AstrOS, a distro that combines the best of Arch, COSMIC, and immutability, enters beta

Credit: AstrOS Published Jul 31, 2026, 9:34 PM EDT Simon is a Computer Science BSc graduate who has been writing about technology since 2014, and using Windows machines since 3.1. After working for an indie game studio and acting as the family's go-to technician for all computer issues, he found his passion for writing and decided to use his skill set to write about all things tech. Since beginning his writing career, he has written for many different publications such as WorldStart, Listverse, and MakeTechEasier. However, after finding his home at MakeUseOf in February 2019, he would eventually move on to its sister site, XDA, to bring the latest and greatest in Windows, Linux, and DIY electronics. Sign in to your XDA account Summary AstrOS hits public beta: it's an immutable, secure-by-default Arch-based distro with COSMIC desktop. Hashed/signed /usr and signed uki images protect system integrity, and it supports installable extensions. It requires TPM 2.0 for full-disk encryption, which is surprising for a Linux distro. One of the cooler parts of moving from Windows to Linux is that there's always something new on the horizon, including brand new OSes to check out. One such OS is called AstrOS, which has just entered beta and is ready for people to check out. However, if you moved to Linux because you wanted to escape Windows 11's TPM 2.0 restriction, AstrOS has a surprising limitation in store for you. AstrOS has entered public beta You can give it a spin right now In an email to XDA, AstrOS's Lauro Di Lorenzo was kind enough to let us know that their distro has just hit beta. Sure enough, you can read all the details for yourself over on the AstrOS Reddit post announcing the beta. So, what is AstrOS? If you've never heard of it, here's how the developers describe it: It is an immutable, secure-by-default Linux distribution based on Arch Linux and the COSMIC desktop environment. It uses similar tooling as GNOME OS and KDE Linux. What makes AstrOS special is its immutable base, which is shipped as a hashed and signed /usr image that is booted by signed uki images. This combination protects your system from outside modification. One of the cooler features of AstrOS is the ability to install one of four pre-made "extensions," though you can also make your own. For instance, there's an extension dedicated to Steam gaming that includes a SteamOS Gamescope session. Of course, if you're not into gaming, you can just leave that extension alone and use AstrOS as a pure workstation. Interestingly, if you head over to the AstrOS website, the developers say that the OS won't work on a computer with a CPU that doesn't support TPM 2.0. Given how some people moved from Windows to Linux because of Windows 11's TPM 2.0 requirement, asking for it on a Linux distro is a little surprising. AstrOS does need it for its full-disk encryption feature, so it'll be interesting to see how that will affect user adoption. If you do decide to give AstrOS a try, do remember that it's still in beta, and that things may break. Don't install it over your daily driver, and be sure to back up anything you want to keep regularly.