CasaOS: Personal cloud dashboard for any Linux machine
Add a one-click Docker app store to Debian, Ubuntu or Raspberry Pi OS with one install script; CasaOS is free, open source, and sits on the OS you already run.
Is CasaOS right for you?
Pros
- One-line install on top of Debian, Ubuntu or Raspberry Pi OS
- Free and open source (Apache-2.0)
- Runs on Raspberry Pis and regular PCs, including NUCs
Cons
- Installs on top of Debian, Ubuntu or Raspberry Pi OS, so you install and update that system yourself
- Can't combine drives or protect against a drive failing
- No virtual machines
Choose CasaOS ifYou already have Debian or Raspberry Pi OS on a machine and want a friendly Docker dashboard without reinstalling.
Compare with other NAS OS
See how CasaOS differs on storage, licensing and what it runs on.
| Spec | CasaOS | Unraid | TrueNAS | HexOS | ZimaOS | openmediavault | FygoOS | MOS | umbrelOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Adding an app store to a Linux machine you already run | Growing a pool from mismatched drives | Data integrity, snapshots and replication | TrueNAS without the learning curve | Simple app hosting with little setup | Low-power ARM boards and old PCs | Photo backup and file sharing with little setup | Unraid-style storage without a licence fee | A Pi or mini PC that runs apps from a clean dashboard |
| Price | Free | From $49 | Free | $199 lifetime | Free, $29 Plus | Free | Free, $199 lifetime | Free | Free for personal use |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | Proprietary | GPL-3.0 / LGPL-3.0 | Proprietary | Proprietary | GPL-3.0 | Proprietary | AGPL-3.0 | PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 |
| Based on | Debian, Ubuntu or Raspberry Pi OS | Slackware | Debian | TrueNAS | Buildroot | Debian | Linux | Devuan | Debian |
| Apps | One-click store (Docker) | Community Apps (Docker) | TrueNAS Apps (Docker) | Curated one-click apps | One-click store (Docker) | Docker Compose plugin | App Center and Docker | MOS Hub (Docker templates), LXC | One-click store (Docker) |
| Boots from | Whatever the host OS uses | USB / SSD / NVMe | SSD / NVMe | SSD / NVMe | SSD / NVMe | USB / SSD / NVMe | SSD / NVMe | USB / SSD / NVMe | USB / SSD / NVMe |
| Storage | Host filesystem | Parity array or ZFS | ZFS | ZFS | RAID, ZFS or JBOD | RAID, mergerfs, SnapRAID | ext4, Btrfs or ZFS | XFS, Btrfs, mergerfs, SnapRAID, parity array | ZFS (FailSafe mirrors or RAIDZ1) |
| Mixed drive sizes | Yes, each drive stays separate | Yes | Each vdev uses its smallest drive | Each vdev uses its smallest drive | Via JBOD, without redundancy | With mergerfs | Not documented | Yes | Yes, pooled without redundancy |
| Virtual machines | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (ZVM) | Via plugin (KVM) | Yes (best on x86) | Yes (QEMU/KVM) | No |
| Architecture | x86 and ARM | x86 only | x86 only | x86 only | x86 only | x86 and ARM | x86 and ARM | x86 and ARM | x86 and ARM |
| Min hardware | Raspberry Pi, NUC or ZimaBoard | 4 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM | 4 GB RAM | 1 GB RAM | 2 GB RAM | 4 GB RAM | Raspberry Pi 4 or an x86 PC |
Runs on
Hardware from the directory that CasaOS installs on. On a NAS it replaces the vendor's own system, so check the warranty terms first.
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