Frequently asked questions

BioKids is a free, open-source parental-control system for children aged 4–10, built on Debian 13. It turns a computer into one a young child can use alone: the child signs in by tapping their picture and lands in a launcher of big tiles, with screen-time limits, safe browsing, a live view for the parent's phone and an AI assistant that runs on the computer itself. No account and no cloud.

Yes. BioKids is completely free and open source under the MIT license. There is no subscription, no ads, no account and no "premium" edition. The source code is on GitHub.

Ages 4–10. There are two looks, chosen from the year of birth: bigger tiles and screens that read themselves aloud for 4–7, and more tiles, a clock and their own files for 8–10.

No. BioKids manages only the computer it is installed on. Your phone is the remote control: open the panel there to give time, answer requests and watch the screen live.

Yes. Time limits, the launcher, the voices and the rules all work with the network cable unplugged; even installing from the ISO needs no internet. The network is needed only for updates, phone access, email notifications and the downloads you start (the assistant's model, the natural voice, the offline Wikipedia).

A 64-bit (amd64) PC with at least 4 GB of memory (RAM) and about 25 GB of disk. A laptop a few years old is enough. The optional AI assistant needs 7 GB of memory or more. Details are on the download page.

Not unless you ask it to. The installer offers to shrink Windows and install beside it; the computer then asks which one you want at every start. The disk is erased only if you choose to use the entire disk. Either way, back up your important files first. Step by step: install beside Windows.

Only Debian 13 "trixie" (amd64) is supported for now. Ubuntu and other distributions are untested. The easiest way is BioKids' own ISO, which already contains Debian 13.

No. You write the ISO to a USB stick, start the computer from it and run the installer; it takes about half an hour. A setup wizard then walks you through nine short steps (your PIN, your child, their time, the internet…). The install guide shows every step with pictures.

Yes, in a virtual machine, without touching your computer: try it in VirtualBox. The live session on the USB stick is only for trying the system and installing it; the child supervision runs on the installed computer.

BioKids is made for one curious 4–10-year-old alone at the computer. Changing the system clock does not add time; the child has no terminal, cannot install software, the filter runs on the children's accounts, and if something breaks the session locks. It does not stop someone who boots from a USB stick, or an adult helping the child. In the panel, Settings → Protection and the Help guide "Protecting the computer itself" explain how to protect the computer itself (for example with a BIOS password).

No. BioKids never records a screen. The one exception is the live view you start in the panel: while it runs, a sign on the child's screen says so, no frame is written anywhere, and it ends when you leave the page.

Yes, under History and Insights. Only the sites' names are kept (for 30 days); never what is on the pages, what was typed, or screenshots. The child is told this too.

Nowhere, apart from what you turn on yourself. Everything stays on this computer, in a database only the administrator can read, and is deleted on a schedule. Your own mail server, Tailscale for phone access and the downloads you start come into play only if you turn them on. Every outbound connection BioKids makes is listed on the Privacy page.

The child's session locks and you are told. BioKids' rule is never to "continue unprotected": if the background service stops, the web filter fails or a lock does not take, the child is not left unprotected. Give time from the panel's Today screen and the lock opens.

On the sign-in page press "Forgot my PIN" and enter the 8-word recovery code you wrote down during setup (its words are Turkish words, written without Turkish letters). If the code is lost too, open a terminal on the computer and type sudo biokids-admin reset-pin. More in Troubleshooting.

Ask Me runs entirely on the computer; no question goes to a cloud. It refuses topics such as sex, violence, self-harm, drugs, gambling and sharing personal details, and points a child who says someone is hurting them to a trusted adult and to emergency help. You see the questions it refused. It is still an aid, not a guarantee.

7 GB of memory or more, and the internet once to download the model. With 7–12 GB of memory about 4 GB is downloaded; with 12 GB or more about 6.2 GB (a bigger, better model). You start the download in the panel and watch a progress bar: Ask Me guide.

No. BioKids has no AI that watches the screen, reads images or computes a "risk score". The AI only answers the questions the child asks it.

In the panel go to Settings → Access from your phone and follow the four steps: with the free Tailscale app your phone connects to the computer over your own private network. It takes about five minutes and needs no change on your router. Phone access guide.

Yes. Each child gets their own account, picture, rules and history, and taps their own picture on the login screen. Up to four parents can use the panel, each with their own PIN.

Yes. The child's launcher always has a brightness slider (☀) at the bottom and the volume at the top. Brightness goes down to 20%, so the screen never goes fully dark. When the day ends in the evening, the screen dims gently over the last 10 minutes and Zio says good night; then the brightness goes back to where it was.

On the panel's Today screen press +10 min or +30 min on your child's card; a locked screen opens by itself. If your child asks for time from their screen, the request reaches your phone and you can give +15, +30 or +60 minutes there.