GENERAL FAQ
There are already 200+ distributions for Linux, why create yet another distribution?
Unlike other Linux distributions, VolksPC Linux desktop runs on top of Android. Installation is as simple as installing any Android application (apk). The whole process takes about five minutes and your existing Android applications continue to work the same as before.
What does VolksPC mean ?
The German term Volk translates to “people”, thus VolksPC translates to “people’s PC” or “people’s computer”.
Is VolksPC distribution open source ?
Other than the graphics stack , VolksPC distribution is a pure Debian based OS. Software developers can also build their own VolksPC based distribution with our SDK . We also provide the GPL/LGPL software components that we have changed or is not available from the Debian repository.
Why are you charging for free and open source Debian ?
Anyone can download our Debian based volkspcimgarm64.zip for free ( see Installation page). However we charge for the Android APK’s (the Installerxxx.apk and Desktop.apk) that give user the capability to install and run Debian desktop on their Android device.
Is Linux desktop emulated or running on a virtual machine (VM) ?
No, Linux desktop runs at full-speed. In fact VolksPC desktop running over Android has faster graphics performance than natively running Linux.
Is Android emulated or running on a virtual machine (VM) ?
No, Android runs at full-speed. We don’t change the original Android installation.
I want to run Android on Linux desktop rather than Linux desktop on Android.
We want to bring Linux desktop to the consumer market. Android phones and tablets are already very successful in this market. For example, this Motorola G100 Android phone can also act as a desktop when connected to a USB hub.
Why bother with Android when I can run GNU/Linux desktop ?
In this interview , Linus Torvalds, the father of Linux, says that “Chromebooks and Android are the path towards the desktop” . We have embraced his vision and have brought the best of Linux desktop software to a very successful Android platform.
What is the limitation of the evaluation software ?
Evaluation software is provided so that potential customers can try our software before buying and upgrading their installation. In fact we only sell upgrades for an existing installation. The free evaluation software doesn’t handle keyboard events after 5 minutes of Linux activity. So after 5 minutes the keyboard appears to be frozen on Linux but pointer and Android installation is still fully functional. The Installer application can be used to upgrade your installation.
If I buy your software, do you provide future updates ?
We will always provide a Debian file system (volkspcimgarm64.zip) that is the latest stable release. As an example you can update your current Debian Bookworm installation with our Debian package manager. When Debian Trixie is released you can upgrade using the Android Installer application. Android updates are based on the vendor and VolksPC desktop will continue to work as long as our driver can still run without issues.
Why should I use Android when it doesn’t respect my privacy ?
VolksPC Linux desktop can also run on LineageOS and other Android variants with better focus on privacy.
Will running Linux desktop on Android compromise my privacy ?
VolksPC Linux desktop runs in a sandbox isolated from all Android apps and services. Even our Installer and Desktop application run outside this sandbox. We believe that our distribution is secure and protects Linux desktop user information.
Will VolksPC OS support future Android releases ?
VolksPC OS has been tested with all Android versions from 9 to 14. VolksPC OS will support any new Android device as long as we can build our driver for the device.
What is root access and why is it required ?
Traditional operating systems such as Windows and Linux need administrative privileges to install drivers and applications. This higher level privilege is called root access or superuser in Linux and other Unix like operating systems. Android on the other hand has a very different security model and user doesn’t have the ability to remove any preinstalled applications.
Does Android have to be rooted to run VolksPC OS ?
This will depend on the device, so it is best to refer to the device specific README file. For our Raspberry Pi 4 distribution, the underlying Lineage OS doesn’t need to be rooted. However most off-the-shelf devices will need to be rooted.
Why is the Installer application specific for each device ?
The InstallerXXX.apk requires drivers that are built for the target Android device. Unlike Windows you cannot build a generic Linux (Android uses Linux kernel) driver. It has to be built for a specific Linux kernel. That is why InstallerXXX.apk will only work with the device that we have built and tested with.
Can VolksPC OS run on Android phones ?
Yes, it can run on any Android phone or tablet. Here is a video clip showing VolksPC OS running on a Qualcomm phone .
Phones have small screens, why are you running Linux desktop on phones ?
It is true that phones have tiny screens making them unsuitable to run a full Linux desktop. However most high end phones can mirror the screen to a large monitor through a USB Type-C hub with HDMI output. This Motorola G100 can function both as a phone and a desktop.
Can Android phone receive phone calls while on the VolksPC Linux desktop ?
Yes, users can still receive and make phone calls. The VolksPC Linux desktop is just another Android application.
Does VolksPC OS support touch screen ?
With tablets, the VolksPC Linux desktop supports single touch and emulates right click mouse button when you touch-and-hold.
Does VolksPC OS support on screen keyboard ?
Yes it does. We have tested this feature with matchbox-keyboard.
Does VolksPC OS support Bluetooth keyboard and speakers ?
Yes it does. We inherit these capabilities from Android.
Can I auto start the Linux desktop on boot up ?
No you cannot. While this may be technically feasible it is not desirable. While Android phones and tablets work well with touch interface, the Linux desktop is primarily designed to work with mouse and keyboard. So it is best to start the Linux desktop when the user has docked the device to a hub that supports pointer and keyboard inputs.
Can user copy/paste between Android and Linux desktop applications?
Yes, we support copy/paste of text between Android and Linux applications as seen in this video clip. For sharing general content use the internal storage folder.
Can user share files between Android and Linux ?
