The release of CachyOS 251129 has been introduced, based on the Arch Linux package base and using a continuous delivery model for updates. The distribution is notable for including optimizations aimed at enhancing performance and providing the option to install various desktop environments. In addition to the basic KDE-based environment, users can install GNOME, Xfce, i3WM, Wayfire, LXQT, OpenBox, Cinnamon, Cosmic, Niri, UKUI, LXDE, Mate, Budgie, Qtile, Hyprland, and Sway. The size of the installation ISO image is 3.1 GB. Separate builds (2.8 GB) are available for handheld devices with a GameMode-style interface and components for gaming enthusiasts.
The distribution includes the BORE task scheduler by default, optimized to reduce latency on the desktop and prioritize interactive processes. The kernel and packages are built with LTO (Link-Time Optimization) enabled, utilizing instructions available in processors based on the x86-64-v3, x86-64-v4, and Zen4 microarchitectures. The base packages also include PGO (Profile-Guided Optimization) or BOLT (Binary Optimization and Layout Tool) optimizations. Filesystem options include btrfs, zfs, ext4, xfs, and f2fs.
Key Changes:
- The ISO image and installer have added support for the Orca screen reader and the espeak-ng speech synthesizer to facilitate installation for users with visual impairments.
- The package bcachefs-dkms with a kernel module for Bcachefs, which can be rebuilt as needed using DKMS (Dynamic Kernel Module Support), is included in the distribution.
- A hook has been added to the mkinitcpio toolkit configuration to use systemd for running tasks in the initial RAM disk. This hook is automatically disabled when using ZFS or Bcachefs as the root filesystem since it is not supported in those filesystems.
- The Calamares installer has added support for the KDE Plasma Login Manager and Cosmic Greeter login screens. Installations with the COSMIC desktop environment have transitioned from SDDM to Cosmic Greeter. Future KDE installations are planned to switch from SDDM to the Plasma Login Manager.
- Packages intel-media-sdk and vpl-gpu-rt are installed when supported GPUs are present. The outdated branch of proprietary NVIDIA drivers 390.x has been discontinued, and Nouveau NvBoost has been employed for supporting Fermi GPUs.
- Support for Xbox ROG Ally and ROG Ally X gaming consoles has been added in the CachyOS Handheld Edition.
- In the CachyOS-Hello login screen, the package installation interface has been replaced with the launch of the CachyOS Package Installer application. A command-line interface has been added, implementing functionality similar to the graphical interface of CachyOS-Hello.
- In the CachyOS-Settings configurator, the mode for repackaging uncompressed memory pages into ZRAM has been disabled, as tests have shown that this operation does not lead to a noticeable performance increase.
- The Proton-CachyOS package now includes the environment variable PROTON_DXVK_GPLASYNC for using dxvk-gplasync (DXVK with patches) instead of the standard DXVK as an implementation of Direct3D 8/9/10/11. When using the PROTON_FSR4_UPGRADE setting, the AMD Anti-Lag layer is disabled due to stability issues. Individual shader cache size configuration for each game has been added.
Source: opennet.ru
