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Linux Services

Android 16 Lineout. Screenshots and steps on these pages were taken on Bass: Lineout (Lineage 23.2 / Android 16). On Android 14 (Lineage 21.0) the same tools can look different, sit in a different Settings place, or be missing from that image entirely.

Linux Services runs Linux programs from GameNativeX64 on their own. It can start them when the device boots or on a schedule, and it restarts them if they stop. It works for background servers, terminal programs, and programs with a window.

Open it from Settings → System → Linux Services (it does not appear as a normal app icon).

Before you start

Linux programs run in a Linux (Ubuntu) environment that is downloaded once, about 1.2 GB. GameNativeX64 (1.2.0-x64.17 or later) provides it, but you do not need to open GameNativeX64 to set it up:

  • Open Linux Services. If Linux is not set up yet, a card at the top says Set up the Linux environment. Tap Set up. Setup continues in the background if you leave the screen, and the card shows its progress.
  • Or open Linux Terminal from the app drawer. It takes you to the same card the first time.

If the card says GameNative is not connected, install or update GameNativeX64.

You never need to start Linux Services yourself. It starts with the device, and it comes back on its own if Android or an update closes it.

Linux Terminal

Linux Terminal in the app drawer opens a terminal window in the Linux environment. Opening it again brings back the same window. You can also open it from Open terminal in the Linux Services menu.

Jobs

Each program you set up is a job. The job list shows each job's state (running, stopped, restarting, or failed), what starts it, when it runs next, and how many times it has restarted.

  • Start / Stop: run a job now, or stop it. A stopped job stays stopped until you start it again or its schedule comes around.
  • Logs: see what the program printed. Turn on Auto-refresh in the menu to follow it live.
  • Edit: change the job, or delete it.

Tap Add job to make a new one.

Setting up a job

Setting What it does
ID A short name for the job (letters, digits, ., _, -). It cannot be changed later
Name What the list shows
Type Service: runs in the background with no window (a web server, a sync tool). Terminal: runs in a terminal window. GUI app: a program with its own window
Command What to run, as you would type it in a Linux terminal
Working directory / Environment Optional: the folder it runs in and extra KEY=value settings
Start at boot Start the job every time the device starts, optionally after a delay
Schedule Run it at set times (see below)
Restart Never, On failure (only when it exits with an error), or Always
Give up after... If the job keeps crashing (by default, 5 restarts within 120 seconds), it stops trying and you get a notification

For GUI app and Terminal jobs you also choose the Window:

  • Fullscreen: fills the screen.
  • Fullscreen, pinned: fills the screen and is locked there, for kiosks and signage.
  • Freeform window: a normal movable window. Optionally set its position and size as left,top,right,bottom. Windows smaller than 400 by 400 pixels are enlarged to that size.

Pick the Display to show it on. If that screen is not plugged in yet, Linux Services waits up to a minute for it, then uses the main screen.

Stopping a GUI or Terminal job closes its window. Closing the window yourself counts as the job ending normally.

Schedules

Schedules use the classic cron format: minute hour day month weekday.

Schedule Runs
0 8 * * * Every day at 08:00
*/15 * * * * Every 15 minutes
30 18 * * 1-5 Weekdays at 18:30
0 3 1 * * 03:00 on the first of each month

Weekday 0 or 7 is Sunday. Times follow the device's clock and time zone.

Untracked programs

Below your jobs, the Untracked list shows Linux programs that are running now but are not jobs: apps you opened from the app drawer, and commands you started in the Linux Terminal. A command piped through others, such as apt-get install foo | tail, shows as one entry.

Tap Add to jobs to open the job editor already filled in with the program's command and folder, set to start at boot and restart on failure. Change anything you like, then save. Only the command itself is copied, not any redirection you typed after it, so add that back in the editor if you need it.

Inspector

Inspector (in the menu) shows every Linux program that is running now, grouped by job, with its CPU and memory use.

  • Running: using the CPU right now. A program counts as running when any of its threads is busy, so a browser playing a video shows as running even while its main thread waits.
  • Sleeping: idle, waiting for input or a timer.
  • Paused: stopped by Android or by a signal.
  • Stale: left behind by a closed session, or a job that says it is running but has no program.
  • Zombie: finished but not yet cleaned up.

Tap a program to End process. If it belongs to a job that restarts, the job starts it again.

Import and export

Use Import JSON / Export JSON in the menu to copy jobs between devices or back them up. When importing, Merge adds and updates jobs; Replace also removes jobs that are not in the file.

Device managers can set up jobs remotely, and a sample set of jobs is available for trying things out. See the technical page below.