Downloads

What should I download? What do I do with these files?
Gentoo Handbook

Please see the Gentoo Handbook for the complete installation documentation. It explains how you can find the right architecture for your machine and which files you need at what stage of the installation process.
In brief, a stage 3 is a minimal set of Gentoo binaries that can upgrade and expand itself (but not much more, i.e., no kernel or boot loader). The desktop version already contains additional programs needed in a typical desktop installation. The installation CD can be used to boot and, well, install Gentoo.

Advanced choices and other architectures

ia64

Processor compatibility

Processor compatibility

The ia64 architecture is intended for use on Intel Itanium processors only.
If you have a 64-bit Intel Pentium/Core/Xeon processor, you need to use the amd64 architecture.

Boot media

mips

m68k

Musl stages

For additional information on using musl based Gentoo systems please see the Musl usage guide.

Details (contents, hashes, and signatures)

ppc

Processor compatibility

Processor compatibility

PowerPC CPUs can operate in two modes: big-endian and little-endian.

  • The ppc and ppc64 stages are big-endian stages and can be used with any PowerPC CPU, including some old Apple™ hardware.
  • The ppc64le stages are little-endian stages and are created for running on POWER8 and newer CPUs.
  • The power9le stages are little-endian stages optimized exclusively for POWER9 CPUs.

Boot media

Stage archives, big-endian ppc and ppc64

riscv

Processor compatibility

Processor compatibility

The lp64d stages can be used on all 64-bit RISC-V processors supporting the double-precision floating point instruction set. The lp64 stages can be used on all 64-bit RISC-V processors; they require no hardware support for floating point arithmetics.

Stage archives

Musl stage archives

Musl stages

For additional information on using musl based Gentoo systems please see the Musl usage guide.

Details (contents, hashes, and signatures)

All files

x86

Processor compatibility

Processor compatibility

There are two builds of the x86 architecture: i486 and i686.
Processors prior to the Intel Pentium Pro or Pentium II require the i486 variant to be used.

Boot media

Stage archives

Hardened stage archives

Musl stage archives

Musl stages

For additional information on using musl based Gentoo systems please see the Musl usage guide.

Details (contents, hashes, and signatures)

Experimental downloads

For additional highly experimental downloads across all architectures please refer to the complete experimental downloads archive. Hic sunt dracones.#