netbootxyz/netboot.xyz

What is it?

Key features

• 01Boot a menu of many Linux, BSD and Windows installers over the network
• 02Provides iPXE bootloaders as ISO, USB, kernel, floppy, DHCP and EFI images
• 03Supports legacy BIOS, UEFI, ARM64 and Raspberry Pi 4
• 04Includes live environments and rescue utilities such as Clonezilla and Memtest
• 05Self-hostable via Ansible or Docker, with local mirror overrides

Use cases

• Installing operating systems on bare-metal servers or homelab machines without carrying USB drives
• Running rescue tools like Clonezilla or GParted from a single boot menu
• Hosting a private PXE boot menu for an internal network with local mirrors

Quick start

1. 1

   Download the combined bootloader ISO or image from the netboot.xyz downloads

2. 2

   Boot a machine from the downloaded netboot.xyz.iso or netboot.xyz.img, then pick an OS from the menu

3. 3

   Or, if iPXE is already running on your network (Legacy mode), chain to netboot.xyz

   chain --autofree http://boot.netboot.xyz/ipxe/netboot.xyz.lkrn

Things to know

• !Self-hosting requires running Ansible or Docker to generate the build output.
• !HTTPS is not enabled in default iPXE builds, so the standard chain URL uses HTTP.

Topics

FAQ

What is netboot.xyz?

A network-bootable iPXE menu that lets you boot and install many operating systems and rescue utilities without downloading ISOs first. netboot.xyz is a network-based bootable installer built on iPXE. A machine boots into a menu served over the network, and from there you pick an operating system installer or utility disk to run, so you do not need to find and download an ISO first. The menu covers a large list of Linux distributions, BSDs, Windows and VMware installers, plus live environments and rescue tools such as Clonezilla, GParted and Memtest.

Is netboot.xyz free to use? What license does it have?

netboot.xyz is open source under the Apache-2.0 license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.

Is netboot.xyz still maintained?

Actively maintained. The last commit to netboot.xyz was on Oct 19, 2026.

What can I use netboot.xyz for?

Installing operating systems on bare-metal servers or homelab machines without carrying USB drives Running rescue tools like Clonezilla or GParted from a single boot menu Hosting a private PXE boot menu for an internal network with local mirrors

How do I install netboot.xyz?

Download the combined bootloader ISO or image from the netboot.xyz downloads Boot a machine from the downloaded netboot.xyz.iso or netboot.xyz.img, then pick an OS from the menu Or, if iPXE is already running on your network (Legacy mode), chain to netboot.xyz: chain --autofree http://boot.netboot.xyz/ipxe/netboot.xyz.lkrn

Where can I get netboot.xyz?

The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/netbootxyz/netboot.xyz