LMDE 6 “Faye” released!

by ·48 Comments

The team is proud to announce the release of LMDE 6 “Faye”.

LMDE 6 Faye

LMDE is a Linux Mint project which stands for “Linux Mint Debian Edition”. Its goal is to ensure Linux Mint would be able to continue to deliver the same user experience, and how much work would be involved, if Ubuntu was ever to disappear. LMDE is also one of our development targets, to guarantee the software we develop is compatible outside of Ubuntu.

LMDE aims to be as similar as possible to Linux Mint, but without using Ubuntu. The package base is provided by Debian instead.

Important info:

The release notes provide important information about known issues, as well as explanations, workarounds and solutions.

To read the release notes, please visit:

“Release Notes for LMDE 6”

System requirements:

  • 2GB RAM (4GB recommended for a comfortable usage).
  • 20GB of disk space (100GB recommended).
  • 1024×768 resolution (on lower resolutions, press ALT to drag windows with the mouse if they don’t fit in the screen).

Upgrade instructions:

Upgrade instructions for LMDE 5 users are available at: https://blog.linuxmint.com/?p=4571

If you are using LMDE 6 BETA, you don’t need to upgrade. Run the following commands:

apt install zstd yt-dlp
apt remove gnome-font-viewer youtube-dl

Download links:

Here are the download links for the 64-bit ISO:

A 32-bit ISO image is also available at https://www.linuxmint.com/download_all.php.

Integrity and authenticity checks:

Once you have downloaded an image, please verify its integrity and authenticity.

Anyone can produce fake ISO images, it is your responsibility to check you are downloading the official ones.

Enjoy!

We look forward to receiving your feedback. Thank you for using Linux Mint and have a lot of fun with this new release!

48 comments

  2. Hi Clem,
    Can we know where you stand in your thinking regarding the transition of Linux Mint from an Ubuntu base to a Debian base?
    Would it be too much work to also migrate the Mate and XFCE versions to Debian?

    Reply

    1. Hi JM,

      I’ve nothing bad to say about 22.04. I hope Ubuntu continues to be as good going forward and doesn’t neglect its APT package base. If we don’t have a reason to transition we won’t. Ubuntu is still the best APT package base out there in our opinion. LMDE is there as a potential solution, but it is not a goal in itself.

      In the scenario of a transition we’d likely port all editions towards Debian. There would be bit of work of involved to backport/patch Xfce and MATE but it would be pretty small since most of the work was already done on the Ubuntu base. I’d be more worried about communication, the lack of upgrades between Mint and LMDE, the lack of LTS, and filling what’s left of a gap between the two (driver/kernel management etc..). This is something we work on every year. We reduced the differences between Mint and LMDE to a point where the experience, for most users, is almost the same. We also invested time in our ISO production method and that covered both distributions, they’re built the same way now and with less differences than before.

    2. Maybe can adapt de the installation process to be similar of Debian, and we can choose between the three options of desktop environment in only one ISO image.

    3. Thank you Clem for great release! I have been testing LMDE 6 Beta for couple weeks and will most likely switch from Cinnamon 21.2 to LMDE 6.
      I find your comment regarding Ubuntu APT package base being best out there quite interesting. In 21.2, the latest Wine version available is 6, where Debian has 8 available in main repository. Similarly, the latest yt-dlp pkg version in Ubuntu is 2022.04.08-1 – which is 15 months older than the current one in Debian (and this old Ubuntu package is practically unusable – extremely slow and works maybe 30% of the time).

    4. I am trying LMDE 6 with the DE upgraded to MATE using Software Manager. Looks very good and when I installed WINE using wine-installer I see that WINE is Version 8

  3. I have been using LMDE6 Beta2 for a week or so and it has been flawless! I am not surprised that the final release is just two packages away from the Beta.

    I have been using Mint for years now, I want to thank you for all that you do.

    Reply

  4. The upgrade to LMDE 6 went very well for me with no issues during the upgrade process. I have been using Debian 12 Bookworm for a while now since I have it installed on my hard drive alongside Linux Mint Debian Edition, so I am already familiar with many of the new features of Debian 12. I have observed only a 2 to 3% increase in memory utilization on my machine since upgrading to LMDE 6 with no noticeable increase in CPU usage. My laptop is a 10 year old Dell XPS15, I7 processor with 8 gigs of RAM. Great work and thank you to all of the Linux Mint Debian Edition development team!

    Reply

  5. Congratulations and THANKS to all involved,
    I’ve installed it on two different machines and it’s working brilliantly.

    Reply

  6. Wonderful job!
    I will await the upgrade procedure before testing an upgrade of LMDE5 -> LMDE6 in a VM.
    When this works (as I expect it will), I can upgrade my machine, after doing all the regular backup things.

    Reply

    1. inxi -Fxxx shows Distro: LMDE 6 Faye with Kernel: 6.1.0-12-amd64. This with a fresh install to a pre-formatted hard drive. Did you do an upgrade?

