Installation

#Download

BlueOS is a ground-up rewrite software to replace Companion. To use it you'll need to download and flash an SD card. It is compatible with both Raspberry Pi 3 and Raspberry Pi 4.

The latest available versions are:

Latest Stable Date

Latest Beta Date

#Flash

We recommend using a fresh SD card, with at least 4GB capacity.

  1. Download and install Balena Etcher
  2. Insert the SD card to your computer (you may need an SD card reader)
  3. Open Etcher, select the image you just downloaded, and flash it onto the SD card

#Run

  1. Eject your SD card with the new BlueOS software
  2. Insert it into your Raspberry Pi, and power it up!
    • The first boot may take a couple of minutes, as it expands the filesystem to the new SD card capacity
      • It should take around 2 minutes for a 16GB class 10 SD card
  3. BlueOS is a headless operating system, and uses a web interface rather than HDMI to a monitor

#Updates

Once BlueOS is installed, updating to a different version is simple via the Version Chooser.

#Manual Installation

For developers with alternative hardware, or who would rather install over a pre-installed base operating system / image, BlueOS provides an install directory with utilities to help perform manual/software-based installations.