pkgsrc is now frozen. Please use this opportunity to test pkgsrc bootstraps on your favourite esoteric OS or architecture, view the pkgsrc-bulk mailing list and fix some low-hanging fruit, and help them make this a great release.
If everything goes well there will be cutting the release some time over the weekend.
The Valuable News weekly series provides a summary of news and articles related to UNIX/BSD/Linux systems. This edition includes updates on FreeBSD, such as its porting to Apple MacBook, the release of FreeBSD 14.3, and various security projects. Notable mentions include the XLibre project, GIMP 3.1.2 release, and discussions on Wayland and X11. Additionally, there are insights into hardware developments like the Libreboot ThinkPad T480 and Dell OptiPlex 3050 Micro.
John Baldwin, a long-time FreeBSD community member, has been elected to the FreeBSD Foundation Board. With a history dating back to his undergraduate years, Baldwin has contributed significantly to FreeBSD's development and community. His roles have included serving on core teams, release engineering, and the srcmgr team, as well as chairing the FreeBSD Journal's editorial board. Baldwin aims to strengthen the bond between the developer community and the Foundation, bringing his extensive experience and unique perspective to the board. His election is expected to enhance the Foundation's support for the FreeBSD Project.
The FreeBSD Foundation has announced that applications for travel grants to attend EuroBSDCon 2025 are now open. These grants are designed to assist FreeBSD developers and advocates with travel expenses for conferences related to FreeBSD development. The deadline for applications is August 5, 2025. Additionally, the Foundation offers travel grants for other technical events, provided that attendance benefits the FreeBSD Project and Community. Applications for these grants must be submitted at least seven weeks prior to the event.
How to use Podman hooks to mount ZFS datasets into containers, and cleaning up on exit, ensuring datasets are properly unmounted. This setup is ideal for managing persistent data in ephemeral containers, such as databases.
FreeBSD version 14.3 is available, Reliable ZFS Storage on Commodity Hardware, My website is ugly because I made it, Semi distributed filesystems with ZFS and Sanoid, April 2025 Laptop Support and Usability Project Update, UDP sockets instead of BPF in dhcpd(8), and more.
The FreeBSD Foundation has initiated a project to enable Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) for FreeBSD, commissioned by the Sovereign Tech Agency. Running from April to December 2025, the project aims to enhance tooling and processes for SBOMs, which are crucial for improving software supply chain visibility and security. Key goals include developing tools to merge provenance data, parse and inspect the FreeBSD source tree, and extend package management capabilities. The project is driven by user demand and regulatory requirements, with a focus on automation and long-term maintenance. The Foundation will provide periodic updates to the community as the project progresses.
The FreeBSD Foundation has initiated a project to bolster security in FreeBSD Ports and Packages, commissioned by the Sovereign Tech Agency. Running from April to December 2025, this project is part of a broader strategic initiative to advance Zero Trust builds, SBOM adoption, and CI/CD automation. Key goals include migrating from the VuXML vulnerability database to the industry-standard OSV, improving CI tooling for FreeBSD Ports, and developing a package audit backend. These enhancements aim to speed up release updates and strengthen security measures, with periodic updates shared with the community as the project progresses.
The article discusses the use of OpenZFS as a storage backend for virtual machines, highlighting its reliability and performance benefits. It emphasizes the importance of hardware selection, including the use of enterprise-grade SSDs for long-running workloads and the consideration of write endurance and drive size. The article also covers the significance of pool topology, recommending mirror vdevs for optimal performance. Additionally, it explores the impact of recordsize tuning on performance, suggesting specific values for different workloads.
The latest update to DragonFly BSD introduces new 'proxy' and '-proxy' options for the ifconfig utility. The 'proxy' option is now enabled by default, allowing IPv6 interfaces to respond to neighbor solicitations when forwarding is active. Users can disable this feature with the '-proxy' option, reverting to the previous default behavior. This change, implemented in May, enhances the network configuration capabilities of DragonFly BSD.
Stefan Sperling has identified a bug affecting several network interface drivers in OpenBSD, including bge, bnx, iavf, igc, ix, ixl, ngbe, and pcn. The issue involves calling ifqrestart() without making space on a full Tx ring, potentially causing the interface to get stuck. A fix has been proposed, and testing is requested from the community, especially those with hardware for the affected drivers. The fix involves modifying the code to ensure ifqrestart() is only called when space has been made on the ring. Users are encouraged to test the patch and provide feedback to help integrate the fix into the OpenBSD tree.
FreeBSD is becoming easier to install, configure and use - but how easy is it to upgrade to a newer version?
The Valuable News weekly series provides a summary of news and articles related to UNIX/BSD/Linux systems. This edition includes updates FreeBSD's new ufshci(4) driver, the release of KDE Plasma 6.4, and various other UNIX-related developments.
FreeBSD has introduced kernel modules pkg(8) repositories starting with version 14.3-RELEASE to address issues with kernel module compatibility. Previously, packages were built against older FreeBSD versions, causing kernel panics on newer releases. The new repositories, both for 'quarterly' and 'latest' branches, provide kernel modules built against the correct FreeBSD version. This change is particularly beneficial for desktop/laptop users who experienced issues with graphics drivers. The update process now includes modifying the /etc/pkg/FreeBSD.conf file to use the new repositories, ensuring smoother upgrades and better system stability.
In this episode of BSD Now, host Tom Jones interviews Deb Goodkin and Justin Gibbs from the FreeBSD Foundation.