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ZDNET’s key takeaways

• Silverblue and Kinoite are atomic/immutable Linux distributions.
• Silverblue uses GNOME, while Kinoite uses KDE Plasma.
• Both are highly secure and reliable desktop operating systems.

Immutable Linux distributions are slowly becoming more popular. Given the rise in discovered vulnerabilities, any additional security you can get is a bonus.

For those who don’t know, an immutable Linux distribution is one that mounts certain directories, such as /usr, /var, and /etc, as read-only so they cannot be changed. That’s a good thing.

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The developers of Fedora Linux understand this and have developed a distribution called Silverblue. From that distribution came Kinoite. 

What’s the difference?

As I’ve said, these are both immutable, so the underpinnings are the same. The differences lie on the desktop side. Let’s dive in and see which one of these is best suited for you.

What is Fedora Kinoite?

Fedora Kinoite is the atomic/immutable Fedora distribution dedicated to KDE Plasma. You get the same immutable base (and the atomic updates), but with a more traditional desktop environment on top. Of course, KDE Plasma is much more than a “traditional” desktop. After all, this is Linux, and Linux doesn’t always follow the rules.

Why KDE Plasma?

One of the reasons why KDE Plasma is so popular is that it doesn’t require users coming from Windows to think too hard to work with the desktop. There’s a bottom panel, a desktop menu, a system tray, quick launch icons… all of the things you’re used to on a desktop.

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KDE Plasma is still Linux, so it’s highly customizable. Without much effort, you can make the desktop look and feel exactly how you want. Or, you can leave it as is and just enjoy all of the beauty that comes with the default settings.

I could end it there, simply by saying it’s immutable Fedora with a KDE Plasma desktop, but that’s no fun.

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Let me talk about why I think KDE Plasma and immutable Fedora make a great pair.

When you open KDE Discover (the KDE Plasma app store), you can search for any apps you’d like to install. But this is where it could get tricky (especially if you’re curious). 

Let’s say you want to install LibreOffice. You can search for LibreOffice and click the install button. The installation will happen, even without you having to type your user password. If you look closely at the settings, however, you’ll find that Flathub isn’t enabled by default, so LibreOffice is installed from the Fedora repositories. That sparked my curiosity, so I opened the terminal window and typed:

rpm -qa libreoffice

Nothing.

Next, I ran the list option with Flatpak like so:

flatpak list

There it was: org.libreoffice.LibreOffice.

Even though Flathub wasn’t enabled by default, KDE Discover installed Flatpak apps from the Fedora repository. I then downloaded the RPM files to install LibreOffice, only to find that /usr/share/rpm was locked.

I then enabled Flathub in KDE Discover > Settings > Add Flathub. Once that was taken care of, the list of available apps grew exponentially.

Because this is an immutable distribution, apps must be installed via containers (such as Flatpak); otherwise, those directories that are mounted read-only would have to be mounted with write permissions, thereby defeating the purpose of immutability.

What this does is give you a KDE Plasma experience that is far more secure than it might otherwise be. If you’ve ever compared Flatpak apps against native apps (such as Fedora .rpm), you know that 1) the installation takes a bit longer and 2) apps don’t start quite as quickly.

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Is the added security worth the extra time? It most certainly is. And because KDE Plasma is already a fast and efficient desktop, the extra time is negligible. 

Who is Fedora Kinoite for?

Fedora Kinoite is for anyone who wants the KDE Plasma desktop but would also enjoy the added benefit of an immutable distribution. Easy peasy.

Oh, but there’s more. Because of how Fedora’s immutable distributions are created, you can do what’s called “rebasing,” which essentially allows you to switch between versions. Let’s say you’d like to try COSMIC desktop. You could do that with the command:

rpm-ostree rebase fedora:fedora/44/x86_64/cosmic-atomic

The process takes a bit of time, but it’s pretty cool. When it completes, reboot with the command systemctl reboot, and you’ll be greeted by the COSMIC desktop.

But we’re talking about KDE Plasma, so you might not want to rebase until you’ve given the default desktop plenty of time.

What is Fedora Silverblue?

Silverblue is to GNOME what Kinoite is to KDE Plasma. However, Kinoite is not a rebase of Silverblue. However, you could rebase Silverblue to KDE Plasma if you wanted, but if you want to do that, just go with Kinoite.

Confused yet?

Don’t be. All you have to do is remember that Fedora Silverblue is the atomic/immutable version with the GNOME desktop.

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Why GNOME?

If you prefer your desktops to be minimal and get out of your way, then GNOME is what you want. GNOME isn’t for everyone. If you like the typical Windows layout, you’ll find GNOME to be problematic. Yes, you can install GNOME extensions to make it a bit more Windows-like (or very Windows-like if you prefer), but GNOME is all about simplicity, and it achieves that quite well.

Silverblue enjoys all of the bells and whistles found in Kinoite, so you get the immutable file system for security and the atomic updates (which ensure that if there’s a problem with an update, the system will not proceed, so Linux always works). 

There is one difference. With Silverblue, you don’t have to enable Flathub support in the app store. When you go to install an application, you can select between the Fedora and the Flathub repositories out of the box. That’s an important distinction, especially for those who don’t want to have to take the extra steps to add Flathub repositories.

Who is Silverblue for?

With Silverblue, you get the immutable file system, atomic upgrades, GNOME desktop (and everything that comes with it), as well as the Flathub repositories enabled by default.

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To that end, Silverblue is for those who want a minimal desktop that gets out of their way, want the added security and reliability of an atomic/immutable OS, and don’t want to have to set up the app store to pull apps from the Flathub repositories.

Which is right for you?

In the end, it boils down to this: Do you want the KDE Plasma desktop or the GNOME desktop? Make that choice, and you’ll know exactly which version is right for you. Either way you go, you’ll get the same reliable/secure OS with the speed and power of Fedora Linux.