OS/2 Never Went Away. Its Successor Has Received An Update
ArcaOS is an operating system you might not have heard of, but you will recognize it when we tell you that itâs the direct descendant of IBMâs OS/2. Itâs just received a major update, and delivers this persuasive argument for its uptake:
âHow about a commercial operating system which doesnât spy on you, does not report your online activity to anyone, and gives you complete freedom to choose the applications you want to use, however you want to use them?â
Weâre guessing that a higher-than-average number of Hackaday readers use open-source operating systems, but in a world in which the commercial OS everyone loves to hate is ever more turning the Play button into the Pay button, we have to admit thatâs attractive if you pay for your software.
This update, version 5.1.2, brings support for the very latest UEFI systems to the table, keeping the platform alive in a manner weâd never have guessed would happen back in the 1990s. Itâs true itâs a 32-bit system rather than 64-bit, and youâd be unlikely to buy it for your high-end gaming machine, but we remember OS/2 Warp back in the day as being very nice indeed and particularly stable. Weâre interested enough to have put in a cheeky request for a review ISO, so should that come off weâd love to give it the Jennyâs Daily Drivers treatment.
ArcaOS has been mentioned here before. Do any of our readers encounter it in your daily lives? Weâd love to hear in the comments.
hackaday.com/2026/03/13/os-2-nâŚ