Debian 12 Has Finally Been Released
The newest version of Debian, 18+ months in the making, is now available and includes plenty of upgrades for one of the most stable operating systems on the market.
Debian marches to a beat that so many other Linux distributions follow. Over the decades since it was first released in 1996, Debian has developed a reputation for being one of the most stable operating systems on the market. Part of the reason for that is the development team takes their time between releases.
Unlike Ubuntu which releases every 6 months, a new version of Debian happens yearly (sort of). So you can bet plenty of effort has gone into each release to make it rock solid.
With the release of 12.0 (aka "Bookworm"), you'll find updates to several desktops, such as Gnome 43, KDE Plasma 5.27, LXDE 11, LXQt 1.2.0, MATE 1.26, and Xfce 4.18. No, these are not the latest versions of each but that's how Debian rolls (keeping everything as stable as possible).
Other software updates include Apache 2.4.57, BIND DNS Server 9.18, Cryptsetup 2.6, GIMP 2.10.34, GnuPG 2.2.40, Inkscape 1.2.2, GNU C Library 2.36, LibreOffice 7.4, Linux kernel 6.1, MariaDB 10.11, NGINX 1.22, OpenJDK 17, OpenLDAP 2.5.13, OpenSSH 9.2p1, PHP 8.2, Python 3.11.2, Samba 4.17, and more. Overall there are 11,089 new packages found in Debian 12, for a total of 64,419.
There also is improved support and management of non-free firmware as well as support for UEFI on ARM64 architecture.
Debian is available for nine different architectures including 32/64-bit PC, ARM64, Armv7, 64-bit little-endian MIPS, 64-bit little-endian PowerPC, and IBM System z.
You can read the full release notes for Debian 12 here and download an ISO from the official Debian download page.

Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
System76 Releases COSMIC Alpha 7
With scores of bug fixes and a really cool workspaces feature, COSMIC is looking to soon migrate from alpha to beta.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 6.0 Available for Installation
The latest release of OpenMandriva has arrived with a new kernel, an updated Plasma desktop, and a server edition.
-
TrueNAS 25.04 Arrives with Thousands of Changes
One of the most popular Linux-based NAS solutions has rolled out the latest edition, based on Ubuntu 25.04.
-
Fedora 42 Available with Two New Spins
The latest release from the Fedora Project includes the usual updates, a new kernel, an official KDE Plasma spin, and a new System76 spin.
-
So Long, ArcoLinux
The ArcoLinux distribution is the latest Linux distribution to shut down.
-
What Open Source Pros Look for in a Job Role
Learn what professionals in technical and non-technical roles say is most important when seeking a new position.
-
Asahi Linux Runs into Issues with M4 Support
Due to Apple Silicon changes, the Asahi Linux project is at odds with adding support for the M4 chips.
-
Plasma 6.3.4 Now Available
Although not a major release, Plasma 6.3.4 does fix some bugs and offer a subtle change for the Plasma sidebar.
-
Linux Kernel 6.15 First Release Candidate Now Available
Linux Torvalds has announced that the release candidate for the final release of the Linux 6.15 series is now available.
-
Akamai Will Host kernel.org
The organization dedicated to cloud-based solutions has agreed to host kernel.org to deliver long-term stability for the development team.