What is OpenBSD? Here’s everything you need to know about this operating system!

Linux fans love to brag about the security of their systems, but for a group of BSD developers, that’s not enough. A version of BSD, OpenBSD, claims to be one of the most secure operating systems. Is this too much of an exaggeration? Let’s find out through the following article!

What is OpenBSD?

OpenBSD is an open source operating system based on “Berkeley Unix” first developed in the 1970s. It is very similar to Linux, but with some important differences. While Linux distributions come with a kernel and many other utilities, OpenBSD is developed as a complete system. At the time of this writing, the current version is 7.0.

OpenBSD 7.0
OpenBSD 7.0

OpenBSD is well known for its security. The project’s website advertises that only two remote vulnerabilities have been found “for a long time.”

The OpenBSD project strives to create the most secure operating system by examining extensive code, looking at each line of code, and looking for errors. The developer claims on their website that they used a whole new category of security flaws to test their code this way. They have also implemented a lot of techniques to prevent exploit attacks (all specifications are listed on the homepage).

The most distinctive element of OpenBSD lies in its releases. Releases include designs and even hit pop songs, including “Ghostbusters” and “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”. These artworks all include the company’s mascot, the puffy puffer fish Puffy.

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Despite OpenBSD’s commitment to security, the project hasn’t lost its playfulness. The direction of security-focused development has made OpenBSD popular for applications that depend on security, such as routers. OpenBSD’s approach to security is: “If you want things done the right way, do it yourself”.

The OpenBSD developer wrote his own C library, firewall, PF, and even HTTP server. They even have their own sudo alternative called doas. OpenBSD’s programs are even widely used outside of OpenBSD. The most visible projects in other Unix/Linux distributions include OpenSSH and tmux.

Install OpenBSD

Install OpenBSD the same way you would install any other Linux distribution
Install OpenBSD the same way you would install any other Linux distribution

Install OpenBSD the same way you would install any other Linux distribution: Download the installation file and start your computer with it.

Immediately, you are faced with the installation process. This process seems to represent some aspect of OpenBSD itself: Short, text-based, and seemingly not very simple. This process, aimed at experienced Unix users and administrators, works through many of the same processes as with any other Unix or Linux system: You partition your hard drive and install packages.

If this is your first time doing it, the best method is to just install everything. This ensures that you won’t miss a thing, and the drive space is still very generous anyway. You will then install the bootloader and boot into the new OpenBSD system.

Package Management in OpenBSD

Using OpenBSD looks a lot like using a Linux system. Unlike Linux, the default shell is pdksh, a variant of the Korn shell, which has features quite similar to Bash.

By default, OpenBSD boots to the console interface. This is only good if you plan to use it as a server, since you can run “headless” this way and connect to it over the network, but you can run OpenBSD as a desktop if you really want to.

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To install external packages, OpenBSD has its own package manager. Command pkg_add more packages, also pkg_delete remove them. File /etc/installurl controls which mirror OpenBSD will search for packages.

For example, to install a package, as root, type:

pkg_add vim

Can OpenBSD run as desktop?

OpenBSD can run as desktop
OpenBSD can run as desktop

Although OpenBSD is popular in server applications, you can run it as a desktop the way you would with a Linux system. You can install an X Window server with the FVWM desktop by default.

Like the other options in NetBSD, this option seems very old and Unix-like, just the way the developers wanted it. You can install other desktop and window managers you may prefer using a package manager.

The system comes with display manager xenodm, which is recommended to start X. The installer will also offer to start automatically. You can start X without display manager using the “startx” command, but this only seems to work when using the root account. This is likely one of OpenBSD’s “secure by default” design decisions.

You are using OpenBSD in a way

As mentioned earlier, OpenBSD’s influence extends beyond just the people who actually use it, through a number of open source projects.

The most visible of these is OpenSSH, which provides SSH connectivity for most open source operating system distributions. Since the code is BSD licensed, it is also used in a lot of commercial products because it does not require you to disclose changes to the source.

Another widely used project is the terminal multiplexer tmux.

Should you use OpenBSD?

You may be wondering if OpenBSD is for you. If you like a simple, very “Unix” approach to system administration, you may prefer OpenBSD, especially if using the command line is not an obstacle for you. If you’re worried about security, you’ll also love OpenBSD, because the developer community is always on the lookout for this.

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The main issue will be hardware support, especially if you plan to run it on a desktop. While OpenBSD can run on a number of architectures, driver selection is limited, which is something other BSDs and even Linux distributions face. Hardware support, at least for WiFi and graphics adapters, seems to be more available on Linux.

OpenBSD is one of the most secure operating systems available

With a focus on security, OpenBSD is well worth a try for any true Unix/Linux fan. Even if you don’t use it every day, every project can learn something from OpenBSD’s design.

If interested in other BSD systems, you should consider NetBSD, which is famous for its portability to different computers.

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