Overview/X Linux (distro)
X distribution repository
Other languages: Español
This is the documentation index for the x repository (equislinux/x), the home
of the X distribution (formerly known as X Linux / x-linux). X is a
custom Arch Linux spin focused on simplicity, clean branding, and reproducible
builds. It ships its own package repository (x-repo) so X-specific packages
can be installed directly with pacman.
Overview
The repository contains the distribution build source, not a user-facing product on its own. It provides:
- An archiso profile that produces the bootable live ISO.
- A text installer that runs automatically in the live environment (no graphical installer; Calamares was removed).
- Provisioning of the installed system through the
x-scriptspayload, shipped offline inside the ISO. - Helpers to build WSL-importable root filesystem tarballs.
The ISO uses the standard mkarchiso workflow. A custom [x] pacman
repository is declared in pacman.conf and is used both at build time and on
the installed system, so X branding and tooling packages (x-release,
x-dev) install with pacman.
Project status
The distribution is under active development. Signed ISOs are published on
SourceForge; the stable portal link
https://equislinux.org/download/latest/ only redirects there. Both
package channels — the pacman [x] repository and the native .xp endpoint —
are live. The text installer offers Hyprland, niri, KDE Plasma or a console-only
system. See ROADMAP.md and docs/project-state.md.
How this repository maps to the organization
Each repository lives in its own folder under the equislinux organization on
GitHub. Repo names changed over time, so older references to x-linux (the
distro) or to an x scripts repo must be read with this mapping in mind:
| Repository | Role |
|---|---|
equislinux/x | The distro (this repo). archiso profile, live ISO, text installer, WSL rootfs builds. |
equislinux/x-arm | aarch64 overlay build: UEFI ISO, [x]/aarch64 repository and VM images. |
equislinux/scripts | Provisioning payload and the x CLI (x setup, x theme, ...). Packaged as x-scripts and installed by the text installer. |
equislinux/x-repo | X binary package repository (hosted on GitHub Pages, [x] in pacman.conf) plus the package portal and ISO publishing. |
equislinux/xpm | X package manager (Rust). |
equislinux/xpkg | X packaging tool for developers (Rust). |
equislinux/wsl / equislinux/wsl-scripts | WSL rootfs (published release v0.1.0) and its first-run setup. |
equislinux/utils | Operator utilities: workspace discovery, clone, sudo rules and signing keys. |
equislinux/wiki / equislinux/web | Documentation mirror (en/es) and the documentation portal. |
equisdots/* | Org that owns the desktop stacks (Hyprland Lua config, niri config, Quickshell shell, palettes, engines, SDDM login) consumed read-only by the desktop setup tools in scripts. Official installers: equisdots/dots (Hyprland) and equisdots/niri-meta (niri). |
Related documentation in this repository:
- Build the ISO and WSL rootfs
- Text installer
- Generations (btrfs snapshots, rollback, restore)
- Testing in a VM
- Project layout reference
Highlights
- Branding. Identity applied to GRUB (
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR="X"), the ISO label/publisher, MOTD, and installed packages. - Text installer.
configurator.shcollects options and writes a JSON plan;install.shpartitions (GPT/btrfs), runspacstrap, configures the base system, provisions withx-scripts, and installs a bootloader. - Unattended install. The ISO ships an
autoinstallboot entry (hotkeya,xauto=1) for a disk labeledcidatacontainingx-install.json. - System generations. The installer creates
@/@home/@snapshots/@xstatebtrfs subvolumes and a bootable first generation; the payload records bootable snapshots with manifests, rollback and granular restore (x gen), plus dotfile generations (x home) and pacman hooks. See Generations. - Desktop choice. Hyprland (
equisdots/dots), niri (equisdots/niri-meta) or KDE Plasma with X branding; a console-only install is also available. The choice is made in the text installer. - Provisioning payload. The
x-scriptspackage ships inside the ISO. The Hyprland snapshot remains available for legacy offline installs; the new selector installs Hyprland, niri and KDE Plasma online. - WSL support. The rootfs is built in the dedicated
equislinux/wslrepository (releasev0.1.0) and provisioned withequislinux/wsl-scripts.
Development model
- Development happens on
mainwith short-lived PR branches. - Older branches (
checkpoint/calamares-installer-v1,x/reboot,dev) are historical and do not reflect the current code.
Scope
Everything in this repository is part of the equislinux organization. Only
references related to building, installing, and provisioning X live here;
user-facing setup logic lives in the x-scripts payload.