Antergos NeXT is not just a distribution — it's the final form of a journey that started with a 14-year-old's distro hobby and ended up covered by 9to5Linux, DistroWatch, Linuxiac, and more.

From a janky custom mkarchiso called MoonlightOS NoVa, through the EndeavourOS-based Solara, to a fully-fledged Artix Linux-based ISO with KDE Plasma, Calamares installer (online + offline), Dinit as default init (OpenRC/Runit/S6 still selectable), and proper CI that uploads to the Internet Archive.

This is the one that worked.

The Timeline

Era	Period	Base	Init	DE
🌙 MoonlightOS NoVa	~Feb 2025	Arch	systemd	KDE
🐱 MoonlightOS meow-v7	~2025	EndeavourOS	systemd	KDE
☀️ Solara	~2025	EndeavourOS	systemd	KDE
🟢 Antergos NeXT (systemd)	~2026	Arch	systemd	GNOME
🔄 Antergos NeXT (OpenRC)	~2026	Artix	OpenRC	KDE
⚡ Antergos NeXT (Dinit)	Now	Artix	Dinit	KDE

What's Inside

KDE Plasma live environment — polished, familiar, ready
Calamares installer in two modes:
- Online — init system selection, package chooser, DM picker
- Offline — fully self-contained, no network needed
Artix Linux base — rolling release, pacman, no systemd
Dinit as default init — fast, clean, modern
Multi-init support — OpenRC, Runit, S6 still selectable
antergos-pkgs custom repo — curated packages, Calamares branding, themes

Building

export WORKSPACE_DIR="$PWD"
sudo -E ./buildiso -p antergos

ISO lands at /var/lib/artools/buildiso/iso/antergos/.

Why This Exists

Because rolling your own distro at 14 is funny. Because giving up is boring. And because after six iterations, countless broken packages, three init systems, two ISO builders, and one very patient maintainer — you eventually end up with something that actually works.

MoonlightOS walked. Solara ran. Antergos NeXT flies.

25-01-2026 → 07-07-2026