Running

This guide provides instructions for running skiftOS on QEMU or real hardware using the HDD file.

On QEMU

1. Obtain OVMF firmware

• Using the package manager:
  • Arch Linux: pacman -S edk2-ovmf
  • Ubuntu: apt install ovmf
  • File location: /usr/share/OVMF/x64/OVMF.fd
• Alternatively, Download OVMF

2. Obtain QEMU

• Using the package manager:
  • Arch Linux: pacman -S qemu
  • Ubuntu: apt install qemu-system-x86

3. Run QEMU

Execute the following command:

$ qemu-system-x86_64 -bios <ovmf file> -drive format=raw,file=<hdd file> -m 512M -serial stdio -enable-kvm

Note: Replace <ovmf file> with the appropriate OVMF firmware file and <hdd file> with the HDD file you downloaded or builded.

On Real Hardware

⚠ Warning: Running skiftOS on real hardware is not recommended. It is not ready for production use and may damage your computer.

If still determined, flashing the HDD file to a USB drive can be attempted:

$ dd if=image.hdd of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress

Note: Replace /dev/sdX with the appropriate destination device.