Information for OEMs

Installation

The elementary OS Installer treats every installation as an OEM installation; step through it to install the OS, then shut down the device and it is ready to be shipped to a customer. Or, to create your own custom image: install the OS, configure any necessary packages or settings using a temporary administrator account, delete the account, and then create an image of the disk. In both cases, Initial Setup will create an end user account upon the customer's first boot.

Installer

Initial Setup

System Settings

System Settings offers several advantages to OEMs shipping elementary OS. From its pluggable architecture to easily-provided branding, System Settings was designed with OEMs in mind.

Plugs

System Settings (codenamed Switchboard) uses a concept of “Plugs” to provide pluggable settings for various hardware and software concerns. For example, Mouse & Touchpad settings are provided by a plug.

OEMs can develop and ship custom plugs if special or unique hardware in the machine requires configuration in addition to what is available by default in elementary OS; for example, special sensors or input methods not present in most hardware. If relevant to a broader set of users, contributing it upstream to the existing plugs is highly encouraged.

Documentation

OEM Info in About

The About plug displays system information to the user and provides several system-wide actions, such as restoring settings, reporting issues, and getting help. In addition to software information (like the OS version), it also provides a space for hardware information. By default, this is filled in with a generic image and the system’s hostname. However, OEMs can provide custom branded data for this section.

By providing an oem.conf file, OEMs can fill in the manufacturer name, product name, model number, and manufacturer URL. An image can also be provided which replaces the generic hardware icon.

Learn More

Third-Party Repositories

It is highly discouraged to ship elementary OS with software repositories other than the defaults in elementary OS plus a single repository provided and controlled by the OEM. Third-party repos effectively give root access and the ability to overwrite any system packages to potentially untrusted third parties. Even if the party is trustworthy, an OEM’s customer’s security and privacy are now at stake if third parties are compromised, or they reuse their password on multiple services, etc.

Further, if a third-party repository ever becomes unmaintained or unpublished, it may prevent regular OS updates. This could hold back potentially serious security and stability fixes from reaching the OEM’s customers.