This immutable Linux distro has a killer tool that sets it apart – and makes ditching Windows easy

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ZDNET key takeaways

• Immutable operating systems are the way of the future.
• Aurora is an immutable distribution based on Fedora.
• Aurora is free to download and install.

I’ve gone on and on about immutable operating systems over the past year or so. There’s a good reason for that.

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Immutable operating systems are a dramatic shift away from the traditional OS, where users can access and change everything on the OS… even system files. All you need is sudo access or the administrator password, and there’s nothing you cannot do with the operating system. In the wrong hands, that can end in disaster.

That’s where immutability comes into play. With an immutable OS, the core of the system is mounted in read-only mode, so it cannot be changed. To that end, immutable operating systems are exponentially more secure than those that follow the traditional model.

In other words, immutable equals good. There are plenty of immutable Linux distributions on the market. Some of those distributions are great options for new users. One such distro is Aurora.

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What is Aurora?

Aurora is based on Fedora and focuses primarily on Flatpak apps. The primary features of Aurora include:

• Immutability
• KDE Plasma
• Sensible defaults
• Atomic updates
• Unified app store
• Expanded hardware support

The first question that comes to mind is “What are sensible defaults?” When the developers create and package Aurora, they’ve configured the distribution such that it is immediately usable (by any user type) out of the box. In other words, you shouldn’t have to spend much time with configurations or customizations. Install Aurora, log in, and start using it.

There is only one caveat to those sensible defaults. If you open the desktop menu, you’ll notice the lack of an office suite. In fact, the only entries in the Office submenu are Kontact and Okular.

The big question would then be: Is an office suite essential?

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Given that so many are using cloud-hosted office suites (such as Google Workspace and Office 365), it makes sense not to include such an app by default. Fortunately, it’s very easy to install an office suite, thanks to the Bazaar Flatpak package manager GUI. Open the app store, and you’ll find LibreOffice, ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors, WPS Office, and more.

Bazaar is an outstanding tool for managing Flatpak apps.

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Another nice feature found in Aurora is the offline docs app. This is not so much a dedicated app as it is a shortcut to the Okular document viewer that opens to the Aurora docs. Within those docs, you’ll find help for basic usage, installation help, rebasing, and much more. Within the Basic Usage section, you’ll find information on how to install and manage software and updates.

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You might think an operating system’s documentation might contain more information than that. Think about it this way: If you’re new to Linux, the first thing you’ll want to know about is installing apps. Maybe, at some point along the way, you might want to learn more about the operating system. When/if that’s the case, there’s plenty of help on the internet to keep you moving forward with your Linux journey. Until then, install all the apps you need and use the OS.

To me, that makes perfect sense. Why confuse people who are new to Linux with too much information? To avoid intimidating new users, keep it basic.

It’s still KDE Plasma

Aurora uses the KDE Plasma desktop environment, which is a great choice, as it is very welcoming to new users. And even though Aurora is an immutable distribution, it doesn’t prevent you from customizing the desktop so it looks and feels exactly how you want it. Don’t like the panel at the bottom, move it to either side or the top.

Don’t like the theme, download as many as you like.

For those who’ve never used Linux, KDE Plasma is one of the best desktops to launch your journey. Out of the box, it is set up to help you succeed and shouldn’t cause you any problems.

How is Aurora different?

This is the tricky question. Given there are several immutable Linux distributions, what sets Aurora apart?

If I could find one thing that sets this distribution apart, it’s the inclusion of a tool called Distroshelf.

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This app is similar to GNOME Boxes, where you can easily spin up a different Linux distribution as a virtual machine, without having to go through the complicated steps of using a virtual machine application. From Distroshelf, you can add distributions such as Fedora, Amazon Linux, Arch, Debian, openSUSE, and many more.

Distroshelf makes it easy for users to explore other varieties of Linux and even experiment and learn.

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Other than Distroshelf, Aurora is very much like other immutable distributions: It’s secure, reliable, and user-friendly enough for just about anyone.

For those who want to leave Windows, Aurora is one option that can have you up and running with Linux, without worrying that you might break the OS.

If you’re interested in Aurora Linux, download an ISO and either spin it up as a virtual machine or install it on a spare computer.

Source: Information Technologies - zdnet.com