Linux is, in a narrow sense, the Linux operating system kernel , and in the broad sense, any operating system that is based on the Linux kernel. This article covers the broad meaning.

Originally, the Linux kernel was developed for PC- compatible personal computers , and had to come with GNU software to build an operating system. Proponents of the GNU project have been promoting since the combined GNU / Linux name . Since the 2000s , the Linux kernel is used on computer hardware ranging from mobile phones to supercomputers , and is not always accompanied by GNU software. This is particularly the case of Android , which equips more than 80% of smartphones.

The Linux kernel was created in 1991 by Linus Torvalds . It’s free software . The Linux distributions have been, and remain, an important vehicle for popularizing the movement open source.

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