Over a month after the 9.14 release, DietPi, a lightweight, performance-focused Debian-based Linux distribution for SBCs (such as Raspberry Pi) and server systems (with option to install desktop environments), has just unveiled its latest iteration, version 9.15.
This update adds support for the Orange Pi 3 non-LTS model, catering to users of this affordable ARM board who previously lacked official DietPi backing. Additionally, DietPi introduces a seamless upgrade script to transition Debian 12 (Bookworm) users smoothly to Debian 13 (Trixie), similar to the existing Bullseye-to-Bookworm transition.
Moreover, following the improvements in the last release for NanoPi routers, the NanoPi R5C now joins the party with statically assigned MAC addresses for its onboard Ethernet adapters.
The DietPi-Display tool also received some attention. It now remembers previously applied settings instead of resetting them on restart—handy for multi-display setups, especially on Raspberry Pi, where rotation settings sometimes apply globally. Plus, GRUB support has been expanded to work across all architectures, not just specific setups.
On the gaming front, the Moonlight game streaming client is now unlocked for all ARM and RISC-V boards (except ARMv6 Raspberry Pi models). Please note that performance depends on KMS and V4L2 driver support, so your results may vary.
It’s also worth noting that the lightweight DNS resolver Unbound sees two key changes:
- DietPi now provides its own up-to-date Unbound packages, though they’re not yet auto-served via the APT repo.
- No more monthly root hints downloads—turns out, DNS root servers don’t change often enough to justify the cron job, and dropping it removes a minor security risk.
Lastly, as always, DietPi squashed a handful of pesky bugs, including:
- File Browser password length conflicts (now auto-adjusted, but longer passwords are still encouraged)
- APT failures on Debian Bullseye
- DietPi-Dashboard install glitches on Raspberry Pi 5 and RISC-V
Refer to the release announcement for a detailed overview of all changes. Downloads are available here.
