Skip to main content

getting started

This page walks you from "I found wootc" to the installer's first screen, including the two Windows warnings you will see on the way. They look alarming; here is exactly what they are and why they appear.

1. Download​

Grab the latest wootc.exe from the Releases page. Save it anywhere — Downloads is fine. There is nothing to "install"; wootc is a single program you run.

Prefer a specific distribution? The same release page carries branded builds of the identical engine — Bazzite-Installer.exe, Bluefin-Installer.exe, Aurora-Installer.exe, TunaOS-Installer.exe. They pre-select their own images and download the whole OS while still on Windows, which is the right choice on a Wi-Fi-only laptop.

Command-line folks can use winget once the package clears Microsoft's one-time review: winget install TunaOS.wootc.

Want to check your download? Every release ships a SHA256SUMS file; compare with PowerShell's Get-FileHash .\wootc.exe — the app performs the same verification on every boot artifact it downloads for itself.

Your browser may say something like "wootc.exe isn't commonly downloaded" and hide the file behind a menu. That message means exactly what it says — not many people have downloaded this exact file yet — and nothing more. Choose Keep (in Edge: … → Keep → Keep anyway).

2. The blue "Windows protected your PC" screen​

When you first open wootc.exe, Windows SmartScreen shows a full-screen blue warning: "Windows protected your PC — Microsoft Defender SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting."

This appears because wootc is not yet code-signed — signing certificates are how big publishers pre-register software with Microsoft, and wootc is an open-source project that hasn't bought one. The warning is about recognition, not about anything found in the file.

To continue: click More info, then Run anyway.

If you want to verify the download first (a good habit): the Releases page lists a SHA-256 checksum for each file. In PowerShell, Get-FileHash .\wootc.exe prints yours to compare.

3. The administrator prompt​

Next, Windows asks: "Do you want to allow this app from an unknown publisher to make changes to your device?"

wootc needs administrator rights for exactly the work it exists to do — create a disk file, add the one-time boot entry, and read the system information it shows you. "Unknown publisher" is the same unsigned-app recognition issue as above. Choose Yes.

4. You're in​

From here, the app itself takes over — and the first screen tells you the most important thing before asking you for anything:

Bring Windows to Linux — keep everything.

Everything wootc does before the first reboot lives in one folder (C:\wootc) plus a one-time startup entry, and the installer explains each step as it happens. If you ever change your mind, Settings → Apps → TunaOS (wootc) → Uninstall puts things back — see the user guide for exactly what that does.