About gbOS86

GooglebookOS for Non-Google PCs.

Googlebook OS is Google's laptop operating system, built on Android. It is made for Google's own hardware, with its own security chip, firmware and kernel. gbOS86 makes it start and run on ordinary Intel laptops by replacing the parts that depend on that hardware.

How it works

• A different kernel. Linux 6.18 built for generic Intel laptops, with an emulator that handles CPU instructions older chips lack.
• Binary patches. The libraries that execute those instructions most (zlib checksums and SHA-256 in libcrypto) are replaced by versions that do not need them, but only when the original file matches an exact checksum.
• Software stand-ins for Google-only hardware (security chip, Trusty VM): a software Gatekeeper, hidden or replaced services.
• Hardware detection. At boot it reads every device ID, loads the matching driver and firmware, and writes a report.

Status

Boots to the desktop, sign-in, Play Store, persistent data on the internal drive, and updates from a USB stick. Tested on a Dell Latitude 5300. Broad Intel support is new and needs your reports.

Contact

Source code: github.com/linuxkid473/gbos-x86. Questions: the forum, Discord or the contact form.