Redox OS is a complete Unix-like microkernel operating system written in Rust, focused on security, reliability and safety. It provides source compatibility with POSIX, Linux and BSD programs and is intended as a full alternative to Linux and BSD on both the desktop and in the cloud.

Key Features

• Microkernel architecture in Rust — memory safety is a design foundation rather than an add-on
• relibc — a POSIX and C standard library written entirely in Rust
• RedoxFS — a ZFS-inspired file system supporting full-disk encryption
• Orbital — a Rust-written windowing system, window manager and compositor
• Broad hardware support — Intel/AMD (32 and 64-bit), ARM64 and RISC-V, booting from NVMe, SATA, IDE and USB
• Modern graphics and toolkits — support for X11, GTK3, SDL2, OpenGL and Vulkan software rendering

Why Use It

Redox explores what a Unix-like system looks like when it is built around Rust’s safety guarantees from the kernel up. It boots fast, runs a desktop in under 512 MB of RAM, and offers a minimal image under 50 MB. For anyone interested in memory-safe systems programming or a Linux alternative with different security assumptions, Redox is a serious research platform.

Use Cases

• Systems research — study a microkernel OS and its Rust userland
• Security-focused experimentation — evaluate memory-safe OS design in a VM
• Rust development — target an OS where the standard library and core tools are Rust-native

Platform

Intel/AMD x86 (32 and 64-bit), ARM64 and RISC-V. Best experienced in a virtual machine; daily-driver support is still developing.

Licence

Free and open source — MIT Licence.

Website

redox-os.org