Documentation

HeliumOS is...

• An atomic desktop operating system for your devices, designed to empower users without getting in the way.
• Built on the CentOS Stream and AlmaLinux free Enterprise Linux distributions, inheriting stability, security, and compatibility.

HeliumOS offers...

• A simple and intuitive Linux desktop using KDE Plasma, featuring an easy-to-use interface and seamless user experience.
• An app store with a wide selection of Flatpak packages, providing up-to-date and sandboxed applications that are easy to install and manage.
• A commitment to 10 years of support, improving your system with new features, bugfixes, and security updates throughout the life of your device.

The most reliable operating systems use an atomic system for core software distribution. In the case of HeliumOS, new updates are distributed via OCI-Compatible Bootable Container images. Regardless of power failures or similar interruptions, your system will never be in a broken partially-updated state.

Ubuntu

Ubuntu is a commercial Linux distribution based on Debian. Both Ubuntu and HeliumOS focus on providing an easy-to-use desktop experience. Unlike Ubuntu, HeliumOS does not use snap packages and HeliumOS is part of the Red Hat family of Linux distributions.

Fedora

Fedora is a community Linux distribution that serves as the upstream for CentOS Stream, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, AlmaLinux, and other distributions. Fedora and the Universal Blue project both offer atomic desktop operating systems based on Fedora. While Fedora has a 13 month lifecycle, HeliumOS has a 10 year lifecycle.

CentOS Stream & AlmaLinux

CentOS Stream is the midpoint between Fedora and the Enterprise Linux distributions. AlmaLinux is an Enterprise Linux distribution that is a successor to the original CentOS. HeliumOS is directly based on CentOS Stream and derives many components such as the Linux kernel and systemd init system. Unlike other Enterprise Linux distributions, HeliumOS focuses on providing an atomic desktop experience suitable for all users. Although CentOS Stream only has 5 years of support, each HeliumOS release will have a minor rebase onto AlmaLinux, extending its lifespan.

Although much software that targets Windows does not work on Linux-based operating systems such as HeliumOS, many applications and games work perfectly or to a usable degree. Bottles can be used to run many applications with minimal change to performance resource requirements. Approximately 80% of games on the popular Steam gaming platform work using the official Proton/Steam Play Compatibility mode. As a last resort, those with sufficiently powerful hardware can run the entire Windows operating system within a virtual machine using Boxes. Bottles, Steam, and Boxes are all available for installation using the included Software Center.