Nexus Linux

A modern Linux distribution built on pure Arch Linux.

Pure Arch · KDE Plasma · Calamares · Rust · Zig · Native Tools

Nexus Linux is an independent Linux distribution built on the Arch Linux ecosystem, designed around a clean desktop experience, straightforward installation, native system tooling, and a maintainable distribution architecture.

✨ Overview

Nexus Linux is built directly on Arch Linux using the official archiso infrastructure.

The project adds a complete Nexus-specific layer around the Arch foundation, including:

KDE Plasma desktop integration
Nexus-branded system configuration
Graphical Calamares installation
Online and offline installation support
A dedicated Nexus package repository
Signed Nexus packages and repository metadata
Native Rust system utilities
Zig development support
Hardware detection and system-health tooling
Nexus KDE defaults
Nexus wallpapers and branding
Custom boot and installer integration
Automated ISO and package build infrastructure

The repository contains the live ISO configuration, Nexus package sources, Rust workspace, build tooling, testing infrastructure, and release tooling.

🎯 Project Goals

Nexus Linux focuses on a few core principles:

Goal	Nexus approach
Base	Arch Linux
ISO builder	`archiso`
Package manager	`pacman`
Nexus packages	Dedicated `[nexus]` repository
Desktop	KDE Plasma
Installer	Calamares
System tooling	Rust + Zig
Package signing	GPG
Build system	Bash + Arch packaging + Rust
Security	Signed packages and controlled repositories
Development	Open-source and community-oriented

Nexus aims to keep the underlying Arch ecosystem familiar while providing a more integrated distribution experience.

🖥️ Desktop Experience

KDE Plasma

KDE Plasma is the primary Nexus Linux desktop environment.

Nexus provides its own Plasma configuration through:

localpkgs/nexus-kde-settings/

This package provides Nexus-specific defaults for components such as:

KDE global configuration
Plasma configuration
KWin configuration
Desktop defaults
Nexus visual integration

Nexus wallpapers are maintained separately through:

localpkgs/nexus-wallpapers/

Desktop Options

The installer currently supports multiple desktop configurations:

Desktop	Availability
KDE Plasma	Primary
GNOME	Available
COSMIC	Available
Cinnamon	Available

The desktop selection is integrated into the Nexus installation workflow.

💿 Installation

Nexus Linux uses Calamares as its graphical installer.

The project provides both online and offline installation paths.

                 Nexus Linux ISO
                       │
                       ▼
                Live KDE Plasma
                       │
                       ▼
                  Calamares
                       │
              ┌────────┴────────┐
              │                 │
          Online             Offline
              │                 │
              └────────┬────────┘
                       ▼
                Install System
                       │
                       ▼
                Nexus Linux

The Nexus Calamares integration is maintained under:

localpkgs/nexus-calamares/

The project also builds Calamares from source as part of the ISO build process.

🏗️ Architecture

Nexus Linux can be viewed as several layers built on top of one another:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│              Nexus Linux                │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ KDE Plasma · Calamares · Nexus Tools    │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Nexus Packages · Nexus Repository       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ pacman · Arch Packaging · systemd       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│              Arch Linux                  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

The distribution itself is assembled using the Arch Linux packaging ecosystem and archiso.

Archiso provides the ISO-generation infrastructure, while Nexus maintains the distribution-specific profile, packages, configuration, and tooling.

📦 Nexus Package Repository

Nexus Linux maintains its own package repository:

[nexus]

The repository is used for Nexus-specific packages rather than replacing the standard Arch package ecosystem.

The build system generates the repository database using repo-add and integrates it into the ISO's package configuration.

Nexus packages include:

Package	Purpose
`nexus-branding`	Nexus OS identity and release information
`nexus-wallpapers`	Nexus wallpapers and desktop defaults
`nexus-keyring`	Nexus package signing keys
`nexus-calamares`	Calamares modules, configuration and branding
`nexus-kde-settings`	KDE Plasma defaults
`nexus-rust-tools`	Nexus native Rust utilities

🦀 Rust System Tooling

Nexus includes a dedicated Rust workspace containing 8 native CLI tools.

Tools

Binary	Purpose
`nexus-info`	System information
`nexus-version`	Nexus version information
`nexus-check`	System health checks
`nexus-hardware`	Hardware detection
`nexus-micro`	Lightweight system configuration
`nexus-installer`	Package installation backend
`nexus-theme`	Theme and wallpaper utilities
`nexus-build`	Build and ISO helpers

The workspace is located at:

localpkgs/rust-workspace/

The workspace contains:

nexus-info
nexus-version
nexus-check
nexus-hardware
nexus-micro
nexus-installer-backend
nexus-theme
nexus-build-helpers

It is built as a single workspace:

cargo build --release --frozen --workspace

and packaged through:

nexus-rust-tools

⚡ Zig

Zig is also part of the Nexus Linux development toolchain.

