Immutablue Variants#

Immutablue offers several specialized variants to support different hardware configurations and use cases. This document provides detailed information about each variant and when to use them.

Core Variants#

Base Immutablue#

The standard Immutablue image with GNOME desktop environment (Silverblue). This variant is suitable for general desktop use on standard x86_64 hardware with Intel/AMD graphics.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42

Immutablue Cyan#

The Immutablue Cyan variant includes preconfigured support for NVIDIA graphics cards, with appropriate drivers and configurations preinstalled.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue-cyan:42

Key features:

  • NVIDIA driver integration
  • CUDA support
  • Properly configured kernel modules for NVIDIA GPUs
  • Optimized desktop performance for NVIDIA graphics

Immutablue Asahi#

Optimized for Apple Silicon hardware (M1, M2, M3 series), this variant is based on the Fedora Asahi Remix project and brings Immutablue functionality to Apple’s ARM-based Macs.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue-asahi:42

Key features:

  • Support for Apple Silicon hardware
  • Optimized drivers for Apple hardware components
  • Power management optimizations
  • Keyboard and touchpad support for Apple devices

Immutablue Nucleus#

A headless variant with no desktop environment, designed for server or minimal installations.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue-nucleus:42

Key features:

  • No GUI components
  • Minimal footprint
  • Server-oriented tools and utilities
  • Suitable for containers, VMs, or headless systems

Desktop Environment Variants#

Immutablue supports various desktop environments beyond the default GNOME desktop:

Immutablue Kinoite#

KDE Plasma desktop environment.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-kinoite

Immutablue Sericea#

Sway window manager for a lightweight, tiling window manager experience.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-sericea

Immutablue Vauxite#

XFCE desktop environment for a lightweight but full-featured desktop.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-vauxite

Immutablue Lazurite#

LXQt desktop environment for very lightweight systems.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-lazurite

Immutablue Cosmic#

COSMIC desktop environment from System76.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-cosmic

Immutablue Onyx#

Budgie desktop environment for a modern, minimalist experience.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-onyx

Immutablue Bazzite#

A variant optimized for the Steam Deck and gaming, based on the Bazzite project.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-bazzite

Specialized Variants#

Immutablue Kuberblue#

Designed for Kubernetes development and operations, with Kubernetes tools preinstalled.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue-kuberblue:42

Key features:

  • Kubernetes CLI tools
  • Container development tools
  • Network utilities for Kubernetes
  • DevOps-focused configuration

Immutablue TrueBlue#

A NAS appliance variant with ZFS support, designed for storage servers.

# To install:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue-trueblue:42

Key features:

  • ZFS filesystem support
  • NAS management tools
  • Storage optimization
  • Data integrity features

Immutablue with LTS Kernel#

Any Immutablue variant can be built with an LTS (Long Term Support) kernel by adding -lts to the version tag.

# To install base Immutablue with LTS kernel:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue:42-lts

# To install Immutablue Cyan with LTS kernel:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:quay.io/immutablue/immutablue-cyan:42-lts

Key features:

  • Long-term supported kernel for stability
  • ZFS support included by default
  • Extended maintenance period
  • Better hardware compatibility for some systems

Combining Variants#

You can combine multiple variants by building a custom image that inherits from one of the specialized variants and adds additional features.

For example, to create a custom image based on Immutablue Cyan with the KDE desktop:

make CYAN=1 KINOITE=1 build

Or to create a custom image based on Immutablue Asahi with an LTS kernel:

make ASAHI=1 LTS=1 build

Custom Variants Examples#

The Immutablue project provides several examples of custom builds that you can use as inspiration:

Hyacinth Macaw#

A custom variant with specific developer tools and configurations.

Hawk Blueah#

Another custom variant with multimedia focus.

Blue-Tuxonaut#

A custom variant with space-related tools and themes.

When to Use Each Variant#

  • Base Immutablue: General desktop use with standard hardware
  • Immutablue Cyan: Systems with NVIDIA graphics cards
  • Immutablue Asahi: Apple Silicon Macs
  • Immutablue Nucleus: Servers, VMs, or headless systems
  • Desktop Variants: When you prefer a different desktop environment
  • Immutablue Kuberblue: Kubernetes development or operations
  • Immutablue TrueBlue: NAS or storage servers
  • LTS Kernel: Systems that need stability or have hardware compatibility issues

Creating Your Own Variant#

To create your own variant of Immutablue, follow these steps:

  1. Fork the immutablue-custom repository
  2. Customize the packages.yaml file to include your preferred packages
  3. Add any custom files to artifacts/overrides/
  4. Build the image with your desired options using make build
  5. Test and refine your custom image

See the Build Customization documentation for more details on customizing your Immutablue variant.