Bharat Operating System Solutions

BOSS (Bharat Operating System Solutions)

Developer	C-DAC/NRCFOSS
OS family	Linux(Unix-like)
Working state	Current
Source model	Open source
Initial release	10 January 2007(2007-01-10)
Latest release	10.0 ( "Pragya" ) / 15 March 2024(2024-03-15)
Marketing target	Desktop computer,Laptop,Education,andServer
Available in	19 languages
List of languages Assamese,Bengali,English,Gujarati,Hindi,Kannada,Malayalam,Marathi,Odia,Punjabi,Sanskrit,Tamil,Telugu,Bodo,Urdu,Kashmiri,Maithili,KonkaniandManipuri
Update method	APT(several front-ends available)
Package manager	dpkg
Platforms	x86-64
Kerneltype	Monolithic(Linux)
Userland	GNU
Default user interface	Cinnamon
License	Free softwarelicenses (mainlyGPL)
Official website	bosslinux.in

Bharat Operating System Solutions(BOSS GNU/Linux) is an IndianLinux distributionbased onDebian.Its latest stable version is 10.0 (Pragya), which was released in March 2024.

Editions

BOSS Linux was released in various editions for different purposes:

• BOSS Desktop: Designed for personal, home, and office use.
• EduBOSS: Designed for schools and the education community.
• BOSS Advanced Server: The server-oriented edition.
• BOSS MOOL: A specialized edition for maintainability by changing how kernel drivers are loaded as modules.

History

BOSS Linux was developed by theCentre for Development of Advanced Computingwith the aim of promoting the adoption of free and open-source software throughout India. As a vital deliverable software of theNational Resource Centre for Free and Open Source Software,it has an enhanceddesktop environmentthat includes support for variousIndian languageand instructional software.

The software was endorsed by theGovernment of Indiafor adoption and implementation in India. BOSS Linux has been certified by theLinux Foundationfor compliance with theLinux Standard Base.BOSS Linux supportedIntelandAMDIA-32/x86-64architecture until version 6 ( "Anoop" ). From version 7 ( "Drishti" ), the development shifted tox86-64architecture only.

Versions

BOSS Linux has nine major releases:

Legend:	Old version, not maintained	Old version, still maintained	Current stable version	Latest preview version	Future release

Version	Code name	Kernel version	Desktop	Date of release
Old version, no longer maintained:Evaluation	Sethu	2.6.14-2-smp	GNOME 2.8
Old version, no longer maintained:1.0	Tarag	2.6.17-1-i386	GNOME 2.14	January 2006
Old version, no longer maintained:2.0	Anant	2.6.21-1-486	GNOME 2.18	September 2007
Old version, no longer maintained:3.0	Tejas	2.6.22-3-486	GNOME 2.20	September 2008
Old version, no longer maintained:4.0	Savir	2.6.32-5-686	GNOME 2.30.2	April 2011
Old version, no longer maintained:5.0	Anokha	3.10	GNOME 3.4.2	September 2013
Old version, no longer maintained:6.0	Anoop	3.16.0-4-686	GNOME 3.14.4	August 2015
Old version, no longer maintained:7.0	Drishti	4.9.0-8-amd64	GNOME 3.22	August 2018
Old version, no longer maintained:8.0	Unnati	5.2	Cinnamon	11 July 2019
Old version, no longer maintained:9.0	Urja	5.10	Cinnamon	19 February 2021
Current stable version:10.0	Pragya	#	Cinnamon	15 March 2024

BOSS 5.0 (Anokha)

This release came with many new applications focused mainly on enhanced security and user-friendliness. The distribution included over 12,800 new packages, for a total of over 37,493. Most of the software in the distribution had been updated as well: over 20,160 software packages (70% of all packages in Savir). BOSS 5.0 supported Linux Standard Base (LSB) version 4.1. It also featuredXBMCto allow users to easily browse and view videos, photos, podcasts, and music from a hard drive, optical disc, local network, and the Internet.

BOSS 6.0 (Anoop)

There are several significant updates in BOSS Linux 6.0 (Anoop) from 5.0 (Anokha). Notable changes include a kernel update from 3.10 to 3.16, a shift forsystem bootfrominittosystemd,the full support ofGNOME Shellas part ofGNOME3.14, an update to theGRUBversion, theIceweaselbrowser being replaced byFirefoxand thePidginmessaging client replacingEmpathy,as well as several repository versions of available programs being updated as part of the release.

BOSS Linux 6.0 also shipped various application and program updates, such asLibreOffice,X.Org,Evolution,GIMP,VLC media player,GTK+,GCC,GNOME Keyring,andPython.

Related specifically to localization support, language support improved with the replacement ofSCIMwithIBuswith the Integrated System Settings.Indic languagesenabled with "Region and Languages" are now directly mapped to the IBus, and the OnScreenKeyboard layout is provided for all layouts.

This release is fully compatible with LSB 4.1.

BOSS 7.0 (Drishti)

The most significant change over previous releases is that support for thex86version has been dropped, and BOSS is now only available forx86-64.Other notable changes include a kernel update to 4.9.0, a GNOME update from 3.14 to 3.22, and software updates to various applications and programs with wide Indian language support & packages. This release aims to enhance the user interface with more glossy themes and is coupled with the latest applications from the community.

BOSS 8.0 (Unnati)

The desktop environment is changed from GNOME toCinnamon.

BOSS 9.0 (Urja)

The Linux kernel was updated from 5.2 to 5.10.

BOSS 10.0 (Pragya)

BOSS GNU/Linux Version 10, featuring the Cinnamon Desktop Environment, is designed to further efforts in developing an e-Governance stack based on Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). The release aims to foster a robust FOSS community across industries, government, and academia, driving growth and contributing to a sustainable ecosystem in India. BOSS Pragya OS supports this initiative by promoting the adoption of FOSS solutions for a wide range of applications. The recommended system requirements include 2 GB of RAM, 15 GB of hard drive space, and a minimum 1GHz Pentium processor.

See also

• Debian
• Comparison of Linux distributions
• Free culture movement
• Simputer

External links

• Official website
• Bharat Operating System SolutionsatDistroWatch