Systemd-Free Devuan GNU/Linux 3.0 Released, Based on Debian GNU/Linux 10.4

Devuan GNU/Linux 3.0

Devuan GNU/Linux 3.0 has been released and it’s a major release for fans of software freedom, those who want to use the latest Debian GNU/Linux release without the systemd init system.

Dubbed “Beowulf,” Devuan GNU/Linux 3.0 is a stable release based on the latest Debian GNU/Linux 10.4 “Buster” operating system release and powered by the Linux 4.19 LTS kernel, but without using the systemd init system.

New features include support for the ppc64el (PowerPC 64-bit Little Endian) architecture, new themes for the boot screen, display manager and desktop, as well as the implementation of eudev and elogind standalone daemons to replace aspects of monolithic systemd.

Furthermore, Devuan GNU/Linux 3.0 introduces the runit cross-platform Unix init scheme with service supervision as an optional alternative to /sbin/init and the OpenRC init system as an optional alternative to the sysv-rc service and runlevel control.

Other noteworthy changes include new behavior of the su command. To get root’s path you’ll need to use the su - command, while the su command gives you the full path to commands. Of course, this release also includes all the bug fixes and security updates from upstream Debian repositories.

You can download Devuan GNU/Linux 3.0 right now from the official website, where you’ll find Live, Minimal Live, Desktop, Server, and Netinstall images for 32-bit and 64-bit architectures, as well as Netboot images for ARM64, Armel, ARMhf, and ppc64el architectures.

Existing users will be able to upgrade from a previous Devuan release using the standard package management system. Basically, all you need to do is run the sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get dist-upgrade command in a terminal emulator.

The next major release will be Devuan GNU/Linux 4.0.0 “Chimaera.” However, no release date was set in stone at the moment of writing, but software repositories are already available for early adopters and testers.

Last updated 4 years ago

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