Blueberry Linux
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Installing Blueberry Server

Blueberry Server is a minimal, rolling CLI system. It runs systemd as PID 1 (journald, logind, networkd, OpenSSH) — INIT=systemd is the default. There are two ISOs: a live systemd CLI to try it, and the installer ISO.

Blueberry Server — systemd live CLI (autologin root shell)

1. Build or get the ISO

make server-iso   # systemd live CLI ISO → iso/blueberry-server-x86_64.iso
make run-server   # …or boot it straight in a QEMU window
make test-server  # …or boot headless and assert it reaches multi-user.target

make iso          # the installer/rescue ISO → iso/blueberry-<date>-x86_64.iso

The live ISO boots systemd to a multi-user.target login (autologin root), with systemctl, journalctl, and OpenSSH available. Write either to a USB stick:

sudo dd if=iso/blueberry-server-x86_64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress oflag=sync

2. Boot and run the installer

Boot the ISO. You land in a live shell with networking up. Run:

blueberry-install

It guides you through a GPT/UEFI install:

  1. Select the target disk (everything on it will be erased).
  2. Partition — GPT with an EFI system partition + a root partition.
  3. Format — FAT32 (EFI) + ext4 (root).
  4. Extract the root filesystem to the target.
  5. Install GRUB (UEFI).
  6. Write fstab.
  7. Set the root password.

The installed system boots GRUB → kernel → systemd (PID 1), with bash as the login shell. (A minimal runit build is still available with make … INIT=runit for RAM-first / embedded use.)

3. Unattended installs

Pass bbinstall on the kernel cmdline to run the installer non-interactively (this is what the QEMU end-to-end test uses). Useful for provisioning.

4. First boot

Log in as root (the password you set). Set up packages:

bpm update
bpm install git gcc make        # the toolchain, for example
bpm upgrade                     # rolling: updates userspace AND the kernel

On Server, bpm upgrade rolls the kernel forward like everything else — see The Kernel Model.

SSH

The systemd Server runs OpenSSH (sshd.service, host keys generated on first boot). The RAM-first INIT=runit build uses Dropbear instead. Change any default credentials before exposing a host; hardening notes are in doc/SECURITY.md.

Deploying to real hardware

See doc/DEPLOY.md for ISO, raw disk image, and dd workflows.