How to Install Kali Linux on Android without Root

Kali Linux is one of the nine free distros the andronix installer sets up on Android. It’s a Debian-based rolling distro with its own repositories, and it installs and runs like the others: one command in Termux, a normal user with sudo, and a desktop you open full screen on the phone. No root, and nothing on Android itself changes.

What you get

• Kali Linux rolling, with Kali’s own apt repositories.
• A desktop of your choice: XFCE, LXQt, MATE or KDE Plasma, or the command line only.
• Firefox ESR and sound through the phone’s speakers, set up for you.
• A normal user created at first login. Use sudo for admin commands.

You get Kali’s base system and the desktop. Add the packages you need with sudo apt install.

What you need

More: Requirements and Install Termux.

Install Kali

Paste this into Termux:

(curl -fsSL --retry 4 --retry-delay 3 https://dl.andronix.app/get.sh -o $PREFIX/tmp/get.sh || curl -4 -fsSL --retry 2 --retry-delay 3 https://dl.andronix.app/get.sh -o $PREFIX/tmp/get.sh) && sh $PREFIX/tmp/get.sh install kali --de xfce

It installs the andronix installer, then Kali Linux rolling with XFCE and Firefox ESR. Use --de lxqt for a lighter desktop, --de mate, --de kde for KDE Plasma (4 GB of RAM or more), or --de none for the command line only. If andronix is already installed, andronix install kali --de xfce is enough.

When it finishes, create your user (a username, a password, and a desktop password), and you’re in Kali:

sudo apt update

Open the Kali desktop

1. Install Termux:X11: download termux-x11-universal-debug.apk from its nightly release on GitHub.
2. In Termux (not inside Kali), run:

andronix desktop kali

The desktop opens full screen in Termux:X11, logged in as your user. To use it from a laptop instead, see VNC. Details: Start the desktop.

On Android 12 and newer, Android may stop Kali with [Process completed (signal 9) - press Enter], especially with a desktop open. Turn that off once: Process completed (signal 9).

Day to day

Your phone’s internal storage is at /sdcard inside Kali (Phone storage).

Limits

Kali runs in user space with proot, on Android’s own kernel, as an ordinary app. The same limits apply as for every Andronix distro:

• No access to hardware such as USB adapters, and no control over the phone’s Wi-Fi or network interfaces. Android manages those, not Kali.
• No Docker, Snap or Flatpak, and no GPU acceleration.
• Programs that need kernel features proot doesn’t provide may not run.

The full list: Limitations.

Common questions

Is this the same as Kali NetHunter?

No. NetHunter is the Kali project’s own Android edition. Andronix installs Kali’s regular rolling release in Termux, the same way it installs Debian or Ubuntu, and opens the desktop with Termux:X11. See Kali’s NetHunter documentation for their editions.

Why does Kali ask for a username instead of logging in as root?

Andronix 2.0 creates a normal user, like a regular Kali install. Use sudo for admin commands, or andronix start kali --root from Termux for a root shell.

I installed Kali with the old Andronix app. Does it still work?

Yes. Installs from before Andronix 2.0 keep working with the same start command. To move to the current Kali, see Installs from before Andronix 2.0.

Next steps

• Supported distros: Kali’s details and commands.
• Install apps and Dev packs: browsers, IDEs, Python and more.
• Ubuntu on Android without root: the same steps for Ubuntu.