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KDE Plasma 6

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Developer(s)KDE
Initial release28 February 2024; 16 months ago (2024-02-28)[1]
Stable release
6.4.3[2] Edit this on Wikidata / 15 July 2025
Preview release
N/A
Repository
Written inC++, QML
Operating systemUnix-like
PlatformFreeBSD, OpenBSD[3] and Linux
PredecessorKDE Plasma 5
TypeDesktop environment
LicenseGPL 2.0 or later[4]
Websitekde.org/plasma-desktop

KDE Plasma 6 is the sixth generation of the KDE Plasma desktop environment. It is the successor of KDE Plasma 5 and was first released on 28 February 2024.[1]

Overview

[edit]

KDE Plasma 6 was designed to not be a very large departure from KDE Plasma 5, instead being a series of improvements.[5] KDE Plasma 6 is built using Qt 6, KDE Frameworks 6 and KDE Gear 24.02.[1][6] In addition, support for the Wayland protocol was mainstreamed as the default graphical session, with X11 support made secondary.[7] It introduces a new sound theme, Ocean, replacing Oxygen's sound theme as the default.[1][6][8] Plasma 6 on Wayland has partial support for High Dynamic Range (HDR) and color blindness correction filters.[1][6][9] The Discover app and settings were also improved and the 3D cube desktop effect was brought back.[10]

New features

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Compared to the latest Plasma 5 release, the sixth generation brings the following new features:

  • The panel floats by default. Panels can be configured using auto-hide mode and be resized, including being turned into a dock.[10][6]
  • Plasma Search allows customizing the ordering of search results, supports timezones conversion and matches the text in both the current system language and English.[5][6]
  • Support for the Astronomical and Umm al-Qura Calendars in the calendar applet.[6]
  • Support for use of both password and fingerprint authentication at the same time.[1][11]
  • Support for sound themes.[6]

History

[edit]

The first Technology Preview of Plasma 6 was released on 28 February 2024.[1]

Releases

[edit]
See also: KDE Software Compilation § Release cycle

As of 2025, major versions with new features are released every four months, with three updates per year. However, since 2023, the KDE community has expressed that they would prefer to transition to a semi-annual schedule, with updates occurring every six months, if it can be timed to align with the releases of the major Linux distributions that package Plasma (Ubuntu, OpenSUSE Leap, and Fedora).[12][13]

Each release receives up to six patch releases containing bug fixes. Releases will stop receiving bugfixes as soon as the following major release is available. There are no plans to offer a long-term support version of Plasma 6. [13]

Plasma 6 releases[13]
Version Date Key features
Unsupported: 6.0 28 Feb 2024 First release of KDE Plasma 6.0 (also known as KDE MegaRelease 6)[1][14]
Unsupported: 6.1 18 Jun 2024 Remote desktop, better widget editing, persistent apps, synchronizing keyboard LEDs with accent color.[15][16]
Unsupported: 6.2 8 Oct 2024 Drawing tablet calibration wizard and test mode, improved HDR support, support for PostmarketOS packages in Discover, overhauled Accessibility page in System Settings.[17][18]
Unsupported: 6.3 11 Feb 2025 Improved drawing tablet settings page, overhauled fractional scaling, support for ICC color profile on Night Light, improved hardware monitoring with added support for GPU statistics on FreeBSD, improved customization settings.[19][20]
Latest version: 6.4 17 Jun 2025 Modernized KMenuEdit, improved Discover feedback, enhanced accessibility in Calculator and System Monitor, default dimming on admin prompts, terminology cleanup, better clipboard and bell handling, and various widget fixes.[21]
Future version: 6.5 21 Oct 2025 (planned)
Legend:
Unsupported
Latest version
Future version

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "KDE MegaRelease 6". KDE. 28 February 2024. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  2. ^ "KDE Plasma 6.4.3, Bugfix Release for July". 15 July 2025. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
  3. ^ Sadowski, Rafael (20 May 2024). "KDE6 on OpenBSD". rsadowski.de. Archived from the original on 9 October 2024. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
  4. ^ "Copying of Plasma Workspace". KDE Invent. Archived from the original on 4 May 2021. Retrieved 14 March 2021.
  5. ^ a b Wallen, Jack (11 September 2023). "I tested KDE Plasma 6 and found it very familiar. Here's why that's a good thing". ZDNET. Archived from the original on 26 March 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Nestor, Marius (28 February 2024). "KDE Plasma 6 Desktop Environment Officially Released, This Is What's New". 9to5Linux. Archived from the original on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  7. ^ Wallen, Jack (14 February 2024). "The first Linux distribution to deliver a pure KDE Plasma 6 environment is here". ZDNET. Archived from the original on 24 March 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  8. ^ Sneddon, Joey (28 February 2024). "KDE Plasma 6.0 Has Arrived, This is What's New". OMG! Ubuntu. Archived from the original on 3 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  9. ^ Davenport, Corbin (28 February 2024). "KDE 6 Update Arrives With Big Plasma Desktop Updates for Linux". How-To Geek. Archived from the original on 5 March 2024. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  10. ^ a b Rudra, Sourav (28 February 2024). "KDE Plasma 6: The Big Release is Here!". It's FOSS News. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  11. ^ "Plasma/Plasma 6". KDE Community Wiki. Archived from the original on 30 September 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  12. ^ "KDE Plasma 6.0.1, Bugfix Release for March". announcements.kde.org. 5 March 2024. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  13. ^ a b c "Plasma 6 Schedules". KDE Community Wiki. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  14. ^ Proven, Liam (29 February 2024). "KDE Plasma 6.0 brings the same old charm and confusion". The Register. Archived from the original on 15 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  15. ^ "Plasma 6.1". KDE Community. 18 June 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  16. ^ Sneddon, Joey (18 June 2024). "KDE Plasma 6.1 Released With… Well, A Fair Bit!". OMG! Ubuntu. Archived from the original on 22 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  17. ^ "Plasma 6.2". KDE Community. 8 October 2024. Archived from the original on 9 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  18. ^ Sneddon, Joey (8 October 2024). "KDE Plasma 6.2 Released, This is What's New". OMG! Ubuntu. Archived from the original on 26 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  19. ^ "Plasma 6.3". KDE Community. 11 February 2025. Archived from the original on 13 February 2025. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  20. ^ Sneddon, Joey (11 February 2025). "KDE Plasma 6.3 Released, This is What's New". OMG! Ubuntu. Archived from the original on 13 February 2025. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  21. ^ "KDE Plasma 6.4". KDE Community. 17 June 2025. Archived from the original on 17 June 2025. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
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