Linux 6.18 Will Further Complicate Non-Gpl Out-of-Tree File-Systems

Posted4 months agoActive4 months ago

xenophonf

9 points

3 comments

phoronix.comTechstory

calmnegative

Debate

20/100

LinuxFile SystemsOpenzfsBcachefs

Key topics

Linux

File Systems

Openzfs

Bcachefs

The upcoming Linux 6.18 kernel changes will complicate non-GPL out-of-tree file systems like OpenZFS, sparking concerns among users about the implications for their preferred Linux distributions and file system choices.

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01Story posted
Sep 12, 2025 at 7:44 AM EDT
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Discussion (3 comments)

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dmm

4 months ago

1 reply

I've been following bachefs development for a while and supporting Kent on patreon so Bcachefs losing its mainline, supported status broke my heart a little. My home storage has always been under ZFS but being out-of-tree and requiring old kernels is increasingly annoying for me. It's basically the only reason I still use Debian, all my other systems are Fedora at this point.

Also, I hit one of the zfs native encryption send/receive bugs after it came out. It was clearly a rushed feature and made me question the future of zfs maintenance.

My plans have now changed to btrfs and I'm taking the opportunity to create a rock-solid and thoroughly tested backup/restore strategy. Wish me luck!

xenophonfAuthor

4 months ago

I've long been a ZFS stan, but I am slowing coming around to the idea that I probably won't be able to continue using it at even the small scales I have planned. It's a damned shame.

evanjrowley

4 months ago

What will the reaction be from Canonical, iXsystems, NixOS, and Proxmox? I choose my Linux platforms based on their support for OpenZFS. Everything else at the moment is just a disadvantaged compromise.

The outlooks seems bleak because of 1) last week's news of a potential successor, Bcachefs, moving to being externally maintained; 2) one of the Btrfs maintainers stepping down.

https://www.phoronix.com/news/Bcachefs-Externally-Maintained

https://www.phoronix.com/news/Josef-Bacik-Leaves-Meta

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ID: 45221097Type: storyLast synced: 11/17/2025, 6:15:59 PM

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