 | |
| Developer | Chimera Linux team |
|---|---|
| OS family | Linux (Unix-like) |
| Working state | Current |
| Source model | Open source |
| Latest release | Rolling release / 14 February 2025 [1] |
| Repository | https://github.com/chimera-linux/ |
| Marketing target | General purpose |
| Update method | Rolling release |
| Package manager | apk-tools, cports |
| Platforms | x86-64, aarch64, ppc64le, ppc64, PowerPC, RISC-V |
| Kernel type | Monolithic (Linux) |
| Userland | BSD |
| Default user interface | GNOME Shell, Almquist shell |
| Official website | chimera-linux |
Chimera Linux is a Linux distribution striving for the minimum complexity of system configuration while retaining and expanding on the flexibility common to general purpose Linux based systems. The distribution has no upstream and defines itself as "independent" from this perspective.
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A strict default security model, employing the in-development dinit init system and the FreeBSD userland are some of the more radical approaches. Such changes would have been very hard for a distribution with an existing user base. [2] [3] [4] [5]
Core userland from FreeBSD, the musl C library and the LLVM toolchain are employed. In this the distribution provides an alternative to the common GNU-based systems, without explicitly excluding GNU tools or GPL licensed software in general.
Re-thinking of the core components common across Linux distributions and re-thinking of their integration into an operating system are stated as intentionally pursued at the same time. This approach allows to skip the 'chicken and egg' problem of core system components development: If to interface a newly updated component to an "old" system or adapt a system to a "new" component instead.
