Over a month after its previous December release, the Arch-based gamers-focused CachyOS has rolled out its first 2025 update. While it arrived a bit later than expected, the wait was worth it. The development team held off on the launch to ensure full compatibility with the latest NVIDIA graphics cards.
One of the standout enhancements in this release is the integration of Propeller Optimization alongside AutoFDO to improve kernel performance.
With the introduction of LLVM 19, the CachyOS team was able to implement Propeller, a cutting-edge optimization technique that, when combined with AutoFDO, delivers up to a 10% increase in throughput and notable reductions in latency, depending on workload conditions.
For NVIDIA users, this release brings support for the Blackwell (50xx) series GPUs, including the latest NVIDIA 570 driver. Blackwell exclusively supports NVIDIA’s open module driver, prompting a change in the default NVIDIA module on the ISO.
Older NVIDIA GPUs without GSP chips (such as the 10xx series and earlier) can no longer boot using the “NVIDIA” boot option and should instead opt for the first boot option when starting the ISO.
Fortunately, the installation process remains seamless. CachyOS’s hardware detection system automatically installs the appropriate packages based on the detected hardware.
Beyond performance enhancements, this release includes several small but impactful usability tweaks:
- Tap-to-click enabled by default for X11 sessions – A frequently requested feature that makes using touchpads more intuitive.
- Improved NTFS performance – The system now defaults to the NTFS3 kernel driver instead of NTFS3G, enhancing efficiency when accessing NTFS partitions.
- Game performance tweaks – Screensavers are now disabled by default while gaming, preventing unnecessary interruptions.
- Kernel Manager Enhancements – Support has been added to switch to the server mode of scx_loader.
For AMD users, CachyOS now provides fixes for the AMD Preferred Core feature. This ensures the 3D Cache Driver operates correctly, allowing real-time registration of changes—a long-awaited fix that will improve AMD’s performance stability.
Finally, this release also tackles several bugs and security vulnerabilities:
- Kernel Manager Adjustments – The NVIDIA package is now installed automatically for the default Arch kernel if the user installs the kernel manually.
- DaVinci Resolve Fix – A long-standing issue preventing DaVinci Resolve from working properly with CUDA when intel-opencl-runtime was installed has been resolved.
- glibc Security Patch – The latest glibc 2.41 update includes a crucial fix for CVE-2025-0395, addressing security concerns.
The announcement provides a complete list of changes. For current CachyOS users, no special manual steps are required to upgrade to this release. Simply run the well-known Pacman command:
sudo pacman -SyuCode language: Bash (bash)For those opting for a fresh install, the updated ISO files are available for download via CachyOS’s SourceForge mirrors.
