KaOS 2024.05 supports bcachefs filesystem and gets closer to replace X11 with Wayland

KaOS, a rolling-release Linux distribution centered around KDE Plasma, has announced the release of its latest version, 2024.05. This update is built on the Linux kernel 6.8.10 and features KDE Plasma 6.0.5, KDE Gear 24.05.0, and Frameworks 6.2.0, all running on Qt 6.7.1. The new release includes Kdenlive 24.05 and introduces more applications compatible with Qt6 and Frameworks 6, such as Gcompris, Calligra, KWave, and Kaffeine. Additionally, it adds experimental support for the new bcachefs filesystem, with bcachefs-tools available in the repositories, and incorporates a new Phonon sound backend.

Significant updates in this release include the removal of kernel modesetting for all graphics cards, which has reduced the ISO size by approximately 700 MB. GTK2 has been removed from the repositories, marking four years since its end of life. System updates in this version feature Python 3.11, Glib2 2.80, Systemd 253.19, ZFS 2.2.4, KMod 32, OpenSSL 3.3, FFMPEG 6.1, OpenJDK 17, and Mesa 24.0.7. These updates ensure that KaOS remains up-to-date with the latest software and security improvements.

New packages in this release include Marknote, a note management application integrated with Plasma 6. SDDM 0.20.0 now supports running in Wayland mode, advancing KaOS's transition away from X11. The Calamares installer has enhanced its automated partitioning option to support all popular file systems, including XFS, EXT4, BTRFS, and ZFS, making installation more flexible for users.