Platforms

Hollow's primary validated target is Windows, with WSL as a first-class shell domain. Other platforms are partially supported; the table below summarises the state of the build and runtime on each one.

Platform	App build	Runtime status	Notes
Windows (10/11, x86_64)	Yes	Primary	See Windows
WSL (Ubuntu, others)	Helper only	First-class shell domain	See WSL
Linux (native, X11)	Yes	Basic	See Linux
macOS	Broken	Not validated	See macOS

What "primary validated" means

A primary validated target is one where:

• The build succeeds with the pinned toolchain
• A packaged hollow.exe runs and renders
• Tabs, panes, workspaces, copy mode, themes, hyperlinks, and the native CLI all work as documented
• The default keymap is exercised by the test suite

WSL is not a build target for the app; it is a shell domain. WSL shells are launched from the Windows host, with an optional Linux-side helper that skips ConPTY.

Linux currently uses Sokol's X11 backend. It can run through XWayland, but native Wayland is not yet supported.

Cross-platform config

Config files use the same Lua API on every host. The shipped base config branches on hollow.platform.is_windows to pick defaults:

local hollow = require("hollow")
local is_windows = hollow.platform.is_windows == true

local default_domain = is_windows and "pwsh" or "unix"
local domains = {}

if is_windows then
  domains.pwsh       = { shell = "pwsh.exe" }
  domains.powershell = { shell = "powershell.exe" }
  domains.cmd        = { shell = "cmd.exe" }
else
  domains.unix = { shell = hollow.platform.default_shell }
end

This is also why some guides in this site say "Windows only" or "non-Windows hosts" — the behavior genuinely differs.

Choosing a platform guide

• New to Hollow on Windows? Start with Windows.
• Want WSL as the default shell? Read WSL.
• Trying to run on Linux or macOS? Read the caveats in Linux or macOS before opening an issue.