A slightly modified Nobara desktop (switched from the default Dark theme to a Light theme).
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
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ZDNet’s key takeaways
- Nobara Linux, based on Fedora 42, is available now.
- This Linux distribution is perfectly suited for gamers – and Linux newbies.
- Nobara is free to download, install, and use.
I really like Fedora.
I find Fedora to be a very fast and reliable OS, which is quite the opposite of what it once was.
But here’s the thing about Fedora: Although it’s an outstanding Linux distribution, it’s not quite user-friendly enough for those new to Linux. Why? Out of the box, new users might find themselves having to install codecs for multimedia and several third-party and even proprietary applications.
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Of course, the Flatpak universal package manager does a great job of making that easy, and Fedora does roll Flatpak into either GNOME Software or KDE Plasma Discover. However, that doesn’t exactly elevate Fedora to the user-friendly space.
That’s where Nobara comes in.
I wrote about Nobara back in 2024, calling it the “OS for everyone.” A year later, there’s a new version of Nobara available. Keep in mind that Nobara is not an official Fedora spin — it’s an entity all on its own.
What’s different in this new release?
- It’s based on Fedora 42 and contains several modifications in the source code to make it more of a gaming distribution.
- It improves frames per second by 5% over vanilla Fedora.
- The RPM Fusion and COPR repositories are enabled.
- Several device-specific patches are added (such as those for Steam Deck, Microsoft Surface, Asus ROG, and more).
- Several modifications are made to individual packages (such as the Calamares installer, DNF, Flatpack, gnome-shell, and many more).
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You can read the entire list of modifications on the Nobara Project Wiki.
From the user’s perspective, several changes jump out. For instance, KDE Plasma typically uses Discover for all package management. Nobara, on the other hand, includes a tool called Flatpost (which is a GUI for managing only Flatpack apps). Flatpost works very well and simplifies locating flatpack apps (whereas KDE Discover surfaces both standard packages and universal packages).
Flatpost makes installing Flapak apps very easy.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
Nobara also ships with several preinstalled apps, such as LibreOffice, Brave web browser, Lutris (for playing Windows games), Nobara Driver Manager (to simplify driver installation/updating), Nobara Package Manager (I believe this is a rebranding of KDE Discover), ProtonPlus (for gaming — you do need to first run and set up Steam for this to work), Steam, Winetricks, and more.
With ProtonPlus, you can access all of your game launchers from a single location.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
My take on Nobara
If you asked me what type of user is best suited for Nobara, my initial reaction would be gamers, because so many of the modifications made are geared toward playing games. The inclusion of Steam and ProtonPlus makes this quite clear.
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But I wouldn’t go so far as to say Nobara is a gamer-only distribution. Nobara strips away some of the steps that are often necessary in Fedora to simplify the experience. Without having to struggle with driver and codec installation, you’ll find everything just works out of the box. And with the inclusion of Flatpost, finding and installing the Flatpack apps you need is as easy as it gets.
If you asked me if Nobara is the best Linux distribution for new users, I’d have to say no. If you asked me whether it was a good distribution for someone who likes to play games and wants to migrate to Linux, I’d answer that question with a resounding yes. Nobara makes using different game launchers easy enough for anyone, and the modifications made to the system greatly improve the experience.
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So, if you’re new to Linux but not new to gaming, and want a distribution that makes gaming on Linux a no-brainer, Nobara should be one of your first considerations. If you’re looking for a more general distribution to do everyday tasks, you should probably look towards Ubuntu, Linux Mint, elementaryOS, or Pop!_OS.
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