AI · Models & tools
Install Omarchy: Stable ISO, Backups and First Steps
Install Omarchy 4.0.6 on x86: verify the download and signature, protect your data, select the right drive, and prepare for updates and recovery.
In this article
As of 3 November 2026. This guide covers stable Omarchy 4.0.6 on x86-64. It is based on official documentation, download metadata and source code; we have not performed an installation on our own hardware for this article.
An installer can finish quickly while carrying out the wrong decision. The most important preparation is therefore not the USB stick. It is knowing exactly which drive may be changed and how you would recover lost data.
Our Omarchy assessment covers its benefits, agent permissions and update channels. This guide takes you from a verified download to a workstation whose essential functions and recovery routes you have checked.
Choose the correct installation route first
The stable release entry points to the x86 ISO. Separate preview routes for ARM and Apple Silicon appear in 4.5.0-rc3. This guide does not treat those as stable support or describe their installation.
An Intel Mac also deserves a separate check of the Mac documentation. Firmware settings and known device limitations differ from a typical PC. Check the particular model rather than treating the word “Mac” as proof of compatibility.
Complete these preparations before downloading:
The keyboard limitation is documented in Getting Started. The rest is your preparation. A backup nobody has tried restoring is a weak foundation for this change. Our guide to the 3-2-1 backup rule explains the wider approach.
1. Download and verify the stable ISO
The checked files are the ISO, SHA256 file and signature. The ISO is approximately 6.45 GB. Download all three into the same folder, for example through your browser. On Linux or macOS, you can also use:
curl -fLO https://iso.omarchy.org/omarchy-4.0.6.iso
curl -fLO https://iso.omarchy.org/omarchy-4.0.6.iso.sha256
curl -fLO https://iso.omarchy.org/omarchy-4.0.6.iso.sigThe ISO documentation describes checksum and signature verification as separate steps. On Linux, check the checksum with:
sha256sum -c omarchy-4.0.6.iso.sha256On macOS, use shasum -a 256 omarchy-4.0.6.iso. On Windows, run
Get-FileHash .\omarchy-4.0.6.iso -Algorithm SHA256 in PowerShell.
Compare the complete value against the checksum file. The value
published on the review date is:
b542db5fecc37395d9af6654a8146ebed225f275ae4d5a6fcf432e40afe7bb88A matching checksum detects transfer errors but does not establish origin on its own: an attacker could replace a file and its checksum together. Signature verification requires GnuPG. Omarchy’s security documentation provides the full signing-key fingerprint. Compare it there before trusting the result:
gpg --keyserver hkps://keys.openpgp.org --recv-keys 40DFB630FF42BCFFB047046CF0134EE680CAC571
gpg --verify omarchy-4.0.6.iso.sig omarchy-4.0.6.isoDo not flash an image that fails verification. All files must belong to the same version. If you read this later, check the current stable release again: a version number inside an old command does not update itself.
2. Write the USB stick and prepare the firmware
The official ISO instructions name balenaEtcher for Mac/Windows and caligula for Linux. Select the verified ISO and identify the target stick by model and capacity. Writing it overwrites its existing contents. Make sure another external drive holding your backup cannot be mistaken for the target.
For the PC route described here, the manual requires disabling Secure Boot; it uses the unspecific wording “and/or” for TPM. Establish the consequences for your machine and any existing Windows installation with BitLocker; keep recovery information available. Do not disable TPM speculatively or clear its keys. If company policy or essential software prevents the required changes, use a different test machine.
Then select the USB stick in the device’s boot menu. The key used to open it depends on the manufacturer. A stick that does not boot is not a reason to change security or disk settings at random: check the media, platform and manufacturer’s instructions first.
3. Work through the installer deliberately
Choose the correct keyboard layout and set up the user account. Check your entries and the summary, especially if the passphrase contains characters that move on other keyboard layouts. Keep the default encryption enabled. Store the passphrase somewhere other than only on the drive it unlocks.
The published configurator presents two fundamentally different choices: use the entire drive, or use free, unpartitioned space. The latter is not the same as free space within a Windows partition.
Full disk install erases the selected drive. Before the final confirmation, reread its model, capacity and the selected mode. Free space install is the intended route alongside an existing system. If that entry is missing, or the displayed layout differs from your preparation, stop and establish why. Do not substitute a full-disk installation.
Keep the machine powered during installation and do not deliberately interrupt the process. Follow the restart prompt afterwards. Timing depends on the device and procedure; a provider’s installation-speed claim is not a reliable deadline for a fully configured workstation.
Special case: installing alongside Windows
The dual-boot documentation calls for creating unpartitioned space in Windows and choosing Free space install. When it detects BitLocker, the configurator also requires full decryption; merely suspending protection is insufficient.
This deliberately changes protection of the existing system. Back up data and recovery information first. On a managed computer, check policy before changing partitions or encryption. Allow room for your applications, projects and data; an installer’s technical minimum is not the same as a usable working capacity.
After a successful installation, limine-scan can add existing systems
to the boot menu. Check both boot routes afterwards. Windows appearing
in a menu does not mean Omarchy backs up its data or system state.
4. Treat the first boot as a functional check
Start with input, networking, display and audio. Before moving real work across, test the applications you need every day. On a laptop, include suspend, resume and an external display where relevant. Record specific failures and the affected version; an error message is more useful for diagnosis than a general assumption that Linux does not support the device.
Update through Update → Omarchy, or omarchy update in a terminal.
The 4.0.6 update procedure
combines package changes with migrations and an attempt to create a
snapshot. Pay attention to the outcome: the update can continue even
if snapshot creation fails. An assumed snapshot is not a recovery route.
For a deliberate checkpoint, use omarchy-snapshot create.
The implementation
reports missing snapshot configurations as an error. Then check that
the checkpoint is actually accessible through recovery. According
to the snapshot manual,
this requires Limine; /home is outside the system rollback.
Set up an AI agent once the basic workstation functions. Read the permissions assessment first: launching through Omarchy can use automatic approval modes. A successful installation is not a reason to give the next tool extensive system privileges as well.
When to end the trial
Stop if drive identification remains unclear, a required security policy cannot be met, or an essential workflow fails. Learning on an empty spare machine is different from rebuilding your only computer in the middle of a working week.
The trial remains useful if you ultimately keep your previous system. Its purpose is a sound decision: you understand the limitations, can recover your data, and know which steps remain before doing real work.
Sources and limits
Versions and downloads were checked on 3 November 2026. The linked ISO source revision is from 19 October. It is a documentary reference, not evidence that we reproduced the ISO build. This guide does not replace a device-specific compatibility check.