We do often include affiliate links to earn us some pennies. See more here.

Debian 10 "Buster" has finally been released

By -

After around 25 months of development, Debian has now released the next stable version Debian 10 "Buster" which will be supported for five years. In this release GNOME now defaults to using Wayland instead of Xorg, the AppArmor kernel security module is enabled by default and it's powered by the Linux 4.19 kernel.

For those who don't like to live on the edge, Debian is a good choice for having a solid computing experience with Linux. Debian 10 comes with these available desktops:

  • Cinnamon 3.8
  • GNOME 3.30
  • KDE Plasma 5.14
  • LXDE 0.99.2
  • LXQt 0.14
  • MATE 1.20
  • Xfce 4.12

Like other distributions, you don't need to install Debian right away. It has a "live" image you can stick on a USB, to test it without making any changes on your computer.

For those unaware, Debian is what both Ubuntu (so also Mint, elementary OS, KDE neon and many more) and SteamOS base themselves upon, so the work that goes into Debian affects a great many other distributions.

If you're not upgrading right away, rest assured that Debian 9 "Stretch" is still supported and will continue to be for 12 months with the Debian Security Team, after which it will be handed over to the Debian LTS team.

See their official news post here.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Distro News
26 Likes
About the author -
author picture
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly checked on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. You can also follow my personal adventures on Bluesky.
See more from me
The comments on this article are closed.
All posts need to follow our rules. For users logged in: please hit the Report Flag icon on any post that breaks the rules or contains illegal / harmful content. Guest readers can email us for any issues.
49 comments
Page: 1/3»
  Go to:

Thormack Jul 7, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)
Eike Jul 7, 2019
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
For those who don't care about the latest software, but might need a current graphics driver or kernel, there will be a buster-backports repository (like an official PPA, if you will).
fagnerln Jul 7, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)

Nah, I don't think so.

There's a lot things to do after the installation. IMO they will support a more friendly distro, preferably with a corporation behind, like OpenSUSE or Fedora

Maybe they create a new distro for desktop use based on Debian.
14 Jul 7, 2019
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
It's gotta be a lot of work to support that many desktop environments. I didn't know those new DE's were coming, so I'm surprised. I love Debian for their rock-solid server stability.

Their downloads pages could be better organized though. It was difficult for me to find the Bittorrent options of various builds when I knew they existed. What if you didn't know?


Last edited by 14 on 7 July 2019 at 11:21 am UTC
The most important update might well be Python 3.7; stretch was on 3.5, so it missed out on the many important features that got introduced with 3.6.

Also, Buster supports php 7.3, which the latest Nextcloud release (16) requires. I couldn't get the Talk app to work on older Nextcloud versions; so if you're interested in hosting 'your own skype' on Debian, that's also a very significant update.
dvd Jul 7, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)

Nah, I don't think so.

There's a lot things to do after the installation. IMO they will support a more friendly distro, preferably with a corporation behind, like OpenSUSE or Fedora

Maybe they create a new distro for desktop use based on Debian.

I don't see where people get the impression that Ubuntu is more 'user friendly'. Nothing says that better than their python based installer that regularly crashes at the partitioning step with a bunch of exceptions that are surely easier to read for the average user than plain language.
Nothing says that better than their python based installer that regularly crashes at the partitioning step with a bunch of exceptions that are surely easier to read for the average user than plain language.

Absolutely. That was one reason I got soured on Ubuntu very early on.
F.Ultra Jul 7, 2019
View PC info
  • Supporter
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)

Nah, I don't think so.

There's a lot things to do after the installation. IMO they will support a more friendly distro, preferably with a corporation behind, like OpenSUSE or Fedora

Maybe they create a new distro for desktop use based on Debian.

I don't see where people get the impression that Ubuntu is more 'user friendly'. Nothing says that better than their python based installer that regularly crashes at the partitioning step with a bunch of exceptions that are surely easier to read for the average user than plain language.

Because the average used does not use whatever advanced setting that you are using that are causing those crashes. They will simply click "next" all the way. And once they have done so they will have a fully working desktop, and if they need further customization or changes then the Internet is full of blogs and nice looking guides for how to do this in Ubuntu.

That is why.
mayo Jul 7, 2019
I'm already tested buster with the latest release candidate. Besides a few problems with xfce4 and kiosk mode, it's a really good experience. Sadly a important tool is using gtk2sourceview (which is deprecated since millenials & finally gone in buster) so I will stick around with stretch, until said tool is ported. :/
Linas Jul 7, 2019
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
And if you do like to live on the edge, there is Debian Testing, which is a perpetually rolling release.
Desum Jul 7, 2019
I've been hearing conflicting information about Mint's plans regarding LMDE. Anyone know if they intend to continue giving it releases (perhaps with renewed interest from Canonical's recent blunder)?
a0kami Jul 7, 2019
And if you do like to live on the edge, there is Debian Testing, which is a perpetually rolling release.

