clear-linux-documentation/source/FAQ/index.rst

.. _faq:

FAQ
###

Below is a list of commonly asked questions with answers sourced from the
|CL-ATTR| team and `Clear Linux community forums`_.

.. contents:: :local:
    :depth: 2

General
*******

What is |CL|?
=============

|CL| is an open source, rolling release Linux distribution optimized for
performance and security. See `the about page <https://clearlinux.org/about>`_
for more information.

|

Why another Linux distribution?
===============================

The |CL| team felt that performance was left on the table with Linux software.
|CL| takes a holistic approach to improve performance across the stack. We
also wanted to take more modern approaches with OS updates and tooling.

|

Is it a derivative of another Linux distribution?
=================================================

No. |CL| is a new Linux distribution. It is not a fork and does not have a
parent Linux distribution.

|

Can others copy improvements from |CL|?
=======================================

Yes, we absolutely love open source reuse and upstreaming improvements.

|

How often does it update?
=========================

The |CL| team puts out multiple releases a week, often releasing two or more
times a day. This rolling release approach allows |CL| to remain agile to
upstream changes and security patches.

|

Is telemetry required?
======================

The telemetry solution provided by |CL| is entirely optional and customizable.
It is disabled by default. If you do choose to enable telemetry, the data
helps the |CL| team proactively identify and resolve bugs. See the
:ref:`telemetry <telem-guide>` guide for more information.

|

What is the default firewall?
=============================

|CL| packages :command:`iptables` and :command:`firewalld` as optional
bundles, however, there are no default firewall rules. All network traffic is
allowed by default.

|

Where are the files that I usually see under /etc like fstab?
=============================================================

|CL| has a stateless design that maintains a separation between system files
and user files. Default values are stored under :file:`/usr/share/defaults/`.
|CL| starts with a mostly empty :file:`/etc` directory to store user-defined
configurations. See the :ref:`stateless <stateless>` page for more information.

See `this blog post
<https://clearlinux.org/news-blogs/where-etcfstab-clear-linux>`_ for an
example explaining how this is accomplished with :file:`/etc/fstab/`
specifically.


|

Does it use the Intel Compiler (icc)?
=====================================

No. |CL| uses open source compilers: :command:`gcc` and :command:`clang`. |CL|
does not compile any packages with :command:`icc`. 

For a more detailed explanation, see `this discussion on the community forum
<https://community.clearlinux.org/t/does-clear-linux-os-use-the-intel-compiler-icc-tl-nope/>`_.

|

Software
********

How is software installed and updated?
======================================

|CL| provides software in the form of :ref:`bundles <bundles-guide>` and
updates software with :ref:`swupd <swupd-guide>`.

:ref:`Flatpak\* <flatpak-tutorial>` is an application virtualization solution
that allows more software to be available to |CL| users by augmenting the
software |CL| packages natively with software available through Flatpak.

Our goal is to have software packaged natively and made available through
bundles whenever possible.

|

Does it use RPMs or DEBs packages like other distros?
=====================================================

No. |CL| provides software to systems in the form of :ref:`bundles-guide`.
Under the hood, |CL| developers use the RPM format as an intermediary step for
packaging and determining software dependencies at OS build time.

Individual RPMs and DEBs can sometimes be manually extracted and installed on
a |CL| system with the right tools, but that is not the intended use case.

|

Why does it have a different approach to software management?
=============================================================

The |CL| team wants software *installation* and *updates* to be as efficient
and error free as possible. |CL| packages software differently and uses a
novel updater to solve some of the classic problems with how the software
packages are on Linux. 

For a more detailed explanation, see `this discussion on our community forum
<https://community.clearlinux.org/t/why-does-clearlinux-use-swupd-and-not-apt-deb-rpm/>`_.


|

Can I install a software package from another OS on |CL|?
=========================================================

Software that is packaged in other formats for other Linux distributions is
not guaranteed to work on |CL| and may be impacted by |CL| updates.

If the software you're seeking is open source, please submit a request to add
it to |CL|. Submit requests on GitHub\* here:
https://github.com/clearlinux/distribution/issues

|

Software availability
*********************

What software is available on |CL|?
===================================

Available software can be found in the `Software Store`_, through the GNOME\*
Software application on the desktop, or by using :ref:`swupd search <swupd-quick-ref>`.

|

Is Google\* Chrome\* available?
===============================

The Google Chrome web browser is not distributed as a bundle in |CL| due to
copyright and licensing complexities.

A `discussion on manually installing and maintaining Google Chrome
<https://github.com/clearlinux/distribution/issues/422>`_ can be found on
GitHub.

|

Is Microsoft\* Visual Studio Code\* available?
==============================================

Yes. Find the CLI command for installing `VS Code`_ and other Flatpak apps in
the `software store`_. Installing Flatpak apps is also covered in our
:ref:`tutorial <flatpak-tutorial>`.

The |CL| team is working on a natively packaged version of Visual Studio Code
for future release.

Join a community `forum discussion about manually installing and maintaining
Visual Studio Code
<https://community.clearlinux.org/t/need-native-support-for-vs-code-through-swupd/>`_.


.. _VS Code: https://clearlinux.org/software?search_api_fulltext=vscode

|

.. _licensing_restrict:

Is FFmpeg available?
====================

`FFmpeg`_ is a multimedia software suite, which is commonly used for
various media encoding/decoding, streaming, and playback.

|CL| does not distribute FFmpeg due to well-known licensing and legal
complexities (See https://www.ffmpeg.org/legal.html and
http://blog.pkh.me/p/13-the-ffmpeg-libav-situation.html).


While |CL| cannot distribute FFmpeg, solutions for manually building and
installing FFmpeg have been shared by users `on GitHub
<https://github.com/clearlinux/distribution/issues/429>`_ and `the community
forums
<https://community.clearlinux.org/t/how-to-h264-etc-support-for-firefox-including-ffmpeg-install>`_.

|

Is ZFS\* available?
===================

ZFS is not available with |CL| because of copyright and licensing
complexities. BTRFS is an alternative filesystem that is available in |CL|
natively.

A user on GitHub notes that the `ZFS kernel module can be compiled, built, and
installed manually <https://github.com/clearlinux/distribution/issues/631>`_.

|

Can you add a driver that I need?
=================================

If a kernel module is available as part of the Linux kernel source tree but
not enabled in the |CL| kernels, in many cases the |CL| team will enable it
upon request. Submit requests on GitHub here:
https://github.com/clearlinux/distribution/issues

The |CL| team does not typically add out-of-tree kernel modules as a matter of
practice because of the maintenance overhead. If the driver was unable to be
merged upstream, there is a good chance we may be unable to merge it for
similar reasons.

Kernel modules can be individually built and installed on |CL|. See the
:ref:`kernel modules <kernel-modules>` page for more information.

|


.. _`Clear Linux community forums`: https://community.clearlinux.org
.. _`Software Store`: https://clearlinux.org/software
.. _`FFmpeg`: https://ffmpeg.org/