General questions before buying

[Grimaldius]

Hello,

I'm contemplating buying a lifetime licence, but before that I have some questions
Sorry if answers are already available elsewhere

• HexOS is currently based on TrueNAS Scale 24.10.
  When 25.04 and future versions are available, will we be able to update TrueNAS directly, or do we need to wait for HexOS to be updated first ?
  If so, how long do you expect before HexOS gets updated ?
   
• Can we just remove HexOS to revert to vanilla TrueNAS, or would that require a fresh install ? Can some settings be exported to that fresh install to not start from scratch ?
   
• You mention we can always use the TrueNAS UI instead of HexOS UI. Is there a risk that changing settings directly on TrueNAS breaks things in HexOS configuration, or vice versa ?
   
• At first, I thought HexOS would only be a new user friendly GUI on top of TrueNAS Scale, but it seems you also plan to add new features. I have no experience with TrueNAS Scale, so I find it hard to understand what exactly is new from HexOS.
  From your 1.0 roadmap for example, how much is new added features that were not possible on TrueNAS, and how much is improved UI/UX or ease of use ?
   
• You currently list two apps, Immich and Plex. Do we still have access to Official/Community Apps from TrueNAS ? Can there be a conflict between different sources for apps ?
   
• When available, will Local UI have feature parity with Command Deck to configure my local server, or will some settings still require to use the online version ?
   
• Any and all purchases are subject to a 30-day refund policy. Do the 30-day timer start at time of purchase, or when we receive our early access invite ?

 

Thanks

[jonp]

GREAT QUESTIONS!  Answers below:

5 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

HexOS is currently based on TrueNAS Scale 24.10.
When 25.04 and future versions are available, will we be able to update TrueNAS directly, or do we need to wait for HexOS to be updated first ?
If so, how long do you expect before HexOS gets updated ?

When future versions of TrueNAS are released, we will test them internally before we make them available via an update mechanism within our UI.   Most updates should be able to be applied immediately, but in the event we find a reason to delay the update, notice will be provided to the community.  As a more direct question, we think most OS updates will be doable within 1-2 weeks of their TrueNAS SCALE release.

5 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

Can we just remove HexOS to revert to vanilla TrueNAS, or would that require a fresh install ? Can some settings be exported to that fresh install to not start from scratch ?

You can disconnect us from your server at any time and just use the TrueNAS UI if you want.  However, the "install" is still a HexOS install at that point, pointing to our app repo.  If you want, you can reinstall TrueNAS SCALE native on your boot device, reboot, import the storage pools we created under HexOS, and continue using TrueNAS natively from there.

6 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

You mention we can always use the TrueNAS UI instead of HexOS UI. Is there a risk that changing settings directly on TrueNAS breaks things in HexOS configuration, or vice versa ?

Yes.  If you do things that are destructive, they will have destructive impact ;-).  To be clear, there is no safety net when you're navigating in the TrueNAS UI.  No bumper lanes there to stop you from shooting yourself in the foot, so the TrueNAS UI is "Swim at your own risk!".

6 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

At first, I thought HexOS would only be a new user friendly GUI on top of TrueNAS Scale, but it seems you also plan to add new features. I have no experience with TrueNAS Scale, so I find it hard to understand what exactly is new from HexOS.
From your 1.0 roadmap for example, how much is new added features that were not possible on TrueNAS, and how much is improved UI/UX or ease of use ?

We are a replacement management interface for TrueNAS SCALE.  The primary focus in the early beta is ease-of-use.  Longer term, we will build a docker container that will side-load with the OS to add additional functionality not natively available or part of the out-of-the-box TrueNAS SCALE experience.  Buddy backups is a great example of a feature that we are building that will leverage technology in TrueNAS (e.g. replication), but will wrap it in simplicity and marry it with a service that makes connecting to other users far more automated.

6 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

You currently list two apps, Immich and Plex. Do we still have access to Official/Community Apps from TrueNAS ? Can there be a conflict between different sources for apps ?

The app repo that HexOS points to is a clone/fork of the app repo provided by TrueNAS themselves.  This allows us to continue to build out our app library independent from them, but also allows us to incorporate anything they do with relative ease.  There is no method to adding additional app repos within TrueNAS (nor HexOS), but we do intend to support loading something like Portainer (or another equivalent) for advanced users that want to add 3rd party containers.

6 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

When available, will Local UI have feature parity with Command Deck to configure my local server, or will some settings still require to use the online version ?

The command deck will be required for certain functionality.  It will ALWAYS be required for initial system provisioning.  The main reason is that the HexOS installer does not include our UI and it never will.  Instead, the local UI will be loaded via a Docker container that we will install after initial system provisioning.

Think of it similar to setting up an iPhone or Android device.  You need the Internet + a Google/Apple account to get going, but then you can turn on airplane mode and do whatever you want.  Same idea here.

6 hours ago, Grimaldius said:

Any and all purchases are subject to a 30-day refund policy. Do the 30-day timer start at time of purchase, or when we receive our early access invite ?

The latter (when you receive the early access invite).  I updated the terms policy to reflect this as well as it wasn't clear.

[RicardoCino]

On 11/29/2024 at 10:54 PM, jonp said:

Yes.  If you do things that are destructive, they will have destructive impact ;-).  To be clear, there is no safety net when you're navigating in the TrueNAS UI.  No bumper lanes there to stop you from shooting yourself in the foot, so the TrueNAS UI is "Swim at your own risk!".

Will HexOS reflect those changes in the UI (for supported features) or is it one-way-communication only towards TrueNAS? 

[dragonuck]

can this OS run on Windows - sorry newbie here.  

[rmartinezdl]

I have a question, i bought 2 lifetime licences, i want to know if the licence is tied to the motherboard like a windows licence or can i "revoke" it from a device and use it on a "new" device (obv not simultaniously)

 

Thanks, also i got my key, where do i donwload the isos?

 

Thanks

[Canadianhummus]

1 hour ago, rmartinezdl said:

I have a question, i bought 2 lifetime licences, i want to know if the licence is tied to the motherboard like a windows licence or can i "revoke" it from a device and use it on a "new" device (obv not simultaniously)

 

Thanks, also i got my key, where do i donwload the isos?

 

Thanks

It is not tied 🙂

Instructions should be in the email.

[BlueAsphalt]

19 hours ago, dragonuck said:

can this OS run on Windows - sorry newbie here.  

Do you mean running it inside a virtual machine within windows?
There's a section under the FAQ page on the hexos website that should answer your question

[Mysticwolf6]

On 12/1/2024 at 4:38 PM, RicardoCino said:

Will HexOS reflect those changes in the UI (for supported features) or is it one-way-communication only towards TrueNAS? 

I wanted to know this as well.  Specifically, if you go and change certain settings or add new apps in the TrueNAS UI, will you see those changes in the HexOS UI as well?