Nexus includes Zig alongside Rust to provide a modern native systems-programming environment.

Zig is intended for projects and components where:

low-level systems programming is useful
predictable native binaries are desired
C interoperability is required
simple cross-compilation is beneficial
lightweight native utilities are being developed

The project therefore supports both:

Rust
  +
Zig
  ↓
Native Nexus tooling

Rust currently powers the existing Nexus CLI workspace, while Zig is available as an additional systems-development language for future Nexus components.

🔐 Security

Security is integrated into the distribution build and package infrastructure.

Signed packages

Nexus packages can be cryptographically signed using the Nexus package signing infrastructure.

Nexus keyring

The signing keys are maintained by:

localpkgs/nexus-keyring/

The package contains Nexus repository trust information including:

nexus.gpg
nexus-trusted
nexus-revoked

Repository verification

The Nexus repository is configured to verify package signatures.

Controlled package sources

Nexus maintains its own package repository alongside the official Arch repositories.

🧰 Hardware Support

Nexus provides a broad hardware-support base through the packages included in its ISO profiles.

The project includes support for areas such as:

Graphics

Mesa
Intel graphics
AMD Radeon
Vulkan
VA-API
VDPAU

Wireless

Intel firmware
MediaTek firmware
Realtek wireless hardware
Broadcom wireless hardware

Bluetooth

BlueZ
BlueZ utilities
Bluetooth plugins

Printing & Scanning

CUPS
CUPS filters
SANE
AirScan
Simple Scan

Firmware

Linux firmware packages are included to provide compatibility with a wide range of modern and older hardware.

🔨 Building Nexus Linux

Nexus Linux is designed to be built from an Arch Linux-based development environment.

The build system uses standard Arch tooling including:

pacman
makepkg
archiso
mkarchiso
repo-add
GPG
Cargo
Rust
Zig
Bash

The repository contains dedicated scripts for ISO, repository and release operations.

Requirements

Install the main ISO build dependency:

sudo pacman -S archiso --needed

The main build script handles additional build dependencies.

Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/Nexus-Linux-Official/NexusLinux.git
cd NexusLinux

Build an ISO

Default profile:

./build-nexus-iso.sh

Build a specific profile:

./build-nexus-iso.sh "desktop"

The build system performs the major stages automatically:

Dependencies
     ↓
Calamares
     ↓
Nexus packages
     ↓
Local repository
     ↓
Package signing
     ↓
Archiso
     ↓
ISO
     ↓
Checksums + signatures

The build script currently handles dependency installation, Calamares source compilation, local package builds, repository generation and ISO generation.

📦 Building the Nexus Repository

The Nexus repository can be built independently:

./build-nexus-repo.sh

The generated package repository is used during ISO construction.

Conceptually:

PKGBUILD
   │
   ▼
makepkg
   │
   ▼
Nexus package
   │
   ▼
repo-add
   │
   ▼
nexus.db

🧪 Testing

Nexus provides dedicated ISO testing and utility scripts.

Relevant tools include:

testiso.sh
util-iso.sh
util-iso-mount.sh
util-msg.sh

ISO builds can be tested in virtualized environments before physical deployment.

Recommended test environments include:

QEMU / KVM
VirtualBox
VMware
GNOME Boxes
Hyper-V

Testing should cover:

ISO boot
UEFI
installation
desktop selection
online installation
offline installation
package repository initialization
first boot
hardware detection
networking
graphics
audio
suspend/resume

📁 Repository Structure

NexusLinux/
│
├── .github/
├── .vscode/
│
├── archiso/
│   ├── airootfs/
│   ├── package lists
│   └── ISO configuration
│
├── localpkgs/
│   ├── nexus-branding/
│   ├── nexus-wallpapers/
│   ├── nexus-keyring/
│   ├── nexus-calamares/
│   ├── nexus-kde-settings/
│   ├── nexus-rust-tools/
│   └── rust-workspace/
│
├── machines/
├── scripts/
├── testcases/
├── wallpapers/
│
├── build-nexus-iso.sh
├── build-nexus-repo.sh
├── build.sh
├── buildiso.sh
├── ci.build.sh
├── release-nexus.sh
├── testiso.sh
│
├── CHANGELOG.md
├── CONTRIBUTING.md
├── DEVELOPER_CALL.md
├── GITHUB_ISSUES.md
├── SECURITY.md
├── LICENSE
└── README.md

The current repository contains dedicated ISO, package, release, testing, machine and package-source infrastructure.

