UmbrelOS is a Debian-based home cloud OS with a neat web-based interface that works on devices like Raspberry Pi SBCs, mini PCs, old computers, and more.
Having been first released in 2020, the OS is not exactly new, but I only discovered it today after noticing it was one of the supported operating systems for the Pironman 5 Pro Max enclosure for the Raspberry Pi 5. It initially launched as a tool for running a Bitcoin full node on a Raspberry Pi easily, but eventually turned into a home cloud OS that competes against other open-source solutions such as OpenMediaVault or CasaOS/ZimaOS.
UmbrelOS highlights:
- Intuitive web dashboard at umbrel.local or your device’s IP.
- Umbrel App Store — Over 300 apps, including Nextcloud or Immich for media and document storage, Jellyfin for media streaming, Home Assistant automation framework, Vaultwarden password manager, Bitcoin and Lightning nodes, AdGuard Home adblocker, and AI-related tools like Ollama and OpenClaw.
- Self-hosted — Runs apps in Docker containers
- Automatic encrypted backups to another Umbrel device or a NAS on your network, or an external USB drive.
- Rewind in Files – Restore specific files and folders from any point in the past.
- Network mounts in Files app
- External USB storage and formatting on AMD64
- GPU acceleration for apps
- Hardware compatibility – Raspberry Pi 4/5, x86 64-bit (AMD64) systems, virtual machines.
Source code, instructions, and OS images for AMD64 systems, Linux virtual machines, and Raspberry Pi 4/5 can be found on GitHub. While most people will likely install UmbrelOS on their own hardware, the company also released two hardware devices, the Umbrel Home and Umbrel Pro, which run the same software but offer priority support. Since UmbrelOS has been tested on the Umbrel hardware, features like WiFi, data migration, and external USB storage support are also guaranteed to work.
The small Umbrel Home pairs a quad-core Intel N150 CPU with 16GB of DDR5 RAM and up to a 4 TB SSD and offers Gigabit Ethernet connectivity and a few USB 3.0 ports, while the Umbrel Pro is powered by an octa-core Intel Core i3-N300 CPU coupled with 16GB LPDDR5 and up to 32TB SSD storage (4x 8TB), and features 2.5GbE networking, and two 10 Gbps USB 3.2 ports.
You can find more details about UmbrelOS and the two Umbrel devices on the project’s website.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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