Alternatives to HexOS
Consumer-friendly home server operating system built on top of TrueNAS Scale. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
HexOS
Consumer-friendly home server operating system built on top of TrueNAS Scale.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as HexOS.
OpenMediaVault
Debian-based network-attached storage operating system with a browser web interface.
OpenMediaVault is a free, open-source Debian-based NAS system with a web interface and plugins, instead of a paid product built on TrueNAS Scale.
Rockstor
Open-source Btrfs NAS platform built on openSUSE for custom storage builds.
Rockstor is a free, open-source NAS platform on openSUSE using Btrfs for snapshots and replication, with a smaller community than TrueNAS.
XigmaNAS
FreeBSD-based NAS operating system, formerly known as NAS4Free.
XigmaNAS is a free, open-source FreeBSD-based NAS system with broad protocol support on generic hardware, though its tooling is less familiar to Linux-only admins.
Houston UI
Open-source Cockpit-based management interface for self-built NAS servers.
Houston UI is a free, open-source Cockpit-based management interface for self-built NAS servers, developed mainly around 45Drives hardware.
Synology DiskStation Manager
Web-based NAS operating system that powers every Synology DiskStation device.
Synology DiskStation Manager offers a polished web interface and large package center, but only runs on Synology's own hardware.
QNAP QuTS hero
ZFS-based QNAP NAS operating system with snapshots and inline deduplication.
QNAP QuTS hero provides ZFS with inline deduplication and SnapSync replication, but is limited to QNAP hardware certified for it and needs more RAM.
QNAP QTS
Standard NAS operating system for QNAP storage appliances with an ext4 base.
QNAP QTS uses an ext4 base with an App Center and Container Station, and only runs on QNAP's own hardware.
Asustor Data Master (ADM)
NAS operating system for Asustor devices with an app catalog and surveillance suite.
Asustor Data Master offers an app catalog, surveillance suite and Btrfs snapshots, but only runs on Asustor hardware with a smaller app ecosystem.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
CasaOS
Personal cloud dashboard that installs Docker apps on a home server in one click.
YunoHost
Debian-based server distribution that installs and maintains self-hosted apps for you.
Runtipi
Home server manager with a curated app store for self-hosted services.
Cosmos Cloud
Self-hosted server platform bundling a reverse proxy, authentication and container management.
Webmin
A web-based control panel for administering Unix and Linux servers and the services running on them.
