head to head · open source
operating-system vs adaptive-lighting
operating-system has 7,507 GitHub stars, 1,296 forks, 95 open issues and last shipped yesterday. adaptive-lighting has 3,486 stars, 228 forks, 148 open issues and last shipped 3 days ago. operating-system leads on adoption by 115% (7,507 vs 3,486 stars). operating-system is written in Python under Apache-2.0; adaptive-lighting is written in Python under Apache-2.0. operating-system has attracted 17% as many forks as stars, adaptive-lighting 7%. operating-system was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (home-assistant, iot), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| operating-system | adaptive-lighting | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 7.5K | ★ 3.5K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-30 | 2026-09-28 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.3K | ⑂ 228 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick operating-system if
- You weight community size — 7.5K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick adaptive-lighting if
- You want the adaptive-lighting feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and adaptive-lighting fits your workflow better
About operating-system
The Home Assistant Operating System is a Linux based operating system built specifically to host Home Assistant and its Apps, intended for people running Home Assistant on a single board computer such as a Raspberry Pi or ODROID, or on an x86 64 machine with UEFI firmware.
read the full operating-system overview →
About adaptive-lighting
Adaptive Lighting is an Apache 2.0 licensed custom component for Home Assistant that automatically adjusts the brightness and colour of lights according to the sun's position, for Home Assistant users who want their lighting to follow a natural circadian rhythm while still being able to take manual control.
read the full adaptive-lighting overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is operating-system or adaptive-lighting more popular?
operating-system has 7,507 GitHub stars and adaptive-lighting has 3,486. operating-system has the larger community by that measure.
Are operating-system and adaptive-lighting free?
Both are open source. operating-system is licensed under Apache-2.0 and adaptive-lighting under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between operating-system and adaptive-lighting?
operating-system is written in Python and adaptive-lighting in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, operating-system or adaptive-lighting?
Choose operating-system if you want the larger community (7,507 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose adaptive-lighting if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.