makes it bootable. It erases everything on the stick, so use an empty one. Pick whichever tool matches your current computer.
sudo dd if=arxos.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress oflag=sync. Double-check /dev/sdX is the USB, not your disk.Leave the stick plugged in and restart the computer. As it powers on, tap the boot-menu key repeatedly until a menu appears, then choose the USB stick (it often shows the brand name, or "USB").
F12, Esc, F10, or F9. To reach firmware settings it is often Del or F2. If Windows loads instead, restart and try the next key. In firmware, turn Secure Boot off if the USB will not start.ArxOS starts straight into a full live desktop running entirely off the USB stick. Nothing on your computer has changed yet. Look around, open the terminal, test your Wi-Fi and touchpad. When you are ready, double-click Install ArxOS on the desktop.
The installer walks you through a few short screens: language, region and keyboard, then the disk. Choose Erase disk for a clean install, and tick Encrypt the system to protect the whole disk with a passphrase. Create your user, review the summary, and start. The computer copies the system across; this is the part that takes a little while.
When it finishes, remove the USB stick and restart. If you turned on encryption, you will be asked for your disk passphrase as the machine starts. Then the login screen appears: sign in with the user you created, and you are on your own ArxOS desktop, ready to work.
arx update to bring the system, the kernel, and the ArxOS tools fully current, or open the Control Center and use the Update panel.ArxOS is built in the open by Stingray Labs, and each release is made complete before it ships. Follow the build, read the docs, and grab the ISO when your download is ready.