Kubuntu 26.10 'Stonking Stingray' ships Plasma 6.7.5, drops default X11 support

Brief written by the FOSSWire AI editor from Kubuntu How we write

October 15, 2026 1 min read

Key Takeaway

Kubuntu 26.10 is an interim release with Plasma 6.7.5, Wayland by default, and marks the final release where the X11 session package will be available.

Summary

Kubuntu 26.10 'Stonking Stingray' launched on October 15, 2026, alongside Ubuntu 26.10. The interim release is supported for nine months until July 2027. It ships Plasma 6.7.5 with Wayland as the default session and drops default X11 installation, with the plasma-session-x11 package being removed entirely after this release.

What's on the ISO

Plasma 6.7.5 with Wayland session as default; X11 session not installed by default and unsupported
Qt 6.11.2, KDE Frameworks 6.29, KDE Gear 26.08.1
Firefox 157 (Snap) and LibreOffice 26.8.1
Linux kernel 7.3 (7.3.0-9.9)
Plasma 6.7 features: per-screen virtual desktops, clearer Discover Install button, redesigned app cards, light/dark quick toggle, Union theming system as tech preview
Upgrade blocker: TPM-backed full-disk encryption systems cannot upgrade from 26.04 LTS at release; expected to be enabled during 26.10 lifecycle

Why it matters

The removal of default X11 support and deprecation of the plasma-session-x11 package signals KDE Plasma's accelerated transition to Wayland, following broader desktop Linux trends. Users with X11-dependent workflows or hardware compatibility issues have this final release to test and migrate.

Original reference: kubuntu.org →