The Trisquel project has announced the release of Trisquel 12.0, codenamed Ecne. This is a Long Term Support release built on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (Noble Numbat) and will receive security updates until May 2029.

Trisquel 12.0 Ecne release featuring MATE desktop on a fully free GNU/Linux system

Trisquel is one of the few GNU/Linux distributions fully endorsed by the Free Software Foundation. It strips out all proprietary software, drivers, and firmware from its Ubuntu base and ships the Linux-libre kernel in their place. For users who place software freedom above convenience, Trisquel remains one of the most dependable options available.

What’s New in Trisquel 12.0 Ecne

  • APT 3.0 and deb822 repository format. Ecne ships with APT 3.0, which enables full adoption of the modern deb822 repository format. This applies across all installation paths — the graphical Ubiquity installer, the text-based netinstall, Synaptic, and other package management tools.
  • More modular kernel. The team focused on making kernel changes more modular for this release, reducing breakage in udeb components used during installation. Work on updating kernel-wedge continues and is expected to be completed in a future update.
  • AppArmor and LXDE improvements. AppArmor rules for graphical environments have been revised, improving security coverage for everyday desktop use. Trisquel Mini’s LXDE desktop also received upstream improvements — notably, Ubuntu has dropped LXDE from all its official releases, making Trisquel one of its primary maintained homes.
  • New browser options. Both ungoogled-chromium and IceCat are now available alongside the continuously maintained Abrowser, giving users three fully free web browsing options available in the repositories.
  • Backports repository. Popular applications including LibreOffice, yt-dlp, Inkscape, Nextcloud Desktop, Kdenlive, Tuba, 0 A.D., and fastfetch are available in their latest versions through the backports repository.

Available Editions

Trisquel 12.0 ships in five editions:

  • Trisquel — MATE 1.26 desktop, the default edition for home and office use
  • Triskel — KDE Plasma 5.27, for users who prefer deep customization
  • Trisquel Mini — LXDE 0.99.2, lightweight desktop for older hardware and netbooks
  • Trisquel Sugar (TOAST) — Sugar 0.121 learning platform with educational activities for children
  • Netinstall — Command-line installer for servers and advanced users

Supported architectures include amd64, ppc64el, arm64, and armhf. The default kernel is Linux-libre 6.8.x, with 6.14.x available as the Hardware Enablement Stack.

The future of Trisquel

The team has begun initial groundwork for RISC-V architecture support — a promising direction as the free hardware ecosystem expands. This follows the addition of 64-bit ARM and POWER support in Trisquel 11 Aramo.

For those interested in a broader look at FSF-endorsed systems, the Trisquel distribution page on OpenSourceFeed offers background on the project’s history and editions.

Trisquel is a non-profit project. You can support it by becoming a member, donating, or buying from the Trisquel store.

For downloads and further details, see the official Trisquel 12.0 Ecne release announcement.