Armbian 26.02 Released: New Boards, Powered By Linux 6.18 LTS & RISC-V Xfce Desktop

Armbian 26.02 has been released, bringing a significant update to this Debian-derived Linux distribution that focuses on Arm and RISC-V platforms. The new release moves to the Linux 6.18 LTS kernel and adds several new board supports while expanding desktop options for RISC-V systems.

The headline feature of Armbian 26.02 is the upgrade to Linux 6.18 LTS, providing users with the latest stable kernel that includes performance improvements, hardware support enhancements, and security updates. This kernel update is particularly important for Arm and RISC-V platforms, where driver support and hardware compatibility continue to evolve rapidly.

New Board Support

Armbian 26.02 expands its hardware compatibility with support for several new boards:

• SpacemiT MusePi Pro - A development board featuring SpacemiT's KX-6000 series RISC-V processors
• Radxa Rock 4D - An upgrade to the Rock 4 series with enhanced specifications
• Orange Pi RV2 - A new RISC-V based single-board computer from Orange Pi
• ODROID M2 - Hardkernel's latest offering in their popular ODROID line

These additions join the existing support for Allwinner and Rockchip platforms, which have also received improvements in this release. The expanded board support demonstrates Armbian's commitment to covering the growing ecosystem of Arm and RISC-V hardware.

Desktop Environment Updates

On the desktop front, Armbian 26.02 restores KDE Neon desktop builds, which had been absent in previous releases. More notably, the distribution now offers RISC-V Xfce desktop support, marking a significant step forward for RISC-V desktop computing. Xfce provides a lightweight yet functional desktop environment that works well on the typically resource-constrained RISC-V hardware.

Technical Improvements

Beyond the headline features, Armbian 26.02 includes dozens of fixes and other improvements across the distribution. These encompass better hardware support, enhanced system stability, and various optimizations for both Arm and RISC-V platforms.

Download and Documentation

The Armbian 26.02 release is available now through the official Armbian website at Armbian.com, where users can find downloads, documentation, and community support for their specific hardware configurations.

This release represents Armbian's continued evolution as a key player in the Arm and RISC-V Linux ecosystem, providing a stable, Debian-based foundation for developers, hobbyists, and professionals working with these architectures.