Frametide OS Files

[](https://github.com/ChopstickGuy/frametide-os/actions/workflows/build-iso.yml) [](LICENSE) [](https://ubuntu.com) [](#status) [Download](https://sourceforge.net/projects/frametide-os/files/) · [Screenshots](#screenshots) · [What's included](#whats-included) · [Build](#build-it-yourself) · [Deutsch](README.de.md)

Frametide OS is Ubuntu 26.04 LTS with GNOME 50, set up for playing games and writing code. It handles the things you'd normally do by hand after installing: graphics drivers, Steam, fan and RGB control, a dev toolchain, and a few small apps that keep all of it in one place.

Under the hood it's still Ubuntu, so you get Ubuntu's packages, documentation and five years of updates.

What's different from stock Ubuntu

• Drivers on first boot. NVIDIA, AMD and Intel GPUs are detected and set up in the background, including the 32-bit libraries Steam needs and hybrid laptop graphics.
• Gaming stack included. Steam, Proton, GameMode, MangoHud and Gamescope come pre-installed. ntsync, larger shader caches and flat mouse acceleration are switched on.
• Tuned, but nothing exotic. zram, a per-drive I/O scheduler, preempt=full, noatime, BBR and higher file limits. Updates run at idle priority.
• No Snap and no telemetry. Apps come from apt and Flathub.
• Quick boot. The boot menu is hidden, boot doesn't wait for the network, and a quiet splash screen shows while it starts.
• Calm desktop. Dark GNOME with a teal accent, a fixed dock, a classic applications menu, app folders, soft low system sounds and a wave-shaped loading cursor.
• 10 languages offline. English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Dutch, Turkish and Russian.

The apps

The audio page lets you pick headset, speakers or microphone, set volume, test your mic, and turn on noise suppression. It runs inside PipeWire (WebRTC), so it works in Discord, Teams and games without an extra app.

Screenshots

App Store	Control → Games
Control → Audio	Develop → Projects

Logo and wallpapers

What's included

Try it

1. Download the ISO from SourceForge. Builds from main are under Actions → Build ISO → Artifacts.
2. Check it: sha256sum -c frametide-os-*.iso.sha256
3. Try it in a VM first (UEFI, 8 GB RAM, 40 GB disk), or write it to a USB stick with Ventoy or Impression. In the installer, Erase disk is the simplest option.

Status

This is alpha software. Every build is installed and booted in QEMU (UEFI and BIOS) by CI, but it hasn't seen much real hardware yet. Please don't put it on a machine you depend on.

Known limitations:

• Windows stores Wi-Fi passwords encrypted. PC Move can only bring them over if they were exported first (netsh wlan export profile key=clear).
• VRR is turned on per monitor under Settings → Displays.
• RGB and fan control cover what OpenRGB and CoolerControl support. That's most hardware, but not all of it.
• Some multiplayer games block Linux through their anti-cheat. The game check shows which ones.

How it compares to CachyOS, Bazzite, SteamOS and others: docs/COMPARISON.md.

Useful bits

frametide-hwsetup                 # show detected hardware and planned steps
sudo frametide-hwsetup --apply    # set up drivers again, e.g. after a GPU swap
cat /var/log/frametide-hwsetup.log

• Steam launch option: gamemoderun %command%, with an FPS overlay gamemoderun mangohud %command%
• Proton-GE: ProtonPlus from the App Store
• Options live in /etc/frametide/hwsetup.conf (or Control → System), e.g. AMD_OVERDRIVE=yes to unlock overclocking/undervolting on AMD graphics

Build it yourself

sudo apt install debootstrap squashfs-tools xorriso dosfstools mtools curl librsvg2-bin
python3 tools/check-packages.py   # checks package names against the Ubuntu archive
sudo ./build.sh                   # → out/frametide-os-1.0-ignition-amd64.iso (~25 GB free space)

config/frametide.conf        name, version, Ubuntu base, languages
build.sh                     debootstrap → chroot → squashfs → ISO (BIOS + UEFI/Secure Boot)
scripts/chroot-install.sh    package installation inside the image
packages/                    Frametide .deb packages (build-debs.sh)
  frametide-base             tuning, boot, zram, sysctl, branding
  frametide-hwsetup          hardware and driver detection
  frametide-gaming           gaming stack
  frametide-desktop          GNOME settings, wallpapers, sounds, cursor, boot splash
  frametide-tools            App Store, Control, Develop, PC Move, Bench, Welcome
  frametide-hardware         OpenRGB, CoolerControl, sensors
  frametide-apps             default apps, Chrome/VS Code on first boot
  frametide-live             live session and Calamares installer
artwork/                     logos (SVG) and generators for wallpapers, sounds, cursor, splash
po/                          translations (tools/i18n.py)
tools/                       package check, CI install test, icon fetcher, i18n

Contributing

Bug reports, ideas and translations are welcome – see CONTRIBUTING.md and the issue templates. A new language is one file in po/.

License

Frametide's own code and artwork are licensed under the GNU GPL v3. Bundled programs keep their own licenses.

_{Frametide OS is an independent community project and isn't affiliated with Canonical, Valve, Google, Microsoft or the ArtCraft team. Ubuntu is a trademark of Canonical Ltd. All other trademarks belong to their owners.}