Manjaro 26.0 Released with Major Modernization Overhaul for Rolling Release Users
Manjaro Linux 26.0 delivers a major modernization step for the Arch-based rolling release distribution, featuring updated installer workflows, improved Flatpak integration, and refreshed desktop environments with Wayland as the default session across all editions.
Manjaro Linux 26.0 has been released, delivering a major modernization update for the popular Arch-based rolling release distribution. The release features Wayland as the default session across all desktop editions, improved Flatpak integration, and a redesigned installer that simplifies the installation process for new users.
Wayland by Default
Manjaro 26.0 makes Wayland the default display protocol across its KDE Plasma, GNOME, and Xfce editions — a significant shift that reflects the growing maturity of Wayland support across the Linux desktop ecosystem. X11 remains available as an alternative session for users who encounter compatibility issues, but the default experience is now fully Wayland-native. The change enables better security (Wayland prevents applications from capturing other windows' content), improved fractional scaling, and smoother animations on modern hardware.
Flatpak Integration
The distribution deepens its Flatpak integration with a curated software center that presents Flatpak applications alongside native packages in a unified interface. Flatpak sandboxing provides an additional security layer for third-party applications, and the universal package format ensures that applications work consistently regardless of the underlying system libraries. Manjaro 26.0 includes Flathub as a pre-configured Flatpak repository, giving users immediate access to thousands of applications.
Installer Redesign
The Calamares installer receives a visual refresh and workflow improvements that reduce the number of steps required to install Manjaro from 8 to 5. The installer now includes automated disk partitioning recommendations, a simplified timezone selection interface, and a new "Quick Install" option that applies sensible defaults for users who want to get started quickly. These changes target the distribution's growing user base of Linux newcomers who are attracted to Manjaro's user-friendly reputation and rolling release model.
Related Articles
GitHub Expands Developer Platform with Actions Artifacts v5 and Copilot Extensions GA
GitHub has shipped Actions Artifacts v5 with immutable storage and artifact attestation for tamper-proof build outputs, alongside the general availability of Copilot Extensions that let third-party tools integrate directly into the Copilot chat experience. The platform also expanded GitHub Models with seven new providers.
Docker Engine 29.3 Ships with Native gRPC Support and BuildKit v0.28
Docker Engine 29.3.0 introduces native gRPC support on listening sockets, BuildKit v0.28.0, and a new bind-create-src option for flexible volume mounting. The release lowers the minimum API version to v1.40 for broader backward compatibility and fixes DNS configuration corruption during daemon reloads.
GitHub Adds Dependabot Pre-Commit Support and 28 New Secret Scanning Detectors
GitHub has shipped two major supply chain security features: Dependabot now parses .pre-commit-config.yaml files and opens PRs to update hook versions, while secret scanning gains 28 new detectors from 15 providers including Snowflake, Supabase, and Vercel. Push protection is now enabled by default for 39 secret types.