How to Upgrade and Adapt to Changes in Fedora Atomic Desktops 44

Introduction

Upgrading to a new major release of Fedora Atomic Desktops (Silverblue, Kinoite, Sway Atomic, Budgie Atomic, COSMIC Atomic) always brings exciting changes and adjustments. With Fedora Linux 44, several key updates affect the underlying infrastructure and user experience. This guide walks you through the essential steps to understand and adapt to these changes, ensuring a smooth transition. Whether you're managing issue tracking, accessing unified documentation, dealing with FUSE2 library removal, or migrating legacy configurations, we've got you covered.

What You Need

• A Fedora Atomic Desktop system (Silverblue, Kinoite, Sway Atomic, Budgie Atomic, or COSMIC Atomic) running version 43 or earlier.
• Administrative privileges (sudo) for package management commands.
• An active internet connection for downloading updates and packages.
• Basic familiarity with the terminal and command-line tools (e.g., rpm-ostree, flatpak).
• If using Plasma Vault with EncFS or CryFS, have gocryptfs ready (or install it during migration).
• Optional: A list of AppImages you use, to check their runtime compatibility.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Review the New Issue Tracker Location

The cross-variant issue tracker for all Atomic Desktops has moved to the new Fedora forge. This is the central place to report issues that affect multiple desktop variants or to coordinate work across them. To use it:

1. Navigate to the new issue tracker on the Fedora forge.
2. If you have an issue specific to one desktop environment (e.g., Silverblue only), check the README for the atomic-desktops organization for links to each SIG’s tracker.
3. File new cross-variant issues in the new forge tracker. For variant-specific issues, use the appropriate SIG tracker.

Step 2: Access and Use the Unified Documentation

The unified documentation for all Atomic Desktops is now live on the new forge. It consolidates information that was previously scattered across variants. Note: Translations have not been migrated yet, so you may need to help retranslate if you contributed before.

1. Visit the unified documentation wiki.
2. Browse the pages relevant to your variant. The content should be largely the same as previous docs, but now in one place.
3. If you were a translator previously, and translation setup is ready, you can copy/paste from old docs to the new wiki. Follow the tracking issue atomic-desktops#10 for updates on translation infrastructure.

Step 3: Handle the Removal of FUSE Version 2 Libraries

FUSE 2 libraries have been removed from Fedora 44 images because they are deprecated and unmaintained. This primarily affects two areas: AppImages and Plasma Vaults on Kinoite. Proceed as follows:

3.1 Check and Adapt AppImages

Some AppImages use an old runtime that depends on FUSE2. To check if an AppImage is affected:

1. Open a terminal and run: file /path/to/your.appimage. Look for the runtime version. If it mentions FUSE 2, it may not work.
2. If broken, first look for a Flatpak version of the same application. Use: flatpak search <app-name>.
3. Consider reporting the issue to the AppImage's upstream maintainer, asking them to update to a newer runtime (e.g., using appimagetool from AppImageKit).
4. As a workaround, you can layer the old FUSE2 library using rpm-ostree install fuse2-libs, but this is temporary; encourage upstream to adopt a newer runtime.

3.2 Migrate Plasma Vault Backends (Kinoite)

If you use Plasma Vault with EncFS or CryFS backends, these rely on FUSE2 and are no longer recommended by KDE. Switch to the gocryptfs backend.

1. Before updating to Fedora 44: Create a new vault using gocryptfs and manually copy your encrypted data from the old vault. You can install gocryptfs via sudo rpm-ostree install gocryptfs if not already present.
2. If already updated to Fedora 44 and you need access to old data:
   1. Layer the needed packages: sudo rpm-ostree install cryfs (or fuse-encfs) to access the old vault.
   2. Mount the old vault and copy its contents to a new gocryptfs vault.
   3. After migration, reset the layered packages: sudo rpm-ostree reset (removes the layered packages).
3. Verify your new vault works before removing the old one.

Step 4: Address Compatibility with pkla Polkit Rules

Support for the legacy pkla Polkit rules format has been removed in Fedora 44. This format was rarely used, but if you have custom policies in /etc/polkit-1/localauthority/50-local.d/ with .pkla files, they will no longer work. To check and convert:

1. List any .pkla files: ls -la /etc/polkit-1/localauthority/50-local.d/*.pkla.
2. If found, convert them to the modern JavaScript (rules) format. Refer to the Polkit documentation for syntax examples.
3. Test your policies after conversion: pkaction --verbose and verify expected behavior.

Tips for a Smooth Transition

• Backup before upgrading: Always create a system backup (e.g., using rpm-ostree rollback or a bootable backup) before performing the Fedora 44 upgrade.
• Test AppImages early: If you rely on AppImages, test them immediately after upgrade. The file command will tell you if they depend on FUSE2.
• Migrate vaults before upgrade: Avoid the hassle of layering old packages by migrating Plasma Vaults to gocryptfs before performing the upgrade.
• Stay informed via the new forge: Bookmark the new issue tracker and documentation links to keep up with future changes and contribute.
• Helping with translations: If you are a translator, monitor the tracking issue #10 and be ready to help re-translate when the setup is ready.
• Use Flatpak when possible: Flatpak applications are containerized and less likely to break with system library changes. Prefer them over AppImages if available.

By following these steps, you'll be well-prepared to enjoy the benefits of Fedora Atomic Desktops 44 while avoiding common pitfalls. Remember to report any issues you encounter to the new forge tracker to help improve the experience for everyone.