Anbox – Run Android Apps on Your Linux Desktop

Anbox (which stands for ‘Android in a Box’) is an open-source application that gives you the ability to run Android apps on any GNU/Linux OS by boxing the Android OS in a container, abstracting hardware access, and integrating its core system services into a GNU/Linux system.

Anbox is achieved by using standard Linux technologies like LXC to separate Android from the host which makes the version immaterial. Nevertheless, the development team tries to keep up with the latest version available from the Android Open Source project.

Features in Anbox

  • Limitless Apps: you can run any Android app without any worries.
  • Security: because Android will be running in a container it will have no direct access to your data or system’s hardware.
  • Tight Integration and Swift Performance: enjoy Anbox’s excellent performance as it uses no virtual hardware tricks and takes advantage of hardware acceleration features.
  • Convergence like Android: Run Anbox on your laptop and mobile phone; just like Android.

Preview Anbox in action in the video below:/

Would you like to give Anbox a test drive? It’s still in Alpha stage and has official support for only Ubuntu 16.04 LTS.

If you’ve Ubuntu 16.04 LTS then open your terminal and enter:

$ sudo snap install --classic anbox-installer && anbox-installer

You can try it on Trusty, Yakkety, and Zesty but it might not work so you might want to wait a little longer till a certified version is available for download.

Either way, do look up Anbox and feel free to support the project in any way you can e.g. reporting bugs and contributing code.

Remember to share your experience with us after trying Anbox out for yourself as your drop your opinion about the project in the comments section below.

Divine Okoi is a cybersecurity postgrad with a passion for the open-source community. With 700+ articles covering different topics in IT, you can always trust him to inform you about the coolest tech.

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