Fedora Linux 44 has arrived, bringing a host of important changes for the Atomic Desktop family—Silverblue, Kinoite, Sway Atomic, Budgie Atomic, and the new COSMIC Atomic. Whether you’re a daily user or a developer building on these platforms, understanding these updates will help you plan your upgrade and avoid surprises. From infrastructure moves to library removals, here are the seven key things you need to know.
1. Issue Tracker Moves to the New Fedora Forge
The cross-variant issue tracker for all Atomic Desktops has relocated to the new Fedora Forge. This central hub is now the go-to place for reporting bugs or coordinating work that affects multiple desktop flavors. If your problem is specific to a single environment—like Plasma on Kinoite or COSMIC—the respective Special Interest Group (SIG) trackers remain the better option. You can find links to those in the README over at the atomic-desktops organization. This change streamlines collaboration and ensures that critical cross-cutting issues get the attention they deserve.
2. Unified Documentation Finally Goes Live
After much anticipation, the unified documentation for all Atomic Desktops is now available on the new Forge. This single source of truth replaces fragmented guides and makes it easier to find instructions whether you’re using Silverblue or Budgie Atomic. Note that translations were not carried over during the migration—so if you relied on localized docs, the community will need to re-translate everything once the translation pipeline is set up. Good news: it’s mostly a copy-and-paste job from previous documents, and this time you’ll only need to translate once rather than for each variant. Keep an eye on tracking issue atomic-desktops#10 for progress.
3. Removal of FUSE Version 2 Libraries
FUSE 2 has been long deprecated and unmaintained, so Fedora 44 drops these libraries from the Atomic Desktop images. This change primarily affects two use cases: AppImages that rely on the old runtime and Plasma Vault backends (EncFS and CryFS) that depend on FUSE 2. If you use either, you’ll need to take action before or after the upgrade. The removal is part of a broader Fedora Change aimed at cleaning up legacy components. Check the discussion threads for guidance on identifying affected AppImages, and see the next two items for specific migration steps.
4. AppImages: What to Do If They Break
Some AppImages still bundle an older runtime that requires FUSE 2 libraries on the host. After upgrading to Fedora 44, those AppImages may fail to launch. To check, look at the AppImage’s runtime version—details are in the Fedora Discussion thread. If you encounter issues, your best bet is to search for a Flatpak version of the application. Flatpaks are better integrated with Atomic Desktops and don’t rely on host libraries. If no Flatpak exists, report the problem upstream so developers know to update their runtime. You can even volunteer to help package the app as a Flatpak—a great way to contribute to the ecosystem. For a temporary fix, you could layer the old FUSE 2 libraries, but that’s not recommended for long-term use.
5. Plasma Vault: Switch to gocryptfs Now
KDE upstream has deprecated the EncFS and CryFS backends for Plasma Vault because they depend on FUSE 2. If you use either of these backends, you need to migrate your data to a new vault using gocryptfs—the only maintained backend. Ideally, do this before upgrading to Fedora 44. If you’ve already updated and can’t access your encrypted data, you can temporarily layer the needed packages (cryfs or fuse-encfs) with rpm-ostree install, then migrate your data and reset the layers with rpm-ostree reset. This process ensures you don’t lose any files while transitioning to the supported backend.
6. Legacy pkla Polkit Rules Are Gone
Support for the old pkla format of PolKit rules has been removed in Fedora 44. This format was used by some older applications or custom configurations to manage privilege escalation. If you’ve been relying on a pkla file, you’ll need to convert it to the modern JavaScript-based rules format. It’s unlikely that most Atomic Desktop users are affected, but if you notice any permission-related issues after upgrade, check your /etc/polkit-1/rules.d/ directory. The Fedora Change page provides migration instructions. This cleanup aligns with upstream efforts to standardize policy management across distributions.
7. Preparing for a Smooth Upgrade
Before upgrading to Fedora 44 on any Atomic Desktop variant, take these steps: back up your data, ensure you’ve migrated Plasma Vault to gocryptfs, and check that your essential AppImages will work (or have a Flatpak alternative). Review the unified documentation for any variant-specific notes. If you encounter issues, file them on the new Forge issue tracker—just remember to use the variant-specific trackers for desktop-specific problems. With a little preparation, the transition will be seamless, and you’ll benefit from a leaner, more modern base system.
Conclusion: Fedora 44 brings meaningful improvements to the Atomic Desktop family, focusing on infrastructure modernization and security. The move to the new Forge, streamlined documentation, and removal of deprecated components like FUSE 2 and pkla rules all contribute to a healthier, easier-to-maintain platform. While some users will need to make small adjustments—especially regarding AppImages and Plasma Vault—the long-term gains are worth it. Stay tuned for further updates as the community continues to refine these desktop experiences.