Joseph Zikusooka (ZIK)

Linux Systems Engineer specializing in open source software technologies | Very experienced in building and configuring UNIX/Linux systems and servers. Passionate about developing software applications and hardware for the smart home | Currently serving as technologist at Jambula Labs and the project leader at JambulaTV, a smart home automation and entertainment platform - https://jambulatv.com | This blog focuses on the following areas: Linux How-Tos and Tutorials ::: IT Security News ::: Free and Libre Open Source Software ::: Smart Home Software ::: Digital Innovations in East Africa https://mastodon.social/@jzik | https://github.com/zikusooka

Linux

Linux related articles

Jambula OS 2025.9.0 Released – Now with Bluetooth Speaker Support!

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Apps, Code, Linux, News, Open SourceTagged , , , , ,

I have uploaded the latest ๐‰๐š๐ฆ๐›๐ฎ๐ฅ๐š ๐Ž๐’ image – version ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ“.๐Ÿ—.๐ŸŽ. This release continues the work I have been doing to make Jambula OS, a reliable, lightweight Linux platform for embedded SoC devices like the Raspberry Pi 5. So if you are building smart automation solutions on embedded platforms, this update is definitely worth checking out.

๐‡๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ฅ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ซ๐ž๐ฅ๐ž๐š๐ฌ๐ž:

๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ž๐ญ๐จ๐จ๐ญ๐ก ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ž๐ซ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ: Added support for Bluetooth audio devices which is ideal for voice prompts or music output.

๐’๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐œ๐ก๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐Š๐ž๐š ๐ƒ๐‡๐‚๐: Replaced dnsmasq with ๐Š๐ž๐š ๐ƒ๐‡๐‚๐ for better dynamic addressing management.

๐–๐ข๐…๐ข ๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐จ๐ญ ๐œ๐ฅ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐ญ ๐œ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ง ๐Œ๐Ž๐“๐ƒ: See how many clients are connected to your hotspot right in the systemโ€™s MOTD.

๐๐‘ ๐œ๐จ๐๐ž ๐จ๐ง ๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐š๐ฅ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ข๐ง: Displays a QR code linking to vendor/device info, useful for branding or support.

๐ˆ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฏ๐ž๐ ๐ฌ๐ž๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฉ ๐ญ๐จ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฌ: Smoother first-time setup experience with updated scripts.

๐‡๐จ๐ฆ๐ž ๐€๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐š๐ง๐ญ ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐๐š๐ญ๐ž๐: Latest Home Assistant version included to keep your platform up to date.

๐๐ฎ๐  ๐Ÿ๐ข๐ฑ๐ž๐ฌ: Minor fixes including firewall and weather integration improvements.

๐‹๐ž๐š๐ซ๐ง ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ž ๐š๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐‰๐š๐ฆ๐›๐ฎ๐ฅ๐š ๐Ž๐’:
https://code.jambula.net/zikusooka/Jambula-OS

Hass Core Installer 2025.9.0 Released

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Apps, Code, Linux, Tools

I have released Hass Core Installer 2025.9.0! There are no changes in this version besides upgrade to the latest Home Assistant.

Hass Core Installer is a free and open source tool that helps you install and manage Home Assistant Core using the manual installation method. Even though this method is now officially deprecated, I know some people still prefer it for its flexibility and control.

You can find the project and source code here: https://github.com/zikusooka/hass-core-installer

Demo of Agama Linux Installer at OpenSUSE Conference 2025 – Nuremberg, Germany

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Linux, News, Open Source, TalksTagged , ,

Over the weekend at the OpenSUSE Conference 2025 in Nuremberg, Germany, I had the pleasure of showcasing Agama, the innovative new Linux installer set to debut in openSUSE Project Leap 16 and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 16.

While still in active development, this tool is shaping up impressively and promises to redefine the future of unattended Linux installations.

Curious to learn more or get started? Explore the full documentation here:
https://agama-project.github.io/docs/user/

An Alternative Way to Install Home Assistant Core

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Apps, Code, Linux, Tools

Hass-Core-Installer Version 2025.5.1 Released

Official support for installing Home Assistant Core, Supervised, and some other methods will soon end (see announcement). If you still want to run Home Assistant Core on your own hardware, I have good news!

Iโ€™ve released a new and improved version of hass-core-installer. This tool makes it easy to install Home Assistant Core on many types of systems, including ARM64 devices like Raspberry Pi 5.

You can try it now by visiting the GitHub page.

Why Use Hass-Core-Installer?

  • Works on Many Systems: Supports most system types, especially ARM64.
  • Works Offline: You can install Home Assistant Core even without an internet connection.
  • Future-Proof: Keeps working even after official support ends.
  • For Power Users: Best for people who already know how to set up Home Assistant.

Whatโ€™s New in Version 2025.5.1?

