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Welcome6

Overview
Welcome to MSL
A two-minute tour
Words you'll see
Under the hood
What's ready, what's experimental
Using this guide

Getting Started6

Overview
Installing a distro
Creating an instance
Your first start and your Linux user
Choosing a distro
Your first Linux app
Custom images

The app

The Main Window5

Overview
The main window
The sidebar
The instance header
Instance logos
Banners and messages

Applications Tab7

Overview
The Applications tab
Opening a Linux app
The app right-click menu
Adding apps to your Applications folder
Pinning to the Dock
Where apps come from
Living with Linux windows

Terminal & Shells5

Overview
The Terminal tab
Using Terminal.app
Linux users and root
Connecting over SSH
The msl command

Overview Tab7

Overview
The Overview tab
Virtual CPUs
Memory: manual mode
Memory: dynamic mode
Disk size and storage
Your home folder inside Linux
How many can run at once

Managing Instances5

Overview
Renaming and copying
Where an instance came from
Protecting an image
Reaching a port inside Linux
Changing how an app starts

Tools Tab15

Overview
The Tools tab
Shipments
The background service
Generated apps
Snapshots
Suspend, hibernate or shut down?
Removing an instance
Uninstalling MSL
The Maintenance card
Checking a disk
Repairing a disk
Checking the disk at every start
Maintenance boot
Utilities for a running instance
USB devices

Sandbox Tab4

Overview
The Sandbox tab
The four gates
The Traffic Monitor
A VPN inside one instance

Going further

MSL Files8

Overview
The MSL Files window
The Files sidebar
Views, sorting and getting around
Moving files between Mac and Linux
Git in MSL Files
Tags
Deleting files
Opening a folder in a Linux shell

Graphics & mslgd4

Overview
mslgd, the display server
Running OpenGL apps
Environment tricks for stubborn apps
Known quirks

Experimental Features10

Overview
What experimental means here
The Mac keyboard in Linux apps
The shared clipboard
MSL Files as the Linux file browser
Linux menus in the Mac menu bar
Signing in to Linux apps
GPU acceleration for OpenGL
Native scaling
Retina rendering
The camera and microphone prompt

Power & Lifecycle3

Overview
Sleep, shutdown and battery
Idle instances
Shared disks

Beyond one Mac

Reaching it from anywhere6

Overview
What publishing does
Publishing and stopping
Letting another computer in
Emailing the address out
Through your own server
What MSL changes to keep it safe

Admin Portal7

Overview
The MSL Admin Portal
Setting it up
What can be restricted
How strong a policy is
Reading a refusal
Managing several Macs
Certifying and withdrawing an image

Updates3

Overview
How updating works
What the version number tells you
What the update notice tells you

Help

Troubleshooting14

Overview
An instance won't start
The service isn't running
Linux apps won't appear or open
SSH won't connect
The disk is full
Filesystem errors
The clock is wrong
The Maintenance card says…
Memory trouble
Linux has no internet
The crash screen and its stop codes
MSL's observer
Logs and msl doctor
Reclaiming disk space

Command line1

Overview
msl --help

Reference5

Overview
Keyboard shortcuts
msl command reference
Where MSL keeps things
Glossary
Credits and licences

Error codes2

Overview
Every stop code
Reading a crash report

18Chapter 18 of 20

Command line

Everything msl --help prints, here.

1 article

1msl --helpEvery msl command in Terminal.app, grouped the way msl --help prints them.

Previous chapterTroubleshooting14 articles Next chapterReference5 articles

Generated from the guide that ships inside MSL. Credits and licences · Source of this site

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Chapters about similar things share a colour. Pick one to see only those chapters.

BasicsWhat MSL is, and your first steps with it.Welcome · Getting Started
The appThe main window and the tabs you use every day.The Main Window · Overview Tab
Linux apps & graphicsLinux GUI apps as Mac windows, and how they get drawn.Applications Tab · Graphics & mslgd · Experimental Features
Shells & remote accessTerminals, SSH, the msl command, and reaching an instance from elsewhere.Terminal & Shells · Reaching it from anywhere · Command line
Instances & filesLooking after machines, moving files, and sleep and power.Managing Instances · MSL Files · Power & Lifecycle
UpkeepSnapshots, disk checks, maintenance and updates.Tools Tab · Updates
Security & controlCutting an instance off, and locking a Mac down.Sandbox Tab · Admin Portal
TroubleshootingWhen something goes wrong: symptoms first, then fixes.Troubleshooting
ReferenceEvery shortcut, command, file and word.Reference · Error codes