The ALTO facility (Accélérateur Linéaire et Tandem d'Orsay) at Institut de Physique Nucléaire d'Orsay is under commissioning. The main aim of this facility is to provide neutron rich isotope beams for both nuclear physics studies (away from the valley of stability) and developments dedicated to next generation facilities such as SPIRAL2 (Système de Production d'Ions Radioactifs Accélérés en Ligne 2). The neutron rich isotopes are produced by photofission of 238U induced by the 50 MeV electrons from the linear accelerator. The isotopes coming out of the fission target effuse towards an ion source to form a beam that is analyzed through the on line separator PARRNe (Production d'Atomes Radioactifs Riches en Neutrons). Additional experimental beam lines are currently under construction. Experimental data obtained during the commissioning phase will be presented and compared to simulations. The ALTO facility is also aimed at being a test bench for the SPIRAL2 and the EURISOL‐DS (European Isotope Separation On‐Line−Design Study) projects. In that framework, a plasma ion source designed to produce radioactive beams under strong irradiation is being developed; a prototype of the IRENA (Ionization by Radial Electrons Neat Adaptation) ion source will be presented.