  1. Upgrade Home Assistant to the latest version
    Updated Home Assistant Core to the latest version of 2025.5.1
  2. Faster Installs with uv:
    The installer now uses uv, a new and very fast Python package manager. This means Home Assistant installs faster and package problems are easier to fix.
    (Learn more about uv here).
  3. Supports More Python Versions:
    You can now use different versions of Python. By default, it uses Python 3.13.3.
  4. Better Troubleshooting:
    Improved tests and logging help you find and fix problems more easily.

How to Get Started

  1. Go to the hass-core-installer GitHub page.
  2. Follow the instructions to download and use the tool.

If youโ€™re an experienced Home Assistant user and want to keep running it your way, give hass-core-installer a try! Your feedback and suggestions are welcome on GitHub.

Buildroot and GCC 15: Fixes for m4 and Other Packages

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Code, Linux

This week, I tried using Buildroot on my new Fedora 42 system, which comes with GCC 15. Right away, the build failed when compiling the package host-m4.

After looking into it, I found that GCC 15 has stricter rules that cause some Buildroot packages to break-not just m4, but also others like gmp. This means if you are using Buildroot on a Linux system with GCC 15, you might run into similar problems.

What to do?

There are patches available to fix these issues, including one I submitted for m4. You can find them here:
https://lists.buildroot.org/pipermail/buildroot/2025-April/777274.html

Whatโ€™s next?

Hopefully, these problems will be fixed in the official Buildroot updates soon. Until then, applying these patches will help you build successfully with GCC 15.

If you use Buildroot with the latest Linux and GCC versions, keep an eye out for updates and patches like these!

Update [May 5, 2025]:

This patch has now been committed upstream to buildroot.

It will be applied as a workaround only when host gcc 15 is detected.

For more details, please check the full commit here:

https://gitlab.com/buildroot.org/buildroot/-/commit/7a07a9d155b8f601d68f07ee0ed1dc8d48907644

Releasing Jambula OS Linux – version 2025.3.0

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Code, Linux, News, Upcoming Technologies

๐Ÿš€ I have uploaded the latest image of Jambula OS Linux version 2025.3.0 (Great Seasons)! ๐Ÿ’ปโœจ
While this is mostly a maintenance release, I’ve snuck in some exciting features like:

โœ… Remote connections just got easier with Tailscale support! ๐ŸŒ
โœ… Audio calendar alerts are now possible with Radicale ๐Ÿ“…๐Ÿ””
โœ… Nginx web/proxy server support ๐Ÿ–ฅ๏ธ
โœ… Geolocation tool to help you pinpoint device location ๐Ÿ“

For more information about Jambula OS Linux, including instructions on how to download and install it, please visit:
https://github.com/zikusooka/Jambula-OS

Jambula OS Linux – Version 2025.1.0 Released

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Linux, News

I have just compiled and released a new image for Jambula OS Linux version 2025.1.0! This exciting update features a range of innovative enhancements, including:

๐ŸŒŸ Seamless integration with the latest Home Assistant smart home software

๐Ÿ“… Radicale, the lightweight and powerful CalDAV/CardDAV server for all calendaring needs

๐ŸŽต A local music server that supports audio announcements and alerts

๐Ÿ•ฐ๏ธ A talking clock feature that announces the time at hourly intervals

๐ŸŒฆ๏ธ Periodic weather updates delivered through voice alerts tailored to your location

๐Ÿ“ท MQTT-based triggers activated by motion detection from the built-in camera server

For more information about Jambula OS Linux, including instructions on how to download and install it, please visit:

https://github.com/zikusooka/Jambula-OS

Hass Core Installer, a new Home Assistant Installer and upgrade tool for Linux

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Apps, Code, Linux

I’m excited to announce that I have uploaded a new tool called HASS Core Installer. As you have guested, its a handy tool that makes it very easy to install, upgrade, and uninstall Home Assistant Core on Linux. So weather you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced Home Assistant user, this tool is just what you need if any of the official and recommended methods are not sufficient for your use case.

I initially developed this tool for use on Jambula OS, a custom tailored Linux operating system designed for SoC devices such as the Raspberry Pi. However, you can use it on any Linux distribution such as Ubuntu, Fedora, OpenSUSE, Ubuntu, Debian etc.

HASS Core Installer also works off-line allowing for local installations and upgrades of Home Assistant in scenarios where there’s no access to the Internet.

To get started or contribute to this project, check out the HASS Core Installer repository on my Github!

Jambula OS Linux now offers support for Home Assistant

By Joseph ZikusookaPosted on Posted in Apps, Linux

๐Ÿš€โœจ Exciting news for smart home enthusiasts! I have added support for Home Assistant Core installs & upgrades to Jambula OS (starting with version 2024.10.0) ๐ŸŽ‰

โš™๏ธ Jambula OS is a custom Linux operating system ๐Ÿง designed specifically for SoC devices like the Raspberry Pi 5

โฌ‡๏ธ You can download it here: https://github.com/zikusooka/Jambula-OS/

๐Ÿก Upgrade today and kickstart your journey to creating a private, offline smart home ๐Ÿ’กhub!

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