I’d just like to interject for a moment. What you’re referring to as “Android,” is in fact Android/Linux, or as I’ve recently taken to calling it, Android plus Linux kernel.
Linux is not an operating system unto itself, but rather a kernel—a core component that manages hardware resources. Android uses the Linux kernel, but replaces the traditional GNU userland with its own runtime, libraries, and system framework.
Many users run Linux-based systems every day without realizing it. Through a peculiar turn of events, the Linux kernel combined with Android’s userspace is often simply called “Android,” and many of its users are not aware that it is built on Linux at its core.
There really is Linux in Android, and these people are using it, but it is just a part of the system they use. Linux is the kernel: the program in the system that allocates the machine’s resources to the other programs you run. The kernel is an essential part of the system, but useless by itself; it can only function in the context of a complete operating system.
Android is normally used in combination with the Linux kernel: the whole system is basically Android/Linux, a Linux-based operating system with a distinct userspace, not a GNU/Linux system like traditional desktop distributions.
GrapheneOS and AOSP are Linux distributions. Linux is not glibc, systemd, GNU coreutils, GCC and GNOME. Linux doesn't have a specific libc, init system, command-line utilities, compiler toolchain, graphical environment or other userspace components. There are many Linux distributions beyond Android not using those components. There's no standard Linux userspace and a distribution using OpenRC, musl, Clang/LLVM, uutils coreutils and other software isn't somehow not Linux. Linux distribution doesn't mean systemd/GNU/Linux.
GrapheneOS and AOSP do use the userspace components developed with the Linux kernel such as iproute2. GNU components aren't part of Linux or the broader Linux project. Those don't even use a compatible license. It isn't legal to use the Linux kernel source code as a reference for writing glibc code since GPLv2-only does not permit the additional restrictions of GPLv3.
I’d just like to interject for a moment. What you’re referring to as “Android,” is in fact Android/Linux, or as I’ve recently taken to calling it, Android plus Linux kernel.
Linux is not an operating system unto itself, but rather a kernel—a core component that manages hardware resources. Android uses the Linux kernel, but replaces the traditional GNU userland with its own runtime, libraries, and system framework.
Many users run Linux-based systems every day without realizing it. Through a peculiar turn of events, the Linux kernel combined with Android’s userspace is often simply called “Android,” and many of its users are not aware that it is built on Linux at its core.
There really is Linux in Android, and these people are using it, but it is just a part of the system they use. Linux is the kernel: the program in the system that allocates the machine’s resources to the other programs you run. The kernel is an essential part of the system, but useless by itself; it can only function in the context of a complete operating system.
Android is normally used in combination with the Linux kernel: the whole system is basically Android/Linux, a Linux-based operating system with a distinct userspace, not a GNU/Linux system like traditional desktop distributions.
GrapheneOS and AOSP are Linux distributions. Linux is not glibc, systemd, GNU coreutils, GCC and GNOME. Linux doesn't have a specific libc, init system, command-line utilities, compiler toolchain, graphical environment or other userspace components. There are many Linux distributions beyond Android not using those components. There's no standard Linux userspace and a distribution using OpenRC, musl, Clang/LLVM, uutils coreutils and other software isn't somehow not Linux. Linux distribution doesn't mean systemd/GNU/Linux.
GrapheneOS and AOSP do use the userspace components developed with the Linux kernel such as iproute2. GNU components aren't part of Linux or the broader Linux project. Those don't even use a compatible license. It isn't legal to use the Linux kernel source code as a reference for writing glibc code since GPLv2-only does not permit the additional restrictions of GPLv3.