New HexOS features reach a small group of users before they reach everyone. Those testers run the feature on their own servers, with their own data, and tell us how it fits: what they expected, what they did, and where their setup differs from the ones we planned for.
This page lists the programs running now and explains how to take part.
In an invite-only beta, the feature is switched on for your account. In an open beta, it is on for everyone. Either way there is nothing extra to install. You use it as you normally would, and you tell us what you expected and what actually happened.
A feature in beta works on your real data. Beta means we are still finishing it: screens may change, and you may find a rough edge. What we learn from you shapes how it reaches everyone. There is no minimum commitment and no deadline.
Warning: Keep any routine you already rely on running alongside a beta feature. Nothing new should be the only copy of anything you care about.
Each invite-only program has its own signup form, linked below. It asks a little about your setup so we can place you in a group. Places are added in small groups, so it may be a short wait. An open beta needs no sign-up.
If you have a question before you sign up, ask in the HexOS Discord Community.
Back up your folders to a friend's server or a second server of your own. Buddy Backups is open to everyone while we finish it. There is no sign-up: click Backups in the sidebar of the hosted Command Deck to start. See what the Buddy Backups beta means and the Buddy Backups guide.
Run Windows, Linux, and small appliance systems such as Home Assistant OS on your HexOS server. Virtual Machines is open to everyone while we finish it, and so is VM setup, where HexOS finishes setting up some systems after they start. There is no sign-up: click VMs in the sidebar to start. See what the Virtual Machines beta means and the VMs guide.
Try newly curated apps before they reach the catalog for everyone. Register using the app curation signup form.
Feedback is read by the engineers who built the feature. Expect follow-up questions.