Mageia 9 RC1 Now Available for Download
The developers of Mageia have announced the availability of the latest RC candidate for the upcoming version of their Linux distribution, which includes plenty of updates, resolved issues, and security fixes.
The first release candidate of Mageia 9 is now available. This first look at the latest release follows the last beta release from May 2023 and has resolved several "stubborn" issues as well as included a number of security fixes and updates.
As far as updated packages are concerned, you'll find kernel 6.4.3, glib 2.36, gcc 12.3.0, rpm 4.18.0, Chromium 114.0.5735.198, Firefox ESR 102.13, LibreOffice 7.5.4.2 and Mesa 23.1.3.
As far as desktops are concerned, Mageia 9 makes available the following: KDE Plasma 5.27.5, GNOME 44.2, Xfce 4.18.4, and LXQt 1.3.0.
You'll find installation media for both 32 and 64-bit architecture. The latest release installation media has been reduced in size and is, in fact, the smallest since Mageia 4.
It's also important to note that the Mageia RPM database no longer uses the old/unmaintained Berkeley DB. In its place, Mageia 9 uses SQLite. If you're upgrading from version 8 of the OS, that database will be automatically converted.
As expected, this is still a testing release and shouldn't be used for production or your daily driver.
You can read the full release notes and download the RC1 candidate from the official Mageia 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
-
Linux Kernel 6.16 Reaches EOL
Linux kernel 6.16 has reached its end of life, which means you'll need to upgrade to the next stable release, Linux kernel 6.17.
-
Amazon Ditches Android for a Linux-Based OS
Amazon has migrated from Android to the Linux-based Vega OS for its Fire TV.
-
Cairo Dock 3.6 Now Available for More Compositors
If you're a fan of third-party desktop docks, then the latest release of Cairo Dock with Wayland support is for you.
-
System76 Unleashes Pop!_OS 24.04 Beta
System76's first beta of Pop!_OS 24.04 is an impressive feat.
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 is Available
Linus Torvalds has announced that the latest kernel has been released with plenty of core improvements and even more hardware support.
-
Kali Linux 2025.3 Released with New Hacking Tools
If you're a Kali Linux fan, you'll be glad to know that the third release of this famous pen-testing distribution is now available with updates for key components.
-
Zorin OS 18 Beta Available for Testing
The latest release from the team behind Zorin OS is ready for public testing, and it includes plenty of improvements to make it more powerful, user-friendly, and productive.
-
Fedora Linux 43 Beta Now Available for Testing
Fedora Linux 43 Beta ships with Gnome 49 and KDE Plasma 6.4 (and other goodies).
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.