Introduction

Fedora’s beta releases offer one of the earliest glimpses into the next major version of the distribution — letting users and developers poke, test, and report issues before the final version ships. With Fedora 43 Beta, released on September 16, 2025, the community begins the final stretch toward the stable Fedora 43.

This beta is largely feature-complete: developers hope it will closely match what the final release looks like (barring last-minute fixes). The goal is to surface regression bugs, UX issues, and compatibility problems before Fedora 43 is broadly adopted.

Release & Availability

The Fedora Project published the beta across multiple editions and media — Workstation, KDE Plasma, Server, IoT, Cloud, and spins/labs where applicable. ISO images are available for download from the official Fedora servers.

Users already running Fedora 42 can upgrade via the DNF system-upgrade mechanism. Some spins (e.g. Mate or i3) are not fully available across all architectures yet.

Because it’s a beta, users should be ready to encounter bugs. Fedora encourages testers to file issues via the QA mailing list or Fedora’s issue tracking infrastructure.

Major New Features & Changes

Fedora 43 Beta brings many updates under the hood — some in visible user features, others in core tooling and system behavior.

• Fedora 43 Beta is built on Linux kernel 6.17.

• The Workstation edition features GNOME 49.

• In a bold shift, Fedora removes GNOME X11 packages for the Workstation, making Wayland-only the default and only session for GNOME. Existing users are migrated to Wayland.

• On KDE, Fedora 43 Beta ships with KDE Plasma 6.4 in the Plasma edition.

• Fedora’s Anaconda installer gets a WebUI by default for all Spins, providing a more unified and modern install experience across desktop variants.

• The installer now uses DNF5 internally, phasing out DNF4 which is now in maintenance mode.

• Auto-updates are enabled by default in Fedora Kinoite, ensuring that systems apply updates seamlessly in the background with minimal user intervention.

• The Python version in Fedora 43 Beta moves to 3.14, an early adoption to catch bugs before the upstream release.

• Go (Golang) is updated to version 1.25, which brings new features such as built-in leak detection for go build -asan and more module root flexibility.

• Updates to the GNU toolchain (GCC, glibc, binutils, debugger) aim to keep core compile and runtime tools fresh and secure.

• Build processes for Fedora CoreOS now use a Containerfile standard instead of custom assembler tooling, simplifying builds using Podman.

Desktop & UI Highlights

The Fedora 43 Beta introduces several noticeable changes for user experience.

• With GNOME 49 and the shift to Wayland-only, users will notice UI responsiveness and display behavior that differ from X11.

• The default fallback for monospace fonts is now fixed, avoiding unpredictable font substitution or abrupt changes when a monospace font is unavailable.

• Fedora 43 Beta includes a new wallpaper, inspired by Sally Ride, in a day/night version.

System & Backend Enhancements

Under the hood, Fedora 43 Beta refines how the system is built, packaged, and updated.

• RPM, the package manager, moves toward RPM 6.0, which improves signature security (e.g. fingerprint-based references instead of short IDs), and support for multiple signatures or newer key formats.

• RPM macros are being enhanced to support package-specific build flags more cleanly.

• Fedora is deprecating the “gold” linker (a variant of binutils linker) to streamline the linking toolset.

• Legacy bindings (e.g. python-nose, certain gtk-rs versions) are being retired to reduce maintenance burden and encourage migration to actively supported tooling.

• Fedora CoreOS’s build pipeline now uses standard container images, improving reproducibility.

What’s Been Removed or Deprecated

Fedora 43 Beta is making some bold moves:

• GNOME’s X11 support is removed: users of GNOME must use Wayland.

• The python-nose testing library is being retired; new packages should prefer maintained test frameworks.

• Older gtk-rs/gtk-rs-core/gtk4-rs versions are being dropped.

• Gold linker deprecation: the gold variant of linker is being phased out.

These changes reflect Fedora’s ongoing effort to reduce legacy baggage and maintain a cleaner platform for future development.

What Testers & Users Should Focus On

Because this is a Beta, careful testing is critical. Here are areas that especially need validation:

• Display, graphics & Wayland behavior: test GPU drivers (NVIDIA, AMD, Intel), multi-monitor setups, fractional scaling, and performance regressions.

• Input & UI workflows: keyboard layout shifts, window management, and desktop responsiveness.

• Upgrade paths: upgrading from Fedora 42 to 43 Beta must work without breaking user configurations.

• Build & compile tooling: projects, especially those with C/C++, should compile and run correctly under new GCC, glibc, and toolchain versions.

• Package installs & dependency resolution: new package macro behavior and RPM changes may uncover broken or outdated dependencies.

• CoreOS builds, if relevant, should validate container image builds and integration.

• Migration of Spins: test spins (XFCE, LXDE, etc.) especially those where web-installer or UI transitions may differ.

If bugs are found, testers should report them through Fedora’s QA channels, such as the Fedora QA mailing list or the #quality:fedoraproject.org Matrix room.

Because Beta versions are meant for testing, they are not recommended for production or mission-critical systems.

Expected Timeline & Next Steps

Fedora 43’s final release is targeted for late October 2025, with possible delays pushing it into November 11 if necessary.

Over the coming weeks, Fedora developers will sift through bug reports, stabilize performance, and refine user experience changes based on community feedback. Once Beta stabilizes and no blocking issues remain, the release candidate (RC) builds may emerge, followed by a final compose.

Community testing and issue reporting in the Beta window can significantly influence how polished the final Fedora 43 becomes.

Conclusion

Fedora 43 Beta is a strong milestone in Fedora’s evolution: it introduces a modern installer, pushes forward Wayland-only for GNOME, updates core languages and toolchains, and begins trimming legacy support. It’s an invitation to developers and enthusiasts to help shape what becomes Fedora 43.