AerynOS is an independently-developed, rolling-release Linux distribution designed for general desktop use. Its main features include the GNOME desktop, a custom package manager called "moss", atomic updates with rollback options, a package build system called "boulder", and smart boot management with complex EFI configuration through a utility called "blsforme".
To compare the software in this project to the software available in other distributions, please see our Compare Packages page.
Notes: In case where multiple versions of a package are shipped with a distribution, only the default version appears in the table. For indication about the GNOME version, please check the "nautilus" and "gnome-shell" packages. The Apache web server is listed as "httpd" and the Linux kernel is listed as "linux". The KDE desktop is represented by the "plasma-desktop" package and the Xfce desktop by the "xfdesktop" package.
Colour scheme:green text = latest stable version, red text = development or beta version. The function determining beta versions is not 100% reliable due to a wide variety of versioning schemes.
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I tried out AerynOS for the first time back in mid-August. I liked it so much that I started contributing and became the COSMIC DE package maintainer. I've used it as a daily driver for personal and "work" related tasks for 3 months now, and it's been rock solid. Even though it's in Alpha status, I recommend that everyone who knows enough to install it do so. Maybe you'll fall in love with it enough to decide to give back; like I did. Also, the installer being the way that it is, having to pre-format the disk, is for a reason. The devs want to keep the user base to those who can either learn to do this or who can already do it because there is little manpower for support on top of doing the development. If you have the drive to learn the technical bits, or already know them, and want to try this distro out; I believe you won't want to leave.
Installed the alpha to kick the tires 3 weeks ago and can't see myself ever leaving,
I've run a lot of distros but I've never had a functional KDE Plasma desktop from boot in such a short time.
Aeryn got an update to Plasma 6.5.2 the same day it was released. I say this to counter another comment that the packages are 'stale.' While Aeryn doesn't aim for bleeding edge packages, it does aim to be fairly up-to-date. Again, this is alpha software so I give them some grace if some other packages are not particularly up-to-date.
Even at current alpha status I've found it rock solid and the built in boot time rollback system gives me the confidence to update without fear.
On the negative side, yes you do have to create your partitions manually (clearly documented) and yes the package set is limited at this stage. This is intentional in case any sweeping changes are made that require recompiling the whole repository, allowing it to be done in a reasonable time. The deficit can, for now, be made up with Flatpaks. Notably, native packages exist for Thunderbird, Firefox and Steam and I find them more snappy to launch than the Flatpak versions.
I tested AerynOS immediately after its release, coming from Solus, which is my daily driver, for months without any problems right out of the box.
Installation of AerynOS went smoothly, and Wi-Fi and other hardware were recognized immediately. KDE Plasma as the desktop environment also ran without issues. The OS installs incredibly fast, and booting is impressively quick as well.
However, it's more or less a bare-bones OS without any extras, which is actually quite good, without the bloatware found in other distributions where you get three terminals and several media players out of the box—why?
But the printer, an Epson ET 2650, was listed, but apparently lacked the necessary printer drivers to get it to print.
And since there was no package manager and Flathub couldn't help either, that was a major deal-breaker.
Otherwise, I have nothing negative to report; Flathub provides the necessary programs.
However, the pre-installed programs in the Plasma Edition can't be easily uninstalled; at least, I couldn't find a way to do so, and the developers' blog wasn't particularly helpful either.
That ended my experiment with AerynOS, and I've switched back to Solus.