# VolnOS

> An AI-first Linux desktop, built on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, that runs Windows applications and carries an assistant inside the system. Free, with no account, no advertising and no telemetry.

Key facts:

- Free to download and use. No account, no advertising, no telemetry, no Pro tier.
- Built on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, with a Windows-style Cinnamon desktop.
- Windows applications (.exe/.msi) open by double-clicking them, through Wine, which is preinstalled. Not every Windows application works.
- An AI assistant is part of the system. It uses a cloud model or one running on your own machine, and asks before it changes anything.
- Installed from a Try/Install live ISO; updates arrive through apt.
- Requirements: x86-64 PC; UEFI, Secure Boot off; USB stick 4 GB+; Target disk 16 GB+; Network on the machine.
- Download: https://volnos.org/download (the current ISO). Checksum: https://volnos.org/download.sha256

## Pages

- [VolnOS: the free, private, AI-first Linux desktop](https://volnos.org/): VolnOS is a free, privacy-first Linux desktop with an AI assistant built into the system, using a cloud model or one running on your own machine. Windows applications open by double-clicking them. No ads, no account, no Pro tier. Download the Try/Install live ISO.
- [Installing VolnOS](https://volnos.org/install): How to install VolnOS: verify the download, write the ISO to a USB stick on Linux, macOS or Windows, boot it with Secure Boot off, and install by talking to the assistant.
- [About VolnOS](https://volnos.org/about): What VolnOS is, what it is built on, and the choices behind it: an AI-first, privacy-first Linux desktop that runs Windows applications and costs nothing.
- [Privacy at VolnOS](https://volnos.org/privacy): What VolnOS sends, when, and to whom, plus the much longer list of what it does not. No account, no telemetry, no advertising, and an assistant that can run entirely on your own hardware.
- [VolnOS support](https://volnos.org/support): Getting VolnOS unstuck: the medium check, Secure Boot, disks the installer will not list, the assistant asking for a model, and Windows applications under Wine.

## FAQ

### Do I need an API key to use the assistant?

No. Ten questions a day run on VolnOS's own account with no key and no sign-up. After that, bring a key for any gateway you like, or point it at a model on your own machine, which needs no key either.

### Will my Windows application run?

Often, but Wine is a compatibility layer rather than Windows. The setup is done for you; whether a specific application works is a question for the WineHQ Application Database.

### Which desktop is it, and can I just use that?

Cinnamon, laid out the way Windows is: taskbar, Start menu, edge snapping, the keys you already know. Super+M reaches it from anywhere, and Control Panel → Assistant will land you there at login instead of on the assistant.

### Does any of this work offline?

The desktop works entirely offline. The assistant needs whatever endpoint you pointed it at, so a local model keeps working unplugged and a cloud one does not. First boot and the installer both need a connection.

### Is it really free, or free for now?

Free, and there is no second edition. No Pro tier, no ads, no account. The whole system is in the one download you already have.

### What hardware does it need?

A 64-bit (x86-64) PC that boots UEFI with Secure Boot off, a USB stick of 4 GB or more, and a target disk of at least 16 GB. Virtual machines are fine. There is no ARM build.

## Optional

- [Release manifest (JSON)](https://volnos.org/api/latest): the current release, ISO and package versions.
- [Source and issue tracker](https://github.com/VolnOS-Org)