GhostBSD 25.02-R14.3p2 with Gershwin desktop, OpenBSD and Yubikey OTP, and Qt6/KDE fixes at l2k25 hackathon and more.
Releases
GhostBSD 25.02-R14.3p2 Released with Gershwin Desktop Preview: GhostBSD 25.02-R14.3p2 is now available, built on FreeBSD 14.3-RELEASE, delivering enhanced stability, security, and hardware support. This release introduces Gershwin, a GNUstep-based desktop environment offering an OS X-like experience, with seamless integration of GhostBSD tools and support for non-GNUstep applications. Key improvements include automatic /tmp clearing, better AMD/NVIDIA GPU detection, WiFi firmware updates, and Simplified Chinese translations for core utilities. Bug fixes address power-off issues, Software Station UI glitches, and missing packages like Signal Desktop and VS Code.
For upgrades, users must remove vfs.zfs.arc_max from /boot/loader.conf and follow TTY-based steps for reliability. The release emphasizes security updates and refined boot environment management. Downloads and detailed changelogs are available at ghostbsd.org.
BSDSec
No security announcements. As always, it’s worth following BSDSec. RSS feed available.
News
Valuable News – 2025/08/25: The Valuable News series curates key updates in UNIX/BSD/Linux, hardware, and open-source projects. This week’s highlights include NetBSD powering a robot cat, BastilleBSD’s container framework, and FreeBSD 15.0’s release challenges.
OpenBSD Hackathon Leipzig 2025: Qt6 Fixes, KDE PIM, and C++26 Updates: Rafael Sadowski attended the l2k25 OpenBSD Hackathon in Leipzig, focusing on Qt6 and KDE improvements. Key fixes included resolving crashes in KDE PIM (Akonadi modules) caused by QNetworkInformation returning nullptr due to missing NetworkManager support. He also addressed a poll() busy-loop bug in socket handling, improving Qt6 port infrastructure by removing problematic linker flags and setting LC_CTYPE=C.UTF-8 to eliminate warnings.
OpenBSD Disables Yubikey OTP Support in -current: OpenBSD has disabled Yubikey OTP keyboard emulation in its -current branch, citing accidental OTP output and poor vendor tooling as key reasons. The change does not affect Yubikey’s FIDO functionality or devices from other vendors. Users relying on OTP for local authentication via login_yubikey(8) will need alternatives, though remote OTP authentication remains possible. A patched kernel is currently the only workaround. The decision reflects OpenBSD’s policy prioritization of FIDO over OTP due to usability concerns.
BSD Now 625: Why FreeBSD is the Right Choice for Embedded Devices, The Day GlusterFS Tried to Kill My Career, DragonFly DRM updated, NetBSD on Raspberry Pi, Speed up suspend/resume for FreeBSD, Revisiting ZFS’s ZIL, separate log devices, and writes, One of my blog articles featured on the BSD Now podcast episode, New build cluster speeds up daily autobuilds, and more.
Tutorials
OpenBSD-Based Home Network: Router, Self-Hosting & Mesh Setup: The author details their upgraded home network after switching from Starlink to a 1Gbps ISP, now running a custom OpenBSD router on a fanless mini PC. The setup includes a self-hosted web server on a Raspberry Pi 400 and Eero APs (with plans to replace them with OpenWRT devices). Wired connections to the router achieve ~900Mbps, while wireless speeds reach ~280Mbps at the farthest point. Future guides will cover OpenBSD router configuration and hosting a web server. The network hardware is centrally located in a basement utility closet, with color-coded Ethernet cables for organization.
Securing FreeBSD Services with Lightweight Jails: FreeBSD jails provide a simple yet powerful way to isolate services on the same OS instance, enhancing security by containing potential breaches. This guide demonstrates a streamlined approach using ZFS and default tools to create a template jail, clone it for new services, and manage configurations efficiently. Key steps include enabling jails, setting up ZFS filesystems, downloading the FreeBSD userland, and creating a snapshot-based template. The process emphasizes simplicity, with optional Ansible integration for package management. The guide also covers scaling with resource limits and community tools like Ansible plays.
Resources, including a GitHub repository and video tutorial, supplement the instructions, making it accessible for both beginners and experienced users. The FreeBSD Foundation encourages feedback and topic suggestions for future content.**
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