Best IoT Operating Systems for Linux of 2024

Contiki-NG is an open-source and cross-platform operating system that supports Next-Generation IoT devices. It is focused on reliable (secure and reliable) low power communication and standard protocols such as IPv6/6LoWPAN and 6TiSCH, RPL and CoAP. Contiki-NG includes extensive documentation, tutorials and a release cycle. It also has a well-defined development flow to facilitate the seamless integration of community contributions. Contiki-NG source code is distributed under the 3-clause BSD licence, unless otherwise stated. This license grants everyone the right of use and distribution of the code in binary or source format as long as the copyright licence is not lost in the source code.

FreeRTOS, which was developed in partnership with some of the world's most renowned chip companies over a 15 year period, is now downloaded every 170 second. It is a market-leading real time operating system (RTOS), for microcontrollers, small microprocessors. FreeRTOS is freely distributed under the MIT open-source license. It includes a kernel as well as a growing number of IoT libraries that can be used across all industries. FreeRTOS is designed with reliability and ease-of-use in mind. The FreeRTOS kernel has been trusted by leading companies around the world as the standard for microcontrollers/small microprocessors. It is known for its reliability, small footprint, and wide device support. You don't need to know how to set up a project. There are pre-configured demos that can be used as templates and IoT reference integrations. You can quickly download, compile, then get to market quicker. Our partner ecosystem offers a variety of options, including professional support and community contributions.

Arm Mbed OS, an open-source IoT operating platform, is free and available for download. It includes all the features needed to create IoT products. The OS contains everything you need for smart, connected products that run on Arm Cortex M based hardware. This includes machine learning capabilities, security stacks, connectivity stacks, and drivers for sensors and other I/O devices. Arm Mbed OS was designed for the Internet of Things. It integrates with connectivity, machine-learning, networking, security stacks, and is supported by software libraries, tutorials, hardware, and examples. Mbed OS supports over 70 silicon, module and cloud partners. This allows you to optimize your developer choice. Mbed OS API allows you to keep your application code clean, portable, and easy while taking advantage security, communications, and machine learning. The integrated solution reduces development time, cost, and risk.

Torizon helps developers be more productive and create products that are easy to maintain. Device monitoring and integrated over-the-air updates allow you to ship faster, fix bugs in the field, deliver new features, and detect problems faster. Software containerization makes maintenance easier and adds an extra layer of robustness. Torizon is continuously validated on Toradex System on Modules. This allows you to focus on your application and not the operating system. Torizon allows you to develop your product in an agile, iterative manner. Remote update capabilities integrate seamlessly with Torizon, making it easy to deploy new software. Device monitoring provides instant feedback on performance and potential issues.

Raspberry Pi Imager allows you to quickly and easily install Raspberry Pi OS or other operating systems to microSD cards, which can then be used with your Raspberry Pi. Watch this 45-second video to learn how Raspberry Pi Imager installs an operating system. Install Raspberry Pi Imager on a computer that has an SD card reader. Install Raspberry Pi Imager on the computer with an SD card reader. Browse the operating systems available from Raspberry Pi and other organizations, and download them to manually install.

To create the first user in Ubuntu Core, you will need an Ubuntu SSO account. We will show you how to flash Ubuntu Core on a Raspberry Pi 2, 3, 4, or CM3. You will have a board ready to go for production or testing. To create the first user in Ubuntu Core, you will need an Ubuntu SSO account. Now that you have snaps installed on your board, it is time to use snap command to install the first snap. Snap Store is the place to find the best Linux apps in snaps that you can install on your Ubuntu device. Get started with your secure IoT journey.

OpenWrt is an extensible GNU/Linux distribution that can be used on embedded devices (mostly wireless routers). OpenWrt, unlike other router distributions, is a fully-featured and easily modifiable operating systems for embedded devices. This means that you can have all of the features you want with no bloat thanks to a modern Linux kernel. OpenWrt allows you to create a single static firmware instead of trying to create one. It also provides an optional filesystem that can be writable with package management. This allows you to bypass vendor restrictions on application selection and configuration and allows you to use packages for customizing embedded devices to suit any application. OpenWrt is a framework for developers to build applications without the need to create a full firmware image and distribute it.

Ubuntu is more productive than embedded Linux. The cost of sharing a platform is shared. Licensing costs less, updates are more reliable and maintenance is shared. Easy CI/CD, better tools and faster updates are possible with a familiar and well-used Ubuntu system. Linux is not an identifier. Focus on your unique story and avoid pre-enabled boards. It is much easier to manage a familiar platform and environment than a specialist OS. Naturally. Ubuntu is chosen by more Linux developers, which means that the talent pool for Linux is deeper and wider. Tap the largest talent pool. Ubuntu is the leader in every way. Reuse is key to productivity. Get developers moving faster with the largest package selection in the world.

TorizonCore can be installed in just one click using the preinstalled Toradex Easy Installationer. You can get started quickly with the Graphical User Interface (GUI), Debian containers and APT Package Manager. You can quickly build reliable products with a wide range of tools, such as Flash Analytics. TorizonCore is open source and was built using the Yocto Project based upon the Toradex Embedded Linux BSP. This allows for further customization. Torizon integrates with Visual Studio 2019. This allows you to use familiar tools and a Windows development computer while also allowing you to take advantage of the rich Linux ecosystem. Toradex supports Windows Embedded Compact / WinCE. However, Visual Studio with Torizon for developers who want to migrate to Linux is an excellent choice.

A kernel is the core of any embedded OS. It provides crucial task scheduling and multitasking services that ensure your application code's timing requirements can be met. You also regularly update and add new features to that code. Micrium OS is much more than a kernel. It provides a variety of modules that can be used to meet your project's requirements. Micrium OS is completely free to use on Silicon Labs EFM32 or EFR32 devices. Micrium OS can be added to your projects immediately without any licensing fees.

From simple embedded environmental sensors to advanced embedded controllers and smart watches to IoT wireless applications, there are many options. Implements configurable architecture-specific stack-overflow protection, kernel object and device driver permission tracking, and thread isolation with thread-level memory protection on x86, ARC, and ARM architectures, userspace, and memory domains. Supports combining application-specific code and a custom kernel on platforms without MMU/MPU or memory constrained devices to create a monolithic images that are loaded and executed on a system’s hardware. Both the kernel and application code are executed in a single address space.