Fedora Linux 45 is out, and one of its biggest highlights sits in the installer rather than on the desktop. Anaconda, Fedora’s installation program, now integrates support for Stratis storage, covering both graphical and automated installs.
Stratis wraps device-mapper, XFS, and LUKS in an easy-to-use interface, bringing enterprise-style storage features to local disks: thin provisioning, storage pooling, dynamic filesystem sizing, snapshots, and encryption.
What’s new in the installer
For graphical installs, custom partitioning lets you launch the Cockpit storage module directly from Anaconda. From there, you can build Stratis pools across one or more physical drives and create / and /home filesystems on demand.
For automated deployments, Anaconda now supports –type=stratis alongside autopart, plus dedicated stratispool and stratisfs Kickstart commands. Administrators who provision machines from Kickstart files can set up Stratis without touching a GUI.
Check your VPN before upgrading
Two legacy NetworkManager VPN plugins, NetworkManager-vpnc and NetworkManager-fortisslvpn, are retiring and become obsolete starting with Fedora Linux 45. If you connect to a VPN through either one, read Fedora Magazine’s migration guide first, which explains how to move to a supported alternative.
Desktop and under-the-hood updates
The rest of the release follows the usual Fedora pattern. Updated desktop stacks across GNOME, KDE Plasma, and community spins bring improved performance, refined Wayland support, and better fractional scaling. Development tools and runtime libraries are refreshed with newer language features and compiler optimizations. Powered by recent Linux kernel releases, Fedora 45 offers broad hardware support, improved laptop power management, and better container performance, according to the project.
Editions, Atomic Desktops, and Spins
Fedora’s flagship Editions are Workstation, KDE Plasma Desktop, Server, Cloud, CoreOS, and IoT. You can also explore the Atomic Desktops (Silverblue, Kinoite, and Sericea) or pick an alternate desktop from the Spins, such as Cinnamon, Xfce, MATE, or COSMIC.
How to get it
Existing Fedora users can follow the project’s user documentation to upgrade. For a clean install or a new device, installation media for each Edition is available at Fedora website.
If you run into bugs or unexpected behavior after upgrading or installing, the Ask Fedora forum is the place to ask questions. Its Common Bugs section tracks known issues and workarounds logged during the release cycle.
