qubes-doc/hardware/system-requirements.md
Marek Marczykowski-Górecki e02030119e
Fix internal links
2016-09-25 01:25:34 +02:00

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---
layout: doc
title: System Requirements
permalink: /doc/system-requirements/
redirect_from:
- /en/doc/system-requirements/
- /doc/SystemRequirements/
- /wiki/SystemRequirements/
---
# System Requirements #
## Qubes Release 3.x ##
### Minimum ###
* 64-bit Intel or AMD processor (x86\_64 aka x64 aka AMD64)
* 4 GB RAM
* 32 GB disk space
* Legacy boot mode (required for R3.0 and earlier; UEFI is supported beginning
with R3.1)
### Recommended ###
* Fast SSD (strongly recommended)
* Intel IGP (strongly preferred)
* Nvidia GPUs may require significant [troubleshooting][nvidia].
* ATI GPUs have not been formally tested (but see the [Hardware Compatibility
List]).
* [Intel VT-x] or [AMD-V] (required for running HVM domains, such as
Windows-based AppVMs)
* [Intel VT-d] or [AMD-Vi (aka AMD IOMMU)] (required for effective isolation of
network VMs)
* TPM with proper BIOS support (required for [Anti Evil Maid])
## Qubes Release 4.x ##
### Minimum ###
* 64-bit Intel or AMD processor (x86\_64 aka x64 aka AMD64)
* [Intel VT-x] with [EPT] or [AMD-V] with [RVI]
* [Intel VT-d] or [AMD-Vi (aka AMD IOMMU)]
* 4 GB RAM
* 32 GB disk space
### Recommended ###
* Fast SSD (strongly recommended)
* Intel IGP (strongly preferred)
* Nvidia GPUs may require significant [troubleshooting][nvidia].
* ATI GPUs have not been formally tested (but see the [Hardware Compatibility
List]).
* TPM with proper BIOS support (required for [Anti Evil Maid])
* A non-USB keyboard or multiple USB controllers
* Also consider the [hardware certification requirements for Qubes 4.x].
## Choosing Hardware ##
* Please see the [Hardware Compatibility List] for a compilation of
hardware reports generated and submitted by users across various Qubes
versions. (For more information about the HCL itself, see [here][hcl-doc]).
* For more certain hardware compatibility, you may wish to consider a
[Qubes-certified laptop]. (For information about how a computer becomes
Qubes-certified, see [Hardware Certification].)
## Important Notes ##
* Qubes **can** be installed on systems which do not meet the recommended
requirements. Such systems will still offer significant security
improvements over traditional operating systems, since things like GUI
isolation and kernel protection do not require special hardware.
* Qubes **can** be installed on a USB flash drive or external disk, and testing
has shown that this works very well. A fast USB 3.0 flash drive is
recommended for this. (As a reminder, its capacity must be at least 32 GB.)
Simply plug the flash drive into the computer before booting into the Qubes
installer from a separate installation medium, choose the flash drive as the
target installation disk, and proceed with the installation normally. After
Qubes has been installed on the flash drive, it can then be plugged into
other computers in order to boot into Qubes. In addition to the convenience
of having a portable copy of Qubes, this allows users to test for hardware
compatibility on multiple machines (e.g., at a brick-and-mortar computer
store) before deciding on which computer to purchase. (See [hcl-report] for
advice on hardware compatibility testing.) Keep in mind to also change
assigned devices for your netvm and usbvm, if you move between different
machines.
* There is also a [live USB] option available, which may be even easier for
testing.
* Installing Qubes in a virtual machine is not recommended, as it uses its own
bare-metal hypervisor (Xen).
* Macintosh PCs are not currently supported due to keyboard and mouse problems.
(See [#230] for details. Patches welcome!)
* [Advice on finding a VT-d capable notebook][vt-d-notebook].
[nvidia]: /doc/install-nvidia-driver/
[hardware certification requirements for Qubes 4.x]: /news/2016/07/21/new-hw-certification-for-q4/
[Hardware Certification]: /hardware-certification/
[Hardware Compatibility List]: /hcl/
[hcl-doc]: /doc/hcl/
[hcl-report]: /doc/hcl/#generating-and-submitting-new-reports
[Anti Evil Maid]: /doc/anti-evil-maid/
[Qubes-certified laptop]: /doc/certified-laptops/
[live USB]: /doc/live-usb/
[#230]: https://github.com/QubesOS/qubes-issues/issues/230
[vt-d-notebook]: https://groups.google.com/d/msg/qubes-users/Sz0Nuhi4N0o/ZtpJdoc0OY8J
[Intel VT-x]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86_virtualization#Intel_virtualization_.28VT-x.29
[AMD-V]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86_virtualization#AMD_virtualization_.28AMD-V.29
[Intel VT-d]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86_virtualization#Intel-VT-d
[AMD-Vi (aka AMD IOMMU)]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X86_virtualization#I.2FO_MMU_virtualization_.28AMD-Vi_and_Intel_VT-d.29
[EPT]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Level_Address_Translation#Extended_Page_Tables
[RVI]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Level_Address_Translation#Rapid_Virtualization_Indexing