A Developer’s Guide to ReactOS: Download, Documentation, and First Fork

Introduction: A Rabbit Hole Worth Exploring

I’ve been diving into new tools lately, and one unexpected rabbit hole started with a message about ReactOS. What followed was a spontaneous deep dive. From downloading the OS to exploring its documentation and source code. Here’s how it unfolded.

Getting Started: The Spark That Lit the Fuse

 A Doctor messaged me about an X post regarding ReactOS, the caption was like "#ReactOS calls for you, for the road to Beta!". Now I don’t have X, so I fast-tracked to Google Chrome, only this was a new Windows laptop, and Google Chrome wasn't yet downloaded. So, I downloaded Google Chrome. After installation, I logged in using my credentials and used Duckduckgo.com to search "React OS Beta" In the search box.

https://reactos.org/download/

Doing My Homework: ReactOS Release Notes 

The landing page brought me to the ReactOS downloads page, as the link implies. Before I went to just downloading, I needed more background information. I went to the “News” tab in the menu and selected "All News". I chose the ReactOS 0.4.15 release news article.

 Downloading ReactOS: You Gotta Research The Boot

From here, I decided to download ReactOS 0.4.15. with the intention of exploring its architecture and seeing how it might fit into my workflow or personal projects. Once I was back on the download screen, I selected the “Download Boot CD” button since the documentation said that’s the file I needed to set up my environment. Easy and straight to the point, right? There’s a page asking for donations, and I select no and skip right past the donations to the downloading. I'm then sent to a visually busy page that I ignore and focus my attention towards the top right corner of the screen and select my downloads button in the toolbar menu.

 Extracting and Exploring: Unzipping a Zip File

I select "Open" because I don’t care to save an encrypted zipfile to my computer. Since the file was a .zip file, I knew  I needed to extract its contents in an effort to access the contents of the file, so I selected the “Extract all” button at the top of the file explorer menu.  Select “Extract” after confirming the destination you want the files extracted to. The files should appear at that location where you’re able to open the folder.  

Once the folder is open, I went straight to the Readme to see about the recommendations. The first information source I noticed was the tutorial wiki that the developers listed to help you get familiar with the project.  

 Documentation Dive: What Does This Thing Even Do?

Now I've reached the ReactOS Development Wiki. So now my curiosity has moved on to wonder what this thing even does? What happens if I run it? What does it look like now that I've dived this deep from an  X post.

Out of all of the intriguing options to choose from, I tried opting for the most responsible, Documentation Guidelines. If my experience of working with multiple different open environments and languages for both school and work has taught me anything, it’s that developers show you how to use their products. But this link was for understanding the documentation process and the proper guidelines for submitting a document on your own. This is not what I wanted. So I went back to the previous page and tried again, choosing "Building" because I wanted to see what I could do with it at least. I select the Getting the source code link, and I am brought to a ReactOS Git For Dummies. Definitely sounds like something for someone who may be unsure about where to start, so I'm feeling like I'm in the right area to make something happen.

Forking The Repo: My First Step Towards Exploration

 I cloned the Repository by going to the link they provided to get to React Githubs repo, creating a fork, and naming it “Exploring-reactos”.

I added a generic description of the repository so I knew in the future what I used it for, like "Exploring React capabilities". I have lots of projects in my GitHub, and I like to properly document them so I know whether they are for projects from school, work, or personal coding projects. I kept the rest of the settings the same and created the fork.

Final Thoughts: Let’s Explore Together

Now, if you've followed along with me, then you have just created a personal fork in GitHub where you can get started working in branches and exploring ReactOS. The next step, is to follow the Github repo instructions to clone your forked repository to your computer using TortoiseGit so you can have a local clone with two remotes as recommended.

If you’re a new developer or a fellow coder and would like to tag alongside a developer as they explore new technologies, subscribe to my blog. I’d love for this to turn into a series, or if you have any technologies you’re interested in, feel free to reach out. Happy coding!