Vanilla software

Vanilla software is computer software that is not customized from its delivered form – i.e. it is used without any customizations applied to it. Vanilla software can become a widespread de facto industry standard, widely used by businesses and individuals. The term comes from the traditional standard flavor of ice cream, vanilla flavor.

The term "vanilla" is often used to describe the original version of a game, that has not been modified with third-party addons, nor developer updates. It can also refer to the original game engine when source ports or expansion packs are available.

A vanilla kernel refers to a kernel that has been unmodified by any third party source. This typically applies to Unix based kernels.

See also

• Out of the box
• Commercial off-the-shelf
• Turnkey