postmarketOS
postmarketOS runningPhosh
Developer	postmarketOS open-source community
OS family	Linux (Unix-like)
Working state	Active
Source model	Open source
Initial release	26 May 2017; 8 years ago (2017-05-26)
Latest release	25.06(the one with systemd)[1] / 22 June 2025; 5 months ago (22 June 2025)
Repository	gitlab.postmarketos.org
Marketing target	Operating system replacement forAndroid and other mobile devices
Available in	English, Czech, German, French, Italian, Spanish, etc.
Update method	apk-tools (package manager)
Package manager	apk-tools (fromAlpine Linux)
Supported platforms	ARM, ARM64,x86,x86-64
Kernel type	Monolithic (Linux)
Default user interface	GNOME,Phosh,Sway,Sxmo[2]
Official website	postmarketos.org

postmarketOS (abbreviated aspmOS) is anoperating system primarily forsmartphones, based on theAlpine Linux distribution.^[3][4][5][6] Developed since 2016,^[7] it was launched in 2017,^[8] and continues to be a work in progress.^[9]

It is capable of running differentX andWayland based user interfaces, such asPlasma Mobile,^[10][11]MATE,GNOME, andXFCE;^[12] later updates added support forUnity8 andPhosh.^[13] It is also capable of runningDocker, if the device specific kernel hascgroups and relevant configs enabled.^[14] The project aims to provide a ten-year lifecycle for smartphones.^[15]

Oliver Smith started developing postmarketOS in 2016.^[7] The operating system was launched on 26 May 2017,^[4][8] with thesource code available onGitHub before migrating toGitLab in 2018.^[16]

Unlike many other projects porting conventional Linux distributions toAndroid phones, postmarketOS does not use the Android build system oruserspace.^[17] Each phone has only one unique package, and flashable installation images are generated using thepmbootstrap tool.^[4] The project intends to support the mainlineLinux kernel on all phones in the future, instead of the often outdatedAndroid-specific fork, to reduce the potential forsecurity exploits.^[4] A few devices can boot into the mainline kernel already.^[18][19] The project aims to support Android apps, originally through the use ofAnbox, which was replaced byWaydroid since postmarketOS v21.12.^[20][21]

Alpine Linux was chosen as the base distribution due to its low storage requirements, making it more suitable for older devices. Excluding the kernel, a base installation takes up approximately 6 MB.^[22][4][23] In March 2024, the maintainers announced that postmarketOS would migrate fromOpenRC tosystemd as itsinit system for select user interfaces.^[24]

As of 2025, it is work-in-progress software intended forpower users.^[9]

Different tools have been published by the project, including:

• pmbootstrap,^[25][26] a utility to help the process of development withcross compilation;
• osk-sdl,^[27][28] avirtual keyboard to allow decryption of a password during startup (on a device with full disk encryption);
• charging-sdl,^[29] an application contained in theinitramfs to display an animation when the phone is charging while off.

As of May 2020, over two hundred devices are able to boot the operating system, including 92 with WiFi support.^[30][31] This includes many smartphones and tablets that originally ran Android,^[32][33] as well as some Linux-based Nokia smartphones, such as theN900^[34] andN9.^[35][18] After Corellium's Project Sandcastle ported the Linux kernel to some iPhone versions, postmarketOS was also seen to boot on it, although no persistent flashing is supported at the moment.^[36] As of May 2021, support for wearable devices (includingGoogle Glass andsmartwatches like theLG G Watch) has been improved through integration with theAsteroidOS user interface and work on mainline kernel for theLG G Watch R.^[37]

In 2018, no devices were yet able to make phone calls with postmarketOS,^[38] although significant efforts were being made in this regard. By 2020, a number of devices were fully or mostly supported, including for phone calls, SMS messages and mobile data. These included theBQ Aquaris X5,Librem 5,Nokia N900, MotorolaMoto G4 Play,Samsung Galaxy A3 (2015),Samsung Galaxy A5 (2015), andWileyfox Swift.^[39]

Furthermore, thePinePhone launched in 2020, with postmarketOS Community Edition as a first-party operating system.^[40]

The development process to make a new device compatible with the operating system consists of creating a phone-specific package using thepmbootstrap tool. For that, the use of theLinuxkernel from the device's original manufacturer is often necessary. The source code of the original kernel is often made available by compliance with the requirements of theGPLv2 license, but some drivers necessary for the operation of the device may not be available, and must, therefore, be recreated.^[41][25] Examples includeGPU drivers such asLima, which has a proprietary equivalent in userspace onAndroid that is not subject to theGPLv2 requirements.

Only thePinePhone^[42] and few others devices seems to have the camera working. It's inWIP for theFairphone.

OnePlus6 isWIP forVolte support.^[43]

• 
  Plasma Mobile running onPinePhone
• 
  Phosh running on theAsus ZenFone Max
• 
  Plasma Mobile on theNexus 5
• 
  Hildon on theNexus 7 (2013)
• 
  XFCE on theNokia N9
• 
  Weston (Wayland compositor demo) on theMoto G
• 
  LuneOS UI running on a generic x86 tablet
• 
  Sxmo on theBQ Aquaris X5
• 
  Plasma Mobile on theXiaomi POCO X3 NFC
• 
  Plasma Mobile running on theXiaomi Redmi 2 Prime

postmarketOS is supported by various devices.^[44]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toPostmarketOS.

• Official website
• postmarketOS Wiki

• Embedded Linux distributions
• Free mobile software
• Linux distributions without systemd
• Linux distributions
• Mobile Linux
• Software forks

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Commons category link from Wikidata