# fsquillace/junest

The lightweight Arch Linux based distro that runs, without root privileges, on top of any other Linux distro.

Repository: https://github.com/fsquillace/junest
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/junest
Language: Shell
License: GPL-3.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: sandbox, arch-linux, root-privileges, linux-distros, linux-os, qemu, shell, archlinux, linux
Last push: 2024-10-12T09:56:57+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4337, "days_push": 690, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2227, forks 114 (observed 2026-08-28T04:06:28.769760+00:00)

## What it is
JuNest (Jailed User Nest) is a lightweight Arch Linux-based distribution that runs on top of any other GNU/Linux host without root privileges. It uses pacman to provide disposable, partially isolated environments with access to Arch Linux repositories, and can even run on different architectures via QEMU.

## Use cases
- install packages without root privileges on a shared server
- run Arch Linux on top of CentOS or Red Hat
- create a disposable sandboxed environment for testing packages
- access a wider package repository than the host distro provides
- run an Arch environment on a different CPU architecture via QEMU
- set up a portable Linux environment in my home directory

## When to choose
- you lack root access but need to install software on a Linux host
- you want Arch Linux packages on a distro with limited repositories
- you need a lightweight, disposable sandbox without full container runtimes
- you want to test packages in isolation without risking the production system

## When to avoid
- you need strong security isolation or full containerization (use Docker or Podman)
- you are on Ubuntu 23.10+ where unprivileged user namespaces are restricted and proot mode is slower
- you need a GUI desktop environment or systemd services
- you are not comfortable with a shell-based, community-maintained tool

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: self-hosted, developer-tools, cli, container-runtime
- domain: operating-systems, developer-tools
- platform: cli
- tags: arch-linux, unprivileged-sandbox, proot, pacman, portable-distro, user-namespace, qemu, command-line, linux

## Member repositories
- fsquillace/junest (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:28.769760+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T02:44:49.554725+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/fsquillace/junest (fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:28.769760+00:00, sha c4c0c1eae606)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.