UserLAnd, a Turnkey Linux in Your Pocket

There comes a time when having a full-fledged Linux distribution withinreach is necessary or just plain useful. And, what could be more within reach thanhaving that same distribution on a computing device most peoplehave with them at all times? Yes, I'm talking about a smartphone—specifically, anAndroid-powered smartphone. Enter UserLAnd.

UserLAnd offers a quick and easy way to run an entireLinux distribution, or even just a Linux application or game, from yourpocket. It installs as an Android app and is available for download from theAndroid Google Play Store. The best part is that because it operates from a typicalchroot environment, you don't need to root yourdevice.

I was fortunate enough to have a chance to spin up one of theearly beta builds of UserLAnd. This beta build was limited only to SSH and VNClocal connections from my Android mobile device, but it was more thanenough to establish a sound sense of how things are and where thingswill progress.

To handle the SSH connection, UserLAnd leverages ConnectBot while usingbVNC for anything graphical. The beta build I used supported onlyTWM. Future updates will add additional window managers and a desktopenvironment. Both ConnectBot and bVNC are installed when you create andlaunch your session (see below).

Immediately after installation and upon launching the application, youare greeted with a clean environment—that is, no root filesystems andno sessions defined.

Figure 1. A Fresh and CleanInstallation of UserLAnd

There isn't much to do here until you create a base root filesystemto use in one or more connected sessions. Now, because this was a betabuild, my option was limited to Debian.

Figure 2. Creating a RootFilesystem

Once the root filesystem is created, you can create your session,which includes connection type and user name. For connection types, in mycase, the drop-down menu listed ConnectBot for the command-line interface andbVNC for a graphical environment. Future releases will add more options.

Figure 3. Creating YourConnection Sessions

After launching a session, a giant tarball with the base binariesand libraries is downloaded and extracted to the filesystem. You aretreated to a standard Linux environment once this completes, and becauseI was using Debian, I was able to run traditional Debian commands toupdate the distribution and install new packages.

Figure 4. Connecting to a CommandLine over ConnectBot

The same goes for graphical applications. Here you are able to installand run productivity applications or games that the Android ecosystemdoesn't have the capability to host.

Figure 5. Connection to a GraphicalEnvironment over VNC

So, how does this compare with similar products inthe App store? Well, if you recall, you don't need to root your device. Oneof the more popular applications boasting a lot of the same features andfunctionality is GNURoot. I will say that UserLAnd is not only cleaner,in terms of application design and layout, but it seems to be a lot moreintuitive as well. The process of setting up a root filesystem and launchingit does not require the installation of many other Android apps (each meantfor a specific Linux distribution) from the Google Play Store.

What makes UserLAnd even more promising than its counterparts is thatthe project has an active staff working tirelessly on the applicationto create new features and perform bug fixes. In addition, the team is committed toprovidinga larger distribution selection for users. The UserLAnd team alreadyhas expressed to me that "there is much more coming and fast."

So far, I'm very impressed. The interface is clean and simple. Whatmakes this app even more appealing is the fact that you are able toaccomplish a lot with fewer actions and that everything seems to beself-contained within the same app.

For additional product information, please visit:

• The Official Project Website
• The Official AndroidApp on the Google Play Store
• The Project's GitHubRepository

Petros Koutoupis,LJ Editor at Large, is currently a senior performance software engineer at Cray for its Lustre High Performance File System division.He is also the creator and maintainer of the RapidDisk Project. Petros has worked in the data storage industry for well over a decade and has helped pioneer the many technologies unleashed in the wild today.