Adobe Photoshop 2025 Installer Now Working On Linux With Patched Wine

The long-standing barrier between Adobe's professional creative software and the Linux desktop has just been significantly lowered. An independent open-source developer has successfully patched Wine to resolve the final compatibility issues preventing Adobe Creative Cloud installers from running on Linux, enabling both Photoshop 2021 and the newer Photoshop 2025 to install and execute.

The Technical Breakthrough

The core challenge centered around two specific Windows components that Adobe's installers depend on: MSXML3 and MSHTML. These Microsoft libraries handle XML parsing and HTML rendering respectively, and their implementation in Wine has historically been incomplete or buggy. Developer "PhialsBasement" worked through these incompatibilities, creating targeted patches that bridge the gap between Wine's implementation and Adobe's expectations.

The significance here extends beyond just Photoshop. Adobe Creative Cloud serves as the gateway to Adobe's entire suite of creative applications, including Illustrator, Premiere Pro, and After Effects. While this work specifically enables Photoshop installation, successful patches for the Creative Cloud installer framework could potentially unlock the entire Adobe ecosystem for Linux users.

Performance and Stability

Early testing results are remarkably promising. According to the developer's comments, Photoshop 2021 runs "butter smooth" on the patched Wine implementation. The primary limitation reported is drag-and-drop functionality, which the developer attributes to their Wayland compositor setup rather than Wine itself. This suggests the core application rendering and processing pipeline is functioning correctly.

For homelab builders and Linux enthusiasts who rely on Photoshop for photography work, graphic design, or even server-side image processing workflows, this represents a major quality-of-life improvement. The ability to run Photoshop natively on Linux eliminates the need for Windows virtual machines or dual-boot configurations, streamlining workflows for users who prefer Linux as their primary operating system.

The Upstream Path

The patches were initially submitted as a pull request to Valve's downstream Wine repository, which powers Steam Play and Proton for gaming on Linux. However, the request was closed with the recommendation to pursue upstream Wine integration first. This is the correct approach for long-term sustainability—getting patches into WineHQ's main repository ensures they receive proper maintenance and testing across the broader Wine ecosystem.

The developer is now working toward upstreaming these patches to WineHQ's GitLab repository. Once accepted, the fixes will become part of standard Wine releases, benefiting all Linux users without requiring manual patching or special builds.

Current Implementation

While waiting for upstream integration, interested users can access the patched code through the developer's GitHub repository. The repository contains the necessary patches and build instructions for creating a custom Wine build with Adobe Creative Cloud support.

For homelab environments, this opens interesting possibilities. Linux servers running headless or with GPU passthrough could potentially handle Photoshop batch processing tasks, automated image manipulation, or serve as remote rendering nodes. The performance characteristics would depend heavily on the Wine implementation's overhead and the specific workload, but the door is now open for experimentation.

Broader Implications

This development represents another step in the gradual convergence of professional creative software with the Linux platform. While native Linux ports remain the gold standard, Wine compatibility provides a practical bridge for applications that may never see official Linux support. The work demonstrates the ongoing maturation of Wine as a compatibility layer, not just for games but for complex professional applications.

For system builders and homelab enthusiasts, the key takeaway is that the barrier to running Adobe's creative suite on Linux has been substantially reduced. While some edge cases and compatibility quirks may remain, the core installation and execution pipeline is now functional. This makes Linux a more viable platform for creative professionals who need access to Adobe tools while preferring Linux's flexibility and performance characteristics for their primary workflow.

The patches are currently in testing, with the developer actively working to refine them for upstream submission. As the code matures and integrates into Wine proper, expect broader testing and community feedback to further improve the experience. For now, Linux users with a technical inclination can already begin exploring Photoshop 2021 and 2025 on their systems, with the expectation that the setup will only improve as the patches progress through Wine's development pipeline.