Install Polari on your computer

Current version 0.1.34

Works on Ubuntu and other Debian-family Linux. Install by clicking — no terminal needed. Your computer fetches everything else it needs from the internet during the install.

Option B

Piece by piece

The same software split into its parts — use this if you want only some pieces or need to reinstall one. Skip it if you used Option A: the two can't be installed together, and the installer will say so if you try.

  1. Isle Mesh — networking

    Connects your computer to your isle's own private network.

    version 0.1.135 · 487.7 KB · isle-mesh-cli_0.1.135_all.deb Pre-prepped — built on this server 2026-09-12, version read from the file name. Downloads instantly.     Download
  2. Polari Shell

    The desktop window your apps open in.

    version 0.1.34 · 52.3 MB · polari-shell-core_0.1.34_amd64.deb Pre-prepped — built on this server 2026-09-12, version read from the file name. Downloads instantly.     Download
  3. Isle App Store

    The app you'll actually open — install and manage everything from here.

    version 0.1.34 · 40.5 KB · isle-app-store_0.1.34_all.deb Pre-prepped — built on this server 2026-09-12, version read from the file name. Downloads instantly.     Download
  4. Polari Isle — finisher

    Ties the pieces together and finishes the setup.

    version 0.1.0 · 1.3 KB · polari-isle_0.1.0_all.deb Pre-prepped — built on this server 2026-09-12, version read from the file name. Downloads instantly.     Download
  1. Download the files, then open your Downloads folder.
  2. Double-click the first file and choose Install. Wait for it to finish.
  3. Repeat for each file, top to bottom — the order matters, because each one builds on the previous.
  4. If double-clicking opens an archive viewer instead of an installer: right-click the file → Open With → Software Install.

First start

Open Isle App Store from your applications menu. It will walk you through creating your own isle or joining an existing one — passwords are asked by the system itself, never typed into a terminal.

What is all this?

What is a .deb file?

The standard installer format on Ubuntu and other Debian-family Linux — the equivalent of a setup file on other systems. Your computer's own Software Install app reads it, shows what will be installed, and asks for your password through the system dialog. Nothing runs until you approve it.

Why does the install order matter in Option B?

Each piece builds on the one before it. Your computer's installer checks that the earlier pieces are already in place but cannot download them for you — so going top to bottom is what makes every install succeed on the first try. Option A avoids the question entirely: one file, one install.

What do "pre-prepped" and "generated on demand" mean?

Pre-prepped files are built ahead of time and sit ready on this server, so the download starts instantly. Generated on demand files are packaged fresh at the moment you ask for them — you wait briefly while the server builds your copy, and the server deletes its copy after delivery instead of keeping a duplicate on disk. Each item on these pages says which kind it is.

What gets downloaded from the internet during install?

Supporting software the apps need (for example Docker) comes from Ubuntu's own official repositories during the install — fetched by your system's package manager, from the same place all your other Ubuntu software comes from. Nothing is fetched from anywhere else.

What ends up on my disk, and where?

Programs install into the system software areas (/usr, /opt) and app data lives under /var/lib/polari. The .deb file you downloaded is only the delivery vehicle — once the install finishes it is safe to delete from your Downloads folder.

Several computers, or not sure what you need? Plan your setup — three questions, a per-device proposal.

Want more? Add individual apps — every module this instance knows, packaged on request.

Installing from a CD/DVD or USB stick with no internet: see the offline install page — it says honestly whether the media set is built yet.