# rancher/k3os

Purpose-built OS for Kubernetes, fully managed by Kubernetes.

Repository: https://github.com/rancher/k3os
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/k3os
Homepage: https://k3os.io
Language: Go
License: Apache-2.0
License Family: permissive
Archived: true
Last push: 2023-12-08T21:52:50+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 10/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2737, "days_push": 999, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: archived
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 3478, forks 392 (observed 2026-08-28T04:08:06.176891+00:00)

## What it is
k3OS is a minimal Linux distribution purpose-built to run Kubernetes via k3s, designed so the entire OS is managed and upgraded through kubectl once nodes join a cluster. The project is no longer maintained and has been superseded by Rancher's Elemental stack.

## Use cases
- run a minimal linux os dedicated to kubernetes nodes
- manage os configuration and upgrades with kubectl
- boot a single-node kubernetes cluster from an iso in a vm
- provision lightweight edge or bare-metal k3s nodes
- create custom os images for kubernetes appliances

## When to choose
- you maintain an existing k3os deployment and need reference material
- you want a frozen, minimal k3s-only os for an isolated legacy environment

## When to avoid
- starting a new project - use Rancher Elemental instead
- you need a supported, production-ready immutable os for kubernetes
- you need full general-purpose linux tooling on cluster nodes
- you require ARM support or recent kubernetes versions

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: abandoned
- function: container-orchestration, deployment, infrastructure-as-code, self-hosted
- domain: infrastructure-as-code, operating-systems, cloud-computing
- platform: self-hosted, go
- tags: k3s, immutable-os, linux-distribution, edge-computing, kubernetes-os, deprecated, rancher, containers, devops, linux, kubernetes

## Member repositories
- rancher/k3os (main) score 10

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:06.176891+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 2026-08-29T18:36:30.605390+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/rancher/k3os (fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:06.176891+00:00, sha 83fc8cdeba24)
  - homepage: https://k3os.io (fetched 2026-08-29T09:30:31.370930+00:00, sha c0966537d2b4)
  - site_page: https://elemental.docs.rancher.com/quickstart-ui (fetched 2026-08-29T09:30:31.373728+00:00, sha d13fd85018b0)
  - site_page: https://elemental.docs.rancher.com/quickstart-cli (fetched 2026-08-29T09:30:31.375702+00:00, sha 21b5e0151f76)
  - site_page: https://elemental.docs.rancher.com/installation (fetched 2026-08-29T09:30:31.378368+00:00, sha 77acc63b2bf3)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.