Plasma 6.8 is KDE’s farewell to the X11 session, so the practical job is moving to Wayland. Test your session, graphics driver, apps and workflow on Wayland now, while your current Plasma release still lets you switch back to X11.
Gather what you need before starting
Ars Technica reports that KDE marked its 30th anniversary with a new Plasma release, a farewell to X11 and a film. For users, the release itself matters most. If you still log into a Plasma X11 session, you will need a Wayland session that works for you before your distribution ships Plasma 6.8.
You will need:
- A computer running a current KDE Plasma 6 release from your distribution, with the Plasma Wayland session installed. Most distributions that package Plasma 6 include it by default.
- Administrator access, in case you need to install packages or change driver settings.
- A list of the applications and tools you rely on every day, especially anything for screen capture, remote desktop, keyboard remapping, input automation or display configuration.
- Some time to work in a test session. Half an hour of normal use shows more problems than a quick login and logout.
- A backup of your home directory, or at least of
~/.config, so you can restore your settings if something goes wrong.
You do not need to wait for Plasma 6.8. You can do all of this on the release you have now, and that is the point: the X11 session is still there if you need it.
Confirm which session you are using
Many people are already on Wayland without knowing it, because several distributions now make it the default. Open a terminal and run echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE. If it prints wayland, you are already on the session that Plasma 6.8 keeps. If it prints x11, carry on with the steps below.
You can also check under System Settings, in the About This System page. It lists the graphics platform as either X11 or Wayland.
Check your graphics driver
The graphics driver is the most common reason a Wayland session works badly. Intel and AMD graphics use open-source drivers that are part of the standard Linux graphics stack, and they generally work well with Plasma on Wayland.
NVIDIA’s proprietary driver needs more care. Make sure you are using a recent driver from your distribution’s official repositories, and that kernel mode setting is turned on. Many distributions now enable it automatically. Your distribution’s documentation will say how to check it and how to switch it on if it is off. Older NVIDIA cards that only work with legacy driver branches may not run Wayland well, and that is worth finding out now rather than after an upgrade.
Log into the Plasma Wayland session
Log out. On the login screen, look for the session selector, which is usually in a corner, and choose Plasma (Wayland). Then log in as usual. Your panels, wallpaper, shortcuts and most settings carry over, because both sessions read the same configuration files.
Use the session for real work rather than just looking around. Open the applications you use every day, connect your external monitors, and try sleep and resume. If the session will not start, or the screen stays black, switch back to X11 from the login screen and make a note of what happened. That usually points to the graphics driver.
Test your applications under XWayland
Most applications that predate Wayland still run, through XWayland. This is a compatibility layer that runs X11 programs inside a Wayland session, and it is separate from the Plasma X11 session that is being retired. Losing the X11 session does not mean losing X11 applications.
Some things behave differently, though. Look for blurry text in older applications on high-resolution or scaled displays, and check the scaling options under Display Configuration in System Settings. Test games, creative software and anything that uses a graphics tablet. Note any application that fails, and check whether a newer version or a native Wayland build exists.
Rework screen sharing, remote access and automation
On Wayland, applications cannot see or control the whole screen by default. Screen sharing and recording go through desktop portals and PipeWire, so you get a prompt asking which screen or window to share. Test video calls, screen recorders and remote desktop tools one by one.
Tools built for X11 often fail without much of an error. Global keyboard automation utilities, scripts that use xrandr to set up displays, and tools that move windows using X11 properties need replacing. Plasma includes kscreen-doctor for configuring displays from the command line, and KWin scripting covers many window-management tasks. Ars Technica’s report also mentions remote upgrades as part of this release. How that feature works, and who it is for, is not covered in the material available here, so check KDE’s own release notes before relying on it.
Make Wayland your default and keep a record
Once your workflow runs on Wayland, use it as your everyday session. The login screen usually remembers the last session you picked. Keep your notes on what you changed, such as driver settings, replacement tools and edited scripts, so you can repeat the setup on another machine or after a reinstall.
Avoid the mistakes people actually make
- Testing for five minutes. Many problems only show up with multiple monitors, after sleep, or in one particular application.
- Mixing up XWayland and the X11 session. Removing the session does not stop most X11 applications from running.
- Using a third-party or very old NVIDIA driver. Use the driver your distribution supports, and check that mode setting is on.
- Waiting for the upgrade. If you only test once Plasma 6.8 is installed, you lose the easy way back to X11.
- Keeping X11-only scripts without knowing it. Login scripts that call
xrandr,xsetor similar tools may fail without any warning. - Assuming every distribution moves at the same pace. When Plasma 6.8 reaches you depends on your distribution’s release cycle, not on KDE’s announcement.
Know when this approach is the wrong choice
Moving to Wayland now is not right for everyone. If your work relies on specialist software that only runs properly in a full X11 session, or on hardware whose drivers do not support Wayland, a forced move could stop you working. In that case, stay on a distribution release that still ships an earlier Plasma with X11 support, as long as it gets security updates. Alternatively, consider a different desktop environment that still offers an X11 session. Machines that must not change, such as lab equipment controllers or kiosk systems, are also better left on their tested setup until you can plan a migration properly. How long earlier Plasma releases will receive fixes is not set out in the material here. Check your distribution’s support policy.
Frequently asked questions
Will X11 applications still work in Plasma 6.8?
Most will. Plasma on Wayland runs older X11 applications through XWayland, a compatibility layer that is separate from the X11 login session being retired. Ordinary desktop applications generally run without changes. Problems are more likely with tools that need to watch or control the whole screen, such as global automation utilities, some screen recorders and older remote desktop software. Test the applications you depend on before upgrading.
How do I check if KDE Plasma is running on Wayland?
Open a terminal and run echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE. The output is either wayland or x11. You can also open System Settings and go to the About This System page, which shows the graphics platform in use. If you are already on Wayland, the end of the X11 session in Plasma 6.8 should not change much for you. You may still want to check your applications and scripts after upgrading.
Does Plasma Wayland work with NVIDIA graphics cards?
It can, but it depends on the driver. Use a recent proprietary driver from your distribution’s official repositories and make sure kernel mode setting is enabled. Many distributions now do this automatically. Older cards that only support legacy driver branches may run poorly or not at all on Wayland. Testing a Wayland session before upgrading shows whether your particular card and driver combination is usable for daily work.
Can I keep using X11 with KDE after Plasma 6.8?
Not with Plasma 6.8 itself, because that release drops the X11 session. You can stay on a distribution release that ships an earlier Plasma version with X11 support, for as long as it receives security updates. You can also switch to another desktop environment that still offers an X11 session. Both options put off the move rather than avoid it, so plan for an eventual migration.
Sources and further reading
- Ars Technica: report on KDE’s 30th anniversary, the Plasma 6.8 release, the end of X11 support and the anniversary film.
- KDE community: official release announcements and Plasma documentation on the Wayland session.
- Distribution documentation: guides from major Linux distributions on graphics drivers and choosing a session.
- freedesktop.org: background material on Wayland, XWayland, PipeWire and desktop portals.
Surfaced from the rss:arstechnica signal “Linux desktop software release”. AI-assisted draft, editorially reviewed.
