Just recently, a new app was introduced on the Google Play Store that can help you run Linux on your existing Android smartphone. It's called UserLand, it's open source, and its code is available on GitHub.
The latest version 1.0.0 of the app follows the last beta release 0.5.3, which has been under development for the past few months. But let's take a look at what the free UserLand app has to offer.
You should know that Android is based on a modified Linux kernel. So, it makes sense that you can use Android to run Linux commands and use tools like ssh? UserLand makes these things easier and allows you to run Linux distributions like Debian and Ubuntu.
The most important feature of this app is that it does not require any root access from you. Which is a big relief as rooting exposes one’s device to many security vulnerabilities and risks. You can use it to install/uninstall apps like any other regular app.
To use the app, you can either run apps with one click or use custom sessions. The second method involves defining the file system and services (vnc or ssh) you want to use. After that, the app downloads the necessary files, configures everything, and connects to the router.
You can visit the project website and GitHub page to learn more about it and how to use it.