Stable definitely have way too old software and lib versions for me.
Even testing can still have a bit of delay, I had to be on sid.
That said though, I don't recommend this to anyone, as it's fairly risky. But if you keep your system simple and do backups, it's cutting edge linux. :D
x_wing Jul 7, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)

Is Nvidia proprietary driver working with Wayland? I can remember that nvidia devs created some patches for gnome and KDE in order to get it working, but I feel that they were quite recently for any Debian support chance.

If those patches aren't present, I doubt that Debian will be a Steam officially supported distro any time soon.
Purple Library Guy Jul 7, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)

Nah, I don't think so.

There's a lot things to do after the installation. IMO they will support a more friendly distro, preferably with a corporation behind, like OpenSUSE or Fedora

Maybe they create a new distro for desktop use based on Debian.

I don't see where people get the impression that Ubuntu is more 'user friendly'. Nothing says that better than their python based installer that regularly crashes at the partitioning step with a bunch of exceptions that are surely easier to read for the average user than plain language.

Because the average used does not use whatever advanced setting that you are using that are causing those crashes. They will simply click "next" all the way. And once they have done so they will have a fully working desktop, and if they need further customization or changes then the Internet is full of blogs and nice looking guides for how to do this in Ubuntu.

That is why.
Agreed. Although I do have one minor peeve about that Ubuntu (and Mint) installer nonetheless. As a pretty basic user, I still tend to need to muck with the partitioning. Why? Because even the most basic user would be well advised to put their /home on a separate partition from the / with the actual OS. Eventually you're gonna update or reinstall or try a different distro or something, and when you do your life will be so much easier if your actual data you care about is on a separate partition from the one that's gonna get formatted. Sure, you should do a backup anyway, but having those two partitions is basic. But do they have that as an option, or even the default? They do not. If you want that you have to go into the full partitioning thingie and worry about swap and a little boot space and crap like that. Grumble mutter whine bitch.
(I swear I have a recollection of Mandriva having that option available in its installer in the old days)


Last edited by Purple Library Guy on 7 July 2019 at 5:09 pm UTC
Shmerl Jul 7, 2019
Congratulations! Now libdrm will get unblocked, and Mesa master will be buildable again :)


Last edited by Shmerl on 7 July 2019 at 6:02 pm UTC
Whitewolfe80 Jul 7, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.



(Just a speculation, for now...)

just as soon as they ditch wayland maybe as last time i tested it about 2 months ago it was still trash for gaming compared to xorg
Arehandoro Jul 7, 2019
Awesome!

I found myself upgrading 3 home servers last night till pretty late in the morning xD no issues found except with my mail server after the update to dovecot 2.3 but a quick search and some documentation reading solved it :)

I really wish Steam chooses Debian for their main supported distro. It is true it needs a website revamp (which there are talks and work towards it if I understood correctly in one email from the mailing list not long ago), modernisation of their pipeline tools (also believe was mentioned by the new lead of the project) and overall a repository with more up to date kernels/graphic drivers to get the most advanced features for gaming hardware. But, no distro is perfect, and Debian and derivatives it’s the most used, making easier finding answers for problems, tested in a huge amount of different hardware and not so new hardware (this is important for gaming if we look at Steam’s survey) and pretty rock solid.

Anyway, thanks to everyone that works in Debian (1330 people), I’m happy to continue supporting the distro economically when possible and with some other help when more knowledgeable.

Cheers!
Seegras Jul 8, 2019
For those living on the edge, this is a good thing too, because those running Debian sid/unstable now again get loads of new software coming in (due to how Debian development works, the influx of new packages dies down on unstable as well, when the testing distribution goes into feature freeze).

Oh, and for those that want a (mostly) rolling release, sid/unstable is stable enough to run on my workstation. Has been for years. And it's usually even more up-to-date than Ubuntu ;).
MadVillain Jul 8, 2019
The new Steam officially supported distro just launched.
Awesome.

(Just a speculation, for now...)
Lately I tried to switch from LM to LMDE and I switched back the next day, because pretty much nothing worked.
It was a pain in the ass to even launch Steam and none of the games worked.
Also, the latest Nvidia drivers are not available for Debian.
If you look at protondb reports, you will see that most of "platinum" and "gold" reports come from either Ubuntu, LM or Manjaro.
So I don't think that Valve will give up on Ubuntu that easily.
Especially with Canonical backtracking on their statements.


Last edited by MadVillain on 8 July 2019 at 6:36 am UTC
Shmerl Jul 8, 2019
So I don't think that Valve will give up on Ubuntu that easily.

Can't say anything about LMDE, but Debian testing proper is fine. I don't submit reports to ProtonDB though, since I'm using upstream Wine (+dxvk/esync when needed).
While you're here, please consider supporting GamingOnLinux on:

Reward Tiers: Patreon. Plain Donations: PayPal.

This ensures all of our main content remains totally free for everyone! Patreon supporters can also remove all adverts and sponsors! Supporting us helps bring good, fresh content. Without your continued support, we simply could not continue!

You can find even more ways to support us on this dedicated page any time. If you already are, thank you!
The comments on this article are closed.