Fedora Kinoite Atomic Desktop - Updated
This presentation was given at the Linux SIG Meeting of 15th June.
Most current Linux distros use a package manager to keep the installed system up to date. This involves being able to write to system files when updating. Immutable Linux distros have a read-only core system. The Fedora “Atomic” desktops can be considered immutable.
This means the base operating system, once installed, cannot be modified during regular use and most GUI applications are installed using flatpaks. CLI applications can be installed using Toolbx, and system-level packages can be installed using package layering. Updates are done during a reboot - this is so the OS integrity is maintained - if the updates fail or cause problems you can roll back to a previous working configuration.
The current OS configuration variants are listed in the Discover application under the Operating System listing in the LHS menu.
Fedora Kinote Atomic Desktop - Installation
NB - Dual booting and manual partitioning is not fully functional - see
https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/atomic-desktops/installation/
Automatic partitioning is recommended. The install is quite straightforward and the Discover app can be used to install updates.
After a successful install, the default grub boot configuration shows the boot menu for a very short time before booting. To vary the timeout before the system boots, you need to create a new text file, not edit the existing grub.cfg file.
To do this you can follow this routine ...
Start a root shell using
$ sudo bash
Next, change directory to /boot/grub2 and use nano to create a file user.cfg with contents
set timeout=10
Save the file and use the chmod command to set to root access only
# chmod g-r,o-r user.cfg
Close the terminal and reboot, and the grub boot menu should display for 10 seconds before booting the default configuration. You can now more readily choose which configuration to use for your login session - this is a temporary rollback. If you need to roll back permanently you will need to use the rpm-ostree command.
Installing extra software.
The Discover application can also be used to add the main Flatpak (Flathub) remote (https://flatpak.org) to the standard flatpak repos accessed by your system
- the default setting only includes the fedora flatpak repo. With the flathub repo set up, you could then install (eg/.) LocalSend.
Once Localsend was installed, I sent a Firefox bookmarks file to Fedora Kinote in the VM and replaced the default book marks with my own collection. Installing applications not in the default install can be done in the normal way using Discover.
I used Discover to install LibreOffice which is not in the default install. After installing LibreOffice clicking on the Application launcher you will see some green dots opposite items indicating that the installed application - in this case LibreOffice - has links in the "dotted" menu items. The green dots disappear after first use.
Fedora Kinote Atomic Desktop
A couple of desktop “tweaks” ...
Date Format ...
By default, the date was shown in the American format (eg/. 6/14/2026) - changed it to ISO format date - now shows as 2026-06-14. Other options are available.
Setting up virtual desktops ...
The default install doesn't set up virtual desktops. To add virtual desktops click on the main menu (Fedora) logo and use the search dialogue at the top to find the virtual desktop settings. Set the number of virtual desktops you require, and click on Apply. Then right-click on the panel, select “Add or Manage Widgets” and scroll down until you see the Pager widget, and left click on that widget. This will add a virtual desktop switcher to the panel with your selected number of desktops shown.
Fedora Kinote Atomic Desktop
Some links of interest ...
https://fedoraproject.org/atomic-desktops/
https://www.zdnet.com/article/immutable-linux-delivers-serious-security-here-are-your-5-best-options/
https://www.zdnet.com/article/what-is-immutable-linux-heres-why-youd-run-an-immutable-linux-distro/
Other links relevant to those with an interest in security ...
https://www.grc.com/securitynow.htm -
episode 1074 – What Mythos Means
episode 1075 - Yes. Exactly
You can download the Show Notes for the above – an interesting read.