    2. LMDE 6 on my computer is shown to be 6.1.0-12-amd64. This is a 64 bit install. Are you using a 32 bit install?

  9. Can’t give enough thanks to all on the Linux Mint Development Team and everyone else who helps. Thank you everyone!!

    Reply

  10. Hi Clem!

    Great to see LMDE 6 live! I bumped into a considerable issue during the installation; despite allowing it to erase my hard disk, at some point the installer claimed I had no space left, it suggested I had like 8 gbs (when I had more than 100 gbs available). I decided to disable Secure Boot and try again, and then it worked it out. It can be unrelated, though. If it is related, then it’s important to point this out in the notes.

    Cheers!

    Reply

  11. I also have disabled secure boot on my two laptops since Linux Mint 20.0 It works perfectly without and with no issue at installations. On my old laptop upgrading from LMD 5 took about one hour but was finally successful. I was surprised since from LMD 6 beta to LMD 6 was so quick.

    Reply

  12. Awesome, awesome, awesome! Thank you Clem and team!

    Canonical aims to move to a Snap only, readable only operating system in future. At that point it will most likely be impossible for LM to use Ubuntu as it does now. The writing is on the wall and you guys have rightly chosen to get a Debian base setup and running showing that you guys really know what you’re doing.

    I’m currently using regular LM but am downloading LMDE as I write this and will do a fresh install of LMDE 6 and use that going forward. No more big Linux corp distro’s. Let’s go full community and use Debian and Cinnamon from the great community project Linux Mint. I’m also looking forward to the long term stability that LMDE 6 offers and am excited that LMDE also offers a 32 bit version in the true spirit of FLOSS.

    You guys are simply the best.

    Reply

    1. Agreed. I think the LM strategy on this issue is thoughtful, deliberate, and patient. While I still wish LMDE was the primary distro, this philosophy and consistency, above all else, is the primary reason why I trust the LM team the most right now. I hope Clem and his fellow team members never deviate from this core philosophy. While I have been one of the people that prefers LMDE over LM (since I am not a fan of Canonical), I understand the reasoning right now about how they are doing it, and respect the choices that the LM team is making. Clem’s deliberate patience and planning suggests that when LMDE DOES become the primary LM distro, the team will be very experienced and well positioned for years to come.

  13. Just a big thank you to the whole team! Looks fantastic! Bravo! This is my favorite distro, very happy to see this new release!

    Reply

  14. There seem to be at least a translation issue in French for the device right-panel icon.
    It is labelled “Supports amovibles” (Removable drives) but it also includes non-removable drives ; in fact, it seems to include everything that is mounted, removable or not.
    From my system :
    SSD with 3 partitions : LMDE6 Faye Beta – LMDE6 Faye stable – Data partition
    HDD (inside) with 1 partition
    “Supports amovibles” shows the SSD data partition and the HDD as amovibles/removable.
    Both partitions are mounted at startup using the mnt command (for the HDD in /etc/fstab : LABEL=DOCUS /mnt/DOCUS auto nosuid,nodev,nofail,x-gvfs-show 0 0) and I’m of course reporting from stable version.
    This could lead to some confusions.

    Reply

  15. One remark not specific to LMDE, In system settings so many themes are confusing. It is not only a matter of taste.
    In dark mode the dark windows borders can’t be seen on a dark background, and so much contrast between light and white areas is unpleasant.
    In light mode, icônes in bar menus of some applications like office suite can’t be read.
    A grey mode could be the solution.

    Reply

  16. It would be great if it were possible to have a “whitelist” of programs.
    I prefer dark themes – but as an example – major e-book readers display books as white on a black background, which doesn’t enhance readability.

    Reply

  18. Is it me or when the update manager is refreshing on LMDE6 there’s a problem? “Could not download all repository indexes”

    Failed to fetch http://debian.mirror.ate.info/dists/bookworm/InRelease Could not connect to debian.mirror.ate.info:80 (46.29.125.16), connection timed outFailed to fetch http://debian.mirror.ate.info/dists/bookworm-updates/InRelease Unable to connect to debian.mirror.ate.info:http:Failed to fetch http://debian.mirror.ate.info/dists/bookworm-backports/InRelease Unable to connect to debian.mirror.ate.info:http:Some index files failed to download. They have been ignored, or old ones used instead.

    Reply

  19. Hello
    Up to now LMDE6 works as LM21.x for me. Lucky because of some strange behavior by my laptop, I am now stuck to LMDE. For now I don’t see a difference.
    My laptop started having the screen blinking off/on for a while then after a varying laps of time with me rebooting manually it would work as if nothing happened. The laptop works OK when the screen is blinking as when I input my password anyway, cinnamon loads normally. It’s just that the screen blinks off/on. And it does that from the USB drive when I try it. Up to the boot loader, it’s ok. When I press to load LM 21.x that’s when the blinking show starts. Compatibility mode works all right. Takes more time to load but works normally with a good screen.
    So then I know that it must not be a big problem. This happens only with LM 21.x, any other distro works normally, no blinking screen.
    Regards
    François Proulx, Longueuil, Québec, Canada

    Reply

  20. @Clem and Team,
    First of all, congrats on the release of another version of LMDE 6!
    Currently I’m on the Ubuntu wagon mainly because of the LTS support but the Mint version I was most fond of was LMDE 2 Cinnamon, and if Mint ever decides to drop Ubuntu I will embark LMDE again with all pleasure.