User can share files by placing them in internal storage which is referred to on Android as /sdcard and on Linux desktop as /home/desktop/sdcard. Also external sd card or usb drive is automatically mounted by Android and visible on Linux desktop at /home/desktop/storage.
Is VolksPC distribution comprised of two independent operating systems ?
No, the VolksPC Linux desktop is just another Android application. Android features such as screen recording and casting also works for the desktop. The VolksPC desktop shares important resources with Android:
- Files can be shared between Android and Linux desktop.
- Linux desktop Internet, language and timezone settings are based on Android.
- User can copy/paste between Android and Linux desktop.
How can user switch between Linux desktop and Android?
Linux desktop is just another Android application. User can use the navigation bar for switching between applications. Clicking the Android button on the Linux desktop panel will also take user to the Android home screen.
TECHNICAL FAQ
Can VolksPC OS support all Linux desktop applications?
Our native graphics libraries supports all tool kits based on Xlib and provide limited support for XCB (X protocol C-language Binding) . Most applications work well however QT5 applications, Chromium browser and electron apps such as Visual Studio Code doesn’t run with our graphics stack. Instead these applications can be launched in a 100% compatible Xorg X11 client/server environment. The user needs to first install X11 environment from the package manager and then choose to either boot our VoksPC desktop with 100% X11 compatibility or start a separate nested X11 desktop. The advantage of the nested desktop is that the user can start and stop it on demand.
How to run a X11 compatible nested desktop?
You can start “VNC X11 Desktop” script provided in the system menu. This will start a simple Blackbox window manager based X11 desktop. The desktop can be customized by changing .vnc/xstartup file. All applications are still running as “desktop”user. Applications can also play audio from within this X11 environment. This is a video of KDE desktop running on our default XFCE desktop.
How to boot VolksPC desktop in X11 mode ?
By default VolksPC desktop runs with our graphics stack which is fast but not 100% compatible. To start the desktop in X11 compatible mode, open terminal and type “touch x11mode”. On you next reboot the VolksPC desktop will run using Xorg X11 graphics stack. To go back to using our graphics stack, open terminal, type “rm x11mode” and reboot system. This is a video of Visual Studio Code editor running on XFCE desktop in X11 mode.
Why doesn’t my newly installed Linux application start ?
This may be due to compatibility issues with our graphics stack and can be resolved by running the application inside our X11 environment .
Can I start a web server on Linux ?
You can start any service on Linux by adding it to /etc/rc.chroot script on Debian. However this script is executed only when you start the Linux desktop. This is different from standard Linux where startup scripts are executed whenever the system boots up.
Is Audio supported on Linux applications ?
Yes, it is supported with Pulse Audio and the audio stream is sent to the Android audio device. When Linux desktop boots up the audio volume is set to maximum. But if the sound is still low, switch to Android and increase the volume there.
Why is the installation of new Debian applications failing ?
The VolksPC distribution uses a separate root and home partition. The root partition ( volkspcimgarm64.zip ) is about 85% full and can run out of space if the user tries to install more applications. In such a situation, the VolksPC Android Installer application should be used to increase the size of the Linux root partition.
Is this technology identical to UserLand or Linux On Android?
Linux on Android uses X Server Android application to display Linux desktop graphics. Graphics goes through several layers before being rendered on the screen resulting in very sluggish performance.
- Linux On Android graphics path: X client-> network->X server->Android’s SurfaceFlinger -> hardware.
- VolksPC OS graphics path: X client-> driver->Android’s SurfaceFlinger->hardware.
This video clip compares VolksPC OS performance against Ubuntu Mate desktop running on ODROID-N2. This is an old release but you can compare performance on a Raspberry Pi 4 SBC running our latest software.
Why does VolksPC OS use X11 graphics instead of newer graphics technology such as Wayland ?
Our graphics stack is very different from X11 but we provide X11 compatible libraries. This means most applications run without changes. The final Linux desktop frame is rendered by Android’s SurfaceFlinger which like Wayland renders every frame perfectly.
Is VolksPC a 64bit distribution ?
Yes, we only support 64bit architecture for both x86 PC (amd64) and ARM (arm64).
Who is the default user on Linux desktop ?
VolksPC OS automatically logs in as user “desktop”. There is no password prompt.
Can I root any Android device ?
Magisk is a common tool used to root any Android device. Installing Magisk on Lineage OS is straight forward but requires more work on other devices. Once Magisk has been installed make sure to grant root privileges to our Installer application.
How is time zone and locale configured for Linux ?
When the desktop starts up it reads these configuration parameters from Android settings. So if the user changes Android settings it will take effect on the next boot.
How to change keyboard settings for Linux ?
VolksPC OS uses xmodmap to set up keyboard mapping tables. There are a set of tables in /usr/share/xmodmap that support PC105 keyboard for each language. Android’s language settings are used to automatically configure the system.
How to change the mouse acceleration for Linux ?
The user can change this setting in bash_profile under the home directory (/bin/x11setaccel thresh denominator numerator). The default setting ( x11setaccel 5 1 5 ) works best for PS/2 mouse. You may need to change it if you use wireless mouse.
How to change the DPI settings for Linux ?
The user can change MICROXWINDPI setting in bash_profile under the home directory. The default setting is 96DPI (dots per inch).
How can I access a remote desktop ?
The user can use VNC viewer on Android or Debian (xtightvncviewer) for remote desktop access.