System76’s Rust-based COSMIC desktop is shaping up to be one of the most exciting developments in the open-source world. While it’s still in the early stages—currently at Alpha 4, released just last week—the excitement around it is already sky-high.
Despite its pre-release status, COSMIC has captured significant attention thanks to its promising features and innovative approach. At the same time, Fedora, a major player in the Linux ecosystem known for delivering cutting-edge technology to its users, acts proactively.
More precisely, a proposal has been made to include the COSMIC desktop as an officially supported Fedora spin, with plans to debut it in the upcoming Fedora 42 release, set to launch around the end of April 2025.
Just a quick reminder—back in early August, we informed you there was some unofficial buzz about this possibly happening. Well, now it’s official!
Keep in mind, however, that this is currently only a proposal. Before it can become a reality, it must first be approved by the Fedora Engineering Steering Committee (FESCo), a key governing body within the Fedora Project that oversees various technical decisions related to the development of Fedora.
The good news is that, based on Fedora’s solid track record, there’s every reason to believe it will happen. Considering Fedora 42’s scheduled release in late April, and according to Carl Richell, CEO of System76, who spoke on the second day of this year’s Ubuntu Summit 2024, the COSMIC desktop environment is set to enter beta in January 2025.
The stable release is expected to follow in February or March—just in time to coincide with the release of Fedora 42.
In the meantime, Fedora users can easily install it through the COPR repositories:
sudo dnf copr enable ryanabx/cosmic-epoch
sudo dnf install cosmic-desktopCode language: Bash (bash)If you’re wondering why an official spin is necessary when you can already install the desktop environment yourself, let me explain.
Fedora spins are official releases of Fedora, meaning they undergo rigorous testing and quality assurance. They are better integrated into the Fedora ecosystem and provide a more stable and consistent experience than COPR repositories, which are community-driven and may not always receive the same maintenance or updates.
Lastly, COSMIC isn’t the only exciting update tied to the upcoming Fedora 42. The release is also set to debut a brand-new, web-based installer, marking a significant upgrade from the trusty GTK-based Anaconda one that’s been a staple for years.
The proposal to make COSMIC an official Fedora spin is here.