🛠️ Development Stack

Nexus Linux combines several technologies:

Technology	Role
Arch Linux	Base distribution
Bash	Build and automation
Rust	Native Nexus tooling
Zig	Native systems development
Cargo	Rust workspace
CMake	Native dependency builds
Qt	Calamares / KDE ecosystem
Calamares	Graphical installer
archiso	ISO generation
makepkg	Arch package building
repo-add	Package repository creation
GPG	Package signing
GitHub Actions	CI infrastructure

🤝 Contributing

Nexus Linux is an open-source project and contributions are welcome.

The recommended workflow is:

Fork
  ↓
Create a branch
  ↓
Make your changes
  ↓
Test your changes
  ↓
Commit
  ↓
Open Pull Request
  ↓
Review
  ↓
Merge

Before submitting changes, contributors should check the relevant scripts, packages and documentation.

Useful project documentation:

🐛 Issues & Bug Reports

If you encounter a problem, please provide as much useful information as possible.

Include:

Nexus Linux version
ISO build/version
hardware information
desktop environment
reproduction steps
relevant terminal output
logs where applicable

For security vulnerabilities, please follow the instructions in SECURITY.md instead of publicly exposing sensitive details.

🚀 Releases

Nexus Linux releases may contain:

ISO images
SHA256 checksums
cryptographic signatures
package lists
package repository artifacts
release metadata

Official releases:

https://github.com/Nexus-Linux-Official/NexusLinux/releases

📚 Documentation

Document	Description
`CHANGELOG.md`	Version history
`CONTRIBUTING.md`	Contribution guidelines
`SECURITY.md`	Security policy
`DEVELOPER_CALL.md`	Development information
`GITHUB_ISSUES.md`	Issue catalog

📊 Project Status

Nexus Linux is under active development.

Current areas of development include:

ISO reliability
Calamares integration
Nexus package infrastructure
Native system tooling
Rust development
Zig integration
Hardware compatibility
Desktop integration
Security infrastructure
Automated testing
CI/CD
Documentation

The repository currently contains the core components required to build Nexus Linux, including its ArchISO configuration, Nexus packages, Rust workspace, installer integration, package repository infrastructure and release scripts.

📄 License

Nexus Linux and its individual components may be distributed under different licenses depending on the component and its upstream source.

See LICENSE for the license applicable to this repository.

Upstream projects and packages retain their respective licenses.

Nexus branding, logos and other project assets may be subject to separate terms where applicable.

Nexus Linux

Pure Arch. Modern Desktop. Native Tooling.

Rust · Zig · KDE Plasma · Calamares · Arch Linux

GitHub · Issues · Releases

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
.Claude		.Claude
.Codex		.Codex
.claude/SKILLS		.claude/SKILLS
.github		.github
.vscode		.vscode
archiso		archiso
localpkgs		localpkgs
machines		machines
quick-ask-ai		quick-ask-ai
scripts		scripts
testcases		testcases
wallpapers		wallpapers
.gitattributes		.gitattributes
.gitignore		.gitignore
CHANGELOG.md		CHANGELOG.md
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
DEVELOPER_CALL.md		DEVELOPER_CALL.md
GITHUB_ISSUES.md		GITHUB_ISSUES.md
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
SECURITY.md		SECURITY.md
build-nexus-iso.sh		build-nexus-iso.sh
build-nexus-repo.sh		build-nexus-repo.sh
build.sh		build.sh
buildiso.sh		buildiso.sh
ci.build.sh		ci.build.sh
create_github_issues.py		create_github_issues.py
issues.txt		issues.txt
lddd.sh		lddd.sh
nexus-unstable.sh		nexus-unstable.sh
nexuslinux.png		nexuslinux.png
nexuslinux.svg		nexuslinux.svg
readme-banner.svg		readme-banner.svg
release-nexus.sh		release-nexus.sh
testiso.sh		testiso.sh
util-iso-mount.sh		util-iso-mount.sh
util-iso.sh		util-iso.sh
util-msg.sh		util-msg.sh
util.sh		util.sh

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Nexus Linux

A modern Linux distribution built on pure Arch Linux.

✨ Overview

🎯 Project Goals

🖥️ Desktop Experience

KDE Plasma

Desktop Options

💿 Installation

🏗️ Architecture

📦 Nexus Package Repository

🦀 Rust System Tooling

Tools

⚡ Zig

🔐 Security

Signed packages

Nexus keyring

Repository verification

Controlled package sources

🧰 Hardware Support

Graphics

Wireless

Bluetooth

Printing & Scanning

Firmware

🔨 Building Nexus Linux

Requirements

Clone the Repository

Build an ISO

📦 Building the Nexus Repository

🧪 Testing

📁 Repository Structure

🛠️ Development Stack

🤝 Contributing

🐛 Issues & Bug Reports

🚀 Releases

📚 Documentation

📊 Project Status

📄 License

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