Install on other systems

This page installs doona and honk-core from the release archives on a Linux system without a doona package, such as Alpine Linux. The system must be x86_64 or aarch64 and meet the kernel requirements below. After the last step, continue with Minimal configuration.

Before you start

Linux 6.12 or later and the kernel options listed in Requirements. Check the kernel with uname -r.
A user account with sudo, or a root shell. Commands that need root have a sudo tab and a root tab; pick the one that matches your shell.
curl, tar, gzip, sha256sum and CA certificates. honk stops at startup without CA certificates. On Alpine, install them with sudo apk add curl ca-certificates, or with apk add curl ca-certificates in a root shell; other systems name the packages similarly.
Access to github.com.
Run every step in the same terminal: later steps use the VERSION, BASE and TARGET variables that earlier steps set.

1. Download doona

Set the release version, then download the program archive and the checksum file into the current directory.

VERSION=0.1.0-beta.12
BASE=https://github.com/Zakkaus/doona/releases/download/v$VERSION
curl -fL -O "$BASE/doona-${VERSION}.tar.gz" -O "$BASE/SHA256SUMS"

2. Verify the download

The command works with both GNU and BusyBox sha256sum.

grep " doona-${VERSION}.tar.gz\$" SHA256SUMS | sha256sum -c -

You should see:

doona-0.1.0-beta.12.tar.gz: OK

3. Install doona

The doona package is optional when you use ui: embedded with the honk-core builds attached to doona 0.1.0-beta.12; see Minimal configuration.

Extract the archive into /usr/share/doona, the directory honk serves doona from.

sudo

sudo mkdir -p /usr/share/doona
sudo tar -xzf doona-${VERSION}.tar.gz -C /usr/share/doona
ls -l /usr/share/doona/index.html

root

mkdir -p /usr/share/doona
tar -xzf doona-${VERSION}.tar.gz -C /usr/share/doona
ls -l /usr/share/doona/index.html

ls prints a line ending in /usr/share/doona/index.html.

Optional: the font archive adds the Noto Sans TC and SC fonts for the Chinese interface.

sudo

curl -fL -O "$BASE/doona-fonts-${VERSION}.tar.gz"
grep " doona-fonts-${VERSION}.tar.gz\$" SHA256SUMS | sha256sum -c -
sudo tar -xzf doona-fonts-${VERSION}.tar.gz -C /usr/share/doona

root

curl -fL -O "$BASE/doona-fonts-${VERSION}.tar.gz"
grep " doona-fonts-${VERSION}.tar.gz\$" SHA256SUMS | sha256sum -c -
tar -xzf doona-fonts-${VERSION}.tar.gz -C /usr/share/doona

4. Choose the honk-core build

uname -m

The release carries eight honk-core archives, named honk-core-debug-<target>.tar.gz. Build the target from the machine type and the C library:

`uname -m` prints	Target starts with
`x86_64`	`x86_64-unknown-linux-`
`aarch64`	`aarch64-unknown-linux-`

Target ends with	Choose it when
`musl`	Unsure, or the system uses musl, as Alpine does. Statically linked, so the system’s glibc version does not matter.
`gnu`	The system has glibc 2.39 or later. On an older glibc it stops with `GLIBC_2.38' not found`.
`-stock` suffix	Memory matters more than speed, as on a small device. Uses the system allocator instead of mimalloc.

For example, x86_64-unknown-linux-musl, aarch64-unknown-linux-gnu or x86_64-unknown-linux-musl-stock.

5. Download and verify honk-core

Set TARGET to the build you chose, then download it from the same release and check it against the same SHA256SUMS.

TARGET=x86_64-unknown-linux-musl
curl -fL -O "$BASE/honk-core-debug-$TARGET.tar.gz"
grep " honk-core-debug-$TARGET.tar.gz\$" SHA256SUMS | sha256sum -c -

You should see:

honk-core-debug-x86_64-unknown-linux-musl.tar.gz: OK

6. Install honk-core

The archive holds one directory with the honk-core binary. Install it as /usr/local/bin/honk-core, the path the service in Service management starts.

sudo

tar -xzf honk-core-debug-$TARGET.tar.gz
sudo install -m 0755 honk-core-debug-$TARGET/honk-core /usr/local/bin/honk-core
/usr/local/bin/honk-core --version

root

tar -xzf honk-core-debug-$TARGET.tar.gz
install -m 0755 honk-core-debug-$TARGET/honk-core /usr/local/bin/honk-core
/usr/local/bin/honk-core --version

The last command prints the honk build, for example:

honk-core debug.2026.9.30.native-api.5

HONK-SOURCE.txt in the same release names the build it carries.

Next: Minimal configuration. The service steps cover systemd and OpenWrt’s procd only; doona and honk ship no OpenRC script. With OpenRC, as on Alpine, Service management gives the foreground command that runs honk for the first sign-in.

If it doesn’t work

You see	Cause and fix
`curl: (22) The requested URL returned error: 404`	The version or file name is wrong. Check `VERSION` against the releases.
`no properly formatted checksum lines found` (GNU) or `no checksum lines found` (BusyBox)	`grep` found no line for that file: `VERSION` or `TARGET` was not set in this terminal, or it has a typo.
`FAILED` and a `WARNING` that the checksum did not match	The download is damaged or incomplete. Delete the file and download it again.
`sha256sum: unrecognized option: ignore-missing`	BusyBox has no `--ignore-missing`. Use the `grep` form from step 2.
`version 'GLIBC_2.38' not found`	The `gnu` build needs a newer glibc. Use the `musl` build.

For problems after installation, see Troubleshooting.