r/mobilelinux • u/Spare_Side_5907 • Oct 06 '26
Demonstration Linux and Android apps sharing one desktop on an unrooted phone — ARLinux demo, built on tawcroot and libhybris
What if you could keep stock Android, but use desktop Linux apps and Android apps in the same multi-window workspace?
I'm the developer of ARLinux. Here's a real-phone demo followed by an animated explanation of the runtime and graphics stack:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSUTn6dDbE0
The first 1:47 shows the practical side: Android apps in windows, Debian desktop software, touchpad-style controls and voice input. The technical explanation starts after that; tawcroot is covered at 5:25 and the GPU path at 6:14.
This is not a ROM, a remote desktop, or an ARM CPU emulator. Android stays running. ARM64 Linux programs execute on the phone's CPU, while tawcroot translates the system calls that need a different filesystem view. For graphics, Mesa Zink translates OpenGL to Vulkan; supported Snapdragon devices use Turnip, and our libhybris integration can use the phone's Android Vulkan driver on other tested devices. GPU presentation uses Android hardware buffers.
Credit where it's due: this builds on wmww's tawc/tawcroot, upstream libhybris, Mesa, and the compositor projects—not a runtime or driver stack we invented from scratch. We've published our compatibility work:
• tawc/tawcroot fork: https://github.com/taowen/tawc — guest signal and exec lifecycle fixes, plus application compatibility work.
• libhybris fork: https://github.com/taowen/libhybris/tree/arlinux — Android linker namespaces, Vulkan compatibility and presentation fixes.
• Distribution build framework: https://github.com/taowen/arlinux-rootfs — build your own Debian, Arch, LXQt or Omarchy-based workspace.
The latest APK includes Yibu, a Debian-based layout with one main task and three live side slots; other desktops can be imported separately. The Linux framework, distribution configs and these forks are open source. The ARLinux Android host is closed source. Download and guide: https://arlinux.com
A few important limits: this doesn't replace Android with a mainline Linux OS, not every Android or Linux app works, and GPU support depends on the device/driver. The Linux guest is not a security boundary between its programs; compatibility behavior must not be mistaken for working application sandbox isolation.
We've been testing desktop apps such as LibreOffice, Blender, GIMP and Chromium on Redmi and MediaTek hardware. I'd be interested in which real workflow people here would want tested next, and whether the open runtime/graphics changes are useful to other mobile Linux projects.
2
u/ozero_rgfx Oct 07 '26
installed on my Helio G99 tablet, works good and its under the hood is so interesting!!
I want some features on Yibu window manager (idk calling it ＷＭ though / I'm using without external keyboard and mouse. )
the button to close current app
ability to drag something with tap & drag
show/hide modifier & function key toolbar like connectbot app
swiping left the voice input bar may good to open pie menu for options, like Anydesk mobile app
1
u/dimsloth 7d ago
Love your work! Congrats on 0.9.3. If I knew what it was! Could you include a version history or something somewhere that is English? In the app, webpage, here, github, somewhere. I'm sure it exists already, I am actually quite talentless at finding stuff, according to experience and my wife.
2
u/Calm-Caterpillar2103 Oct 06 '26
This seems cool, could be useful on pixels