    Second, one thing that I would like to call the Team’s attention: It’s about the delayed starting time of Mint Update.
    It’s set to 20 seconds by default but personally I don’t think this is the best time and here’s why: If you manually start up Mint Update right after booting (as is sometimes my habit especially when just booting up backup machines every once in a while just for updating), when those 20 seconds come Mint Update, if already opened, will just close on you suddenly with no apparent reason, as if it has just crashed.
    It’s just an annoyance, but it is… an annoyance.
    Changing the default start up time to just 5 seconds solved this issue for me.
    Perhaps the Mint Team would take a look at this and reevaluate its starting time, or make the program check itself if it’s already up and ignore the automatic startup, or whatever you see best fit for the Mint Vision.

    Thanks for reading this, cheers and long live LMDE!

    Reply

    1. And Mint update automatically checking for updates while Mint Update is in the process of downloading and installing updates and sometimes that does not play well with the whole update process! And some packages updates Like Firefox and Thunderbird downloading so slowly that it holds the whole process up for a good while there and Mint Update checking for updates in the middle of downloading and installing updates is not helping there. And there’s one bit of information that I would like Mint Update to show in its window when the application is started and that is the date/timestamp of the latest Timeshift Snapshot. And that’s so I do not have to start Timeshift up just to see the Date/Timestamp of the latest Timeshift snapshot. I do like to do a Timeshift snapshot before any kernel update just to be safe, and sometimes before doing some other updates where I may want to revert that.

    2. @FloatsLikeBricksDont,
      I don’t think you need a snapshot before installing a new kernel. If there is a problem with it, the old one will still be there and selectable at boot on GRUB, at least for a while before it is automatically removed and I believe Mint Update does not remove manually installed kernels. Cheers.

  22. Locked root account
    The root account is locked by default.
    To use the recovery console (from the Grub menu) or log in as root, you first need to give root a new password:

    What a stupid thing to do! Make it simple! Is that too hard?
    I want to install it and start GParted and don t take the pass.

    Reply

    1. It’s a safe thing to do.
      Beginners wouldn’t run as root 100% of the time.
      Anyone else could use the one line command to change this.

  23. Once again, thank you all Mint LMDE programmers! For some reason I had difficulties doing the Upgrade from LMDE 5 to 6, so I downloaded the ISO and did a clean install. Over a few small issues I had to reboot as I went along but that always fixed any small problems that arose. It looks really clean and works brilliantly as usual. Thank you so much!

    Reply

  24. In dark mode the dark windows borders can’t be seen on a dark background, would it be possible to fit them with a thin colored outline as around the search area in the main menu?

    Reply

  25. Hi guys, how to make the main menu higher? In LMDE 5 one could config the menu height size in pixel, now there is no option anymore for this.

    And how to change the properties of the down left bar symbols? E.g. I would like to start the “Downloads”-folder from the bar, but since LMDE 6, there are no more options to change more properties of a starter.

    Thank you a lot!

    Reply

    1. And where to change the cinnamon style to classic again? In LMDE 5 this was possible from the welcome window on, now this option disappeared.

  29. After recovering from hibernation, only 1 of the screens shows the login form, the other one shows the screen content but I can’t interact with it. What I’d expect is for both screens blocked and only one of them, the one with the cursor, showing the login screen.

    Here is a picture: https://i.ibb.co/DYf2Vzb/IMG-0343.jpg

    Reply

  30. Update from LMDE5 to LMDE6 failed. Some application did not work anymore. Repair was not possible. After completely new installation from live usb it works fine now. Thank you!

    Reply

  31. I have a 32-bit computer that currently uses Linux Mint Cinnamon as the OS and I would like to switch over to LMDE 6. I did a complete install of the LMDE 6 OS onto a 64GB usb stick and have been booting LMDE from that USB stick. Everything seems to look and work the same as Linux Mint, but I have noticed one problem. Using network manager and openvpn, I cannot connect to my VPN. I set up everything the same way as I did for my other Linux computers, I click on the wireless/wired icon in the taskbar, then click on VPN Connections to connect to my VPN, I wait, I wait some more, then it says failed to connect. Does anyone else have a this problem?

    Regardless, great work on LMDE 6 and I look forward to using it more in the future.

    Reply

  32. I think the install may still have that bug that occasionally installs GRUB to the wrong drive, at least it would explain what happened to me yesterday when I installed LMDE6 to a PCIe-based NVME SSD and the EFI partition on my regular SATA drive got corrupted.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *