Hello TUXEDO fans and open-source enthusiasts!
Before, after a short week, our penguins head off on their Easter egg hunt, they’ve been busy once again. The result? A fresh TUXEDO OS ISO, a new kernel, and an updated driver for the Motorcomm chipset. Our KDE App of the Week features Kaffeine , a media player that handles not only audio and video but also digital TV. And in this week’s tip, we show you how to virtualize distributions with GNOME Boxes — no need for heavyweights like VirtualBox. With that, we wish all customers and friends of TUXEDO a Happy Easter.
Enjoy reading,The TUXEDO OS Team
Note: Our TWIX series keeps you up to date with the latest developments in TUXEDO OS and introduces exciting applications and practical tips about the KDE desktop and TUXEDO OS. But this section isn’t a one-way street—your feedback, ideas, and suggestions for improvement are always welcome! We’ve set up a thread on Reddit where you can reach us directly.
TUXEDO OS Updates
TUXEDO OS ISO (updated)
Powerdevil has been reintegrated into the ISO.
Linux Kernel v6.11.0–112021.2124 .04.1tux1
New kernel released for Ubuntu 24.04 „Noble Numbat“.
tuxedo-yt6801 v1.0.29tux1
Updated version of the driver for the Motorcomm YT6801 LAN chipset.
Fix : Resolves a build issue with certain SUSE system components.Release to the RPM repository coming soon.
KDE App of the Week: Kaffeine – The Versatile Media Player
In the previous edition of the KDE App of the Week, we introduced the minimalist Dragon Player. This week’s candidate is Kaffeine , and it’s anything but minimalist.
Broad Support
Kaffeine is a powerful and user-friendly media player for the KDE desktop environment on Linux. It was specifically designed to integrate with KDE but runs just as smoothly on other desktop environments. Based on the robust libVLC multimedia engine, Kaffeine offers wide support for various audio and video formats.
Kaffeine offers a user-friendly interface, supports DVB reception, and plays nearly all common audio and video formats thanks to libVLC.
Digital Television
What sets Kaffeine apart from many other media players is its support for digital TV (DVB). Kaffeine is one of the few open-source players that comes with built-in support for DVB-T/T2, DVB-C, and DVB-S/S2. With its clear and intuitive interface, users can create channel lists, scan for stations, view EPG (Electronic Program Guide) information, and schedule recordings.
Kaffeine also performs well when playing local media, offering both stability and ease of use. Thanks to libVLC , it can handle nearly all common audio and video formats—from MP4 and MKV to MP3 and FLAC, even DVDs with full menu support. The user interface is clean and seamlessly integrates with KDE Plasma’s design. Playlists are easy to create and manage, and the software can optionally remember the last playback position.
Lightweight on Resources
Another advantage is its low system resource usage. Compared to VLC, Kaffeine is more lightweight, making it a great choice for older hardware or lean Linux distributions. Kaffeine is free software, actively maintained, and available in the package repositories of many Linux distributions.
On TUXEDO OS, Kaffeine is not preinstalled. However, you can easily install it via the Discover app store or from the command line. To install it via the terminal, run:
sudo apt update && sudo apt install kaffeine
TUXEDO OS Tips & Tricks: Virtualization with Boxes
If you’ve ever virtualized an operating system, chances are you’ve used the virtualization software VirtualBox . It supports a wide range of host and guest systems and offers numerous configuration options—but parts of it are proprietary.
Today, we’re introducing GNOME Boxes , a virtualization tool that may offer fewer settings than VirtualBox, but is much quicker to get started with and includes conveniences like a built-in list of downloadable distributions. Boxes is part of the GNOME ecosystem but runs just as well under KDE.
Boxes is a KVM frontend that provides a user environment for the Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) , which is integrated directly into the Linux kernel. It relies on established libraries and tools like Libvirt and QEMU and uses the SPICE protocol to transmit display output and user input between host and guest systems.
Note: To avoid confusion: the software is officially named GNOME Boxes or simply Boxes . In German, it has been translated as Boxen . The Debian package is called gnome-boxes , while the Flatpak version is simply named Boxes .
What Features Does Boxes Offer?
Simple creation and management of virtual machines (VMs): Boxes enables quick setup without requiring deep technical knowledge.
Download many Linux distributions directly from the interface, including Fedora, Ubuntu, Debian, openSUSE, AlmaLinux, Arch Linux, and GNOME OS.
Save and restore snapshots of VMs.
Share USB devices and the clipboard between host and guest (not available in the Flatpak version).
Drag and drop files from the host into the VM.
Set up shared folders between the host system and the VM.
3D acceleration for certain supported systems.
Installation
Boxes is not preinstalled on TUXEDO OS, but it can easily be added—either via the Discover package manager or the command line. In Discover , simply search for boxes , click on the top entry, and choose your preferred package format from the top-right corner. We recommend the native Debian package, as the Flatpak version has some limitations.
To install via the terminal, open a console with CTRL +ALT +T and enter the following command:
sudo apt update && sudo apt install gnome-boxes libvirt-daemon-system
Getting Started
At first launch, Boxes displays a short introduction to guide you through typical use cases. In the main window, you’ll see a prompt to create your first VM using the plus button in the top-right corner. You can either select an existing ISO or download one directly.
Virtualizing an Existing ISO Image
To use an existing ISO image, choose Select a File and provide the path in the file dialog. Under Resources , you can set memory and disk space. Boxes typically offers sensible defaults here.
If an error message indicates that no filesystem was detected: this is normal for many ISOs.
Once you’ve selected your ISO, click Create . You can safely ignore the warning about a missing operating system—this usually applies to non-GNOME-based distros.
After a few seconds, TUXEDO OS will start, ready for live use or installation.
Virtualizing a Downloadable ISO Image
Alternatively, click on Download an Operating System and select a distribution from the extensive list. These always use GNOME as the default desktop, so TUXEDO OS is only available via manual ISO. In this example, we chose Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.
The list of downloadable distributions includes around 200 entries — from Fedora to experimental GNOME versions.
After double-clicking an entry, the download begins in the background. Boxes will only notify you once the download is complete—so please be patient.
Once the download finishes, click Create , and the Ubuntu desktop will appear shortly after.
In the top-right corner of the window, the three-dot menu opens the VM settings, divided into three tabs: Resources , Devices and Sharing , and Snapshots . Under Devices and Sharing , you can configure USB devices and shared folders.
In the settings, you define resources, shares, and devices such as USB sticks or shared directories.
The third tab lets you create snapshots so you can revert to saved states later.
Snapshots let you save the state of your VM and restore it at any time.
It Doesn’t Always Have to Be VirtualBox
Boxes provides all the basic features you’d expect from a virtualization solution. Unlike VirtualBox, it’s fully open-source and built on QEMU and Libvirt. Its built-in list of directly downloadable ISOs is a particularly convenient feature. You can even test GNOME OS with it—an ideal way to explore upcoming versions early.
Ubuntu Security Updates
The following Ubuntu security updates are integrated directly into TUXEDO OS:
LSN-0111–1: Kernel Live Patch Security Notice
USN-7439–1: QuickJS vulnerabilities
USN-7438–1: 7-Zip vulnerabilities
USN-7161–3: Docker vulnerability
USN-7437–1: CImg library vulnerabilities
USN-7436–1: WebKitGTK vulnerabilities
USN-7435–1: Protocol Buffers vulnerability
USN-7434–1: Perl vulnerability
USN-7433–1: GraphicsMagick vulnerabilities
