This cycle is defined by the launch of the armbian/external packaging pipeline, broad kernel and U-Boot version bumps across platforms, and substantial desktop and repository infrastructure work.
The new armbian/external repository establishes a dedicated build and mirror pipeline for third-party software, with tooling for dependency checks, parallel sync, incremental uploads, and a package site published at external.armbian.com. Initial payloads include charsiu for the RK3576 NPU, developer tools such as claude-code, codex, grok-cli, Zed, and a GitHub CLI build for riscv64, alongside a full Armbian Hyprland shell derived from the Omarchy port with companion packages for snapper snapshots, encrypted-root first boot, and Hyprland 0.57.0 titlebars. A new update-manager for Armbian has also been built and promoted to stable.
Kernel and bootloader work advanced across the lineup: edge kernels moved to 7.3.1 for qcs6490, qrb2210, sc8280xp, and mvebu, while the imx8m family moved to 7.3 and rockchip64 bleedingedge advanced to 7.4-rc1. Mainline U-Boot v2026.10 landed on Orange Pi 5, NanoPi M5, Mekotronics R58-4x4, Banana Pi M2, and Youyeetoo YY3588/R1. Platform fixes include RK3588 vendor-next CPU frequency scaling, RK356x HDMI fractional PLL and HDMI 2.0 scrambling for 4K@60, Rockchip64 runtime PM backports for 6.18, SpacemiT K1 fixes for the JPU driver and U-Boot vprintf overflow, and new board support for Torder R10D, Orange Pi A31s, DEBIX Model A, and Orange Pi 5 Ultra WiFi. Security coverage expanded with per-run kernel CVE patch selection in CI and Claude-assisted backports for 6.1 and 6.12.
On the desktop and repository side, Hyprland was added as a supported desktop with tiered package lists and a dedicated forky/sid x86 image, KDE Plasma gained persistent branding and Discover integration, and GNOME received Numix icons, a Ptyxis-based dock, and an Armbian wallpaper on the GDM login screen. The repository update workflow was rebuilt to separate incoming, beta, and stable flows, publish from configuration files, coordinate copies with live CI uploads, and consume external packages from the new pipeline. Imager received Windows flash fixes and AppImage repacking cleanup, and armbian-install gained btrfs @ subvolume creation, SPI image selection by install target, and UFS rootfs handling.
#armbian #embeddedlinux #rockchip #uboot #hyprland
Changes
- Add a dependency check: blocking in pull requests, daily report. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#14
- Add ArmSoM 40-pin header diagrams for eight boards. by @as-jackson in armbian/armbian.github.io#547
- Add ArmSoM Sige6 and Sige7S board images. by @as-jackson in armbian/armbian.github.io#551
- Add ArmSoM Sige7S, CM7S, AIM7 and CM5 schematics. by @as-jackson in armbian/armbian.github.io#546
- Add charsiu: LLM runtime for the RK3576 NPU. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#18
- Add claude-code, codex and grok-cli. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#30
- Add community support for Torder R10D (RK3566). by @JasonYANG170 in armbian/build#11168
- Add DEBIX Model A board assets. by @HeyMeco in armbian/armbian.github.io#535
- Add DEBIX Model C board assets. by @HeyMeco in armbian/armbian.github.io#549
- Add extpkg: fetch external packages. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#1
- Add gh-riscv64: GitHub CLI for riscv64. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#42
- Add Orange Pi A31s, move Banana Pi M2 to U-Boot v2026.10. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11253
- Add tools/compare-incoming.py. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#6
- AP6611S on Linux 7.3: build with BCMDHD_DTS, fix duplicate cipher suites, pass firmware paths. by @a1ext in armbian/bcmdhd-dkms#15
- arm64: dts: rockchip: add Torder R10D support. by @JasonYANG170 in armbian/linux-rockchip#612
- armbian-config: launcher icon from the hicolor theme. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1093
- armbian-firstlogin: set the SDDM session and last user. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11247
- armbian-hyprland-shell: About and channel for Armbian. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#33
- armbian-hyprland-shell: bat and fd with the Arch names. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#45
- armbian-hyprland-shell: boot and restore snapper snapshots. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#44
- armbian-hyprland-shell: first boot on an encrypted root. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#50
- armbian-install: create the btrfs root subvolume @. by @BKPepe in armbian/configng#1080
- armbian-install: fix spi, sd and in-use disks on boards like the Turris Omnia. by @BKPepe in armbian/configng#1079
- armbian-install: keep the UFS rootfs clear of u-boot.itb. by @SuperKali in armbian/configng#1092
- armbian-plymouth-theme: keep the Armbian watermark in the initramfs. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11230
- ayn-odin3: quiet the cooling fan. by @kasimling in armbian/build#11254
- board-images, board-vendor-logos: add Bobcat 29X. by @nmaiorsky in armbian/armbian.github.io#532
- board: Add debix-model-a (imx8m). by @HeyMeco in armbian/build#11196
- board: hinlink-h68k: fix both 1G Ethernet ports. by @karora in armbian/build#11251
- bsp: do not start profile-sync-daemon for root. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11274
- bsp: set up psd overlay mode and sudo only for psd 6.x. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11272
- Build mesa from the Tegra X1 branch, with libdrm. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#21
- Build packages from source (method: build). by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#20
- Build Software Updater (update-manager) for Armbian. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#28
- build: add once and openclaw. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#37
- build: add sunshine. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#40
- build: add umu-launcher. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#38
- build: add winetricks, omazed and omarchy-emacs. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#36
- build: add zed-editor (Zed). by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#39
- build: compare dry runs with the last live run. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#31
- Build: stop a cancelled run. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#24
- chore(deps): clear cargo audit and fix the AppImage repack. by @SuperKali in armbian/imager#236
- ci: select kernel CVE fixes per run. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/ci#106
- ci: unit tests: pass the dispatch test list as JSON. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1097
- ci: unit tests: use beta.armbian.com. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1095
- cli: add mtd-utils to the minimal package list. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11270
- complete-artifact-matrix: wait for the repository copy before uploading. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/ci#107
- cve: Claude backports for 4 CVEs on 6.1 and 6.12. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/cve#225
- desktops: add Hyprland. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1091
- desktops: Armbian wallpaper on the GDM login screen. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1084
- desktops: disable systemd-networkd-wait-online on NetworkManager. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1096
- desktops: drop the desktop-base logo copy for the Plymouth boot splash. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1085
- desktops: give psd time to copy browser profiles back. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1103
- desktops: GNOME dock with Ptyxis, neutral Ptyxis colors. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1087
- desktops: Hyprland on Debian forky and sid is the Omarchy port. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1094
- desktops: Hyprland: basic shell tools in the minimal tier. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1100
- desktops: Hyprland: Docker in minimal for the firewall setup. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1101
- desktops: Hyprland: full tier lists the Omarchy packages, no Recommends. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1098
- desktops: hyprland: install the docker command. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1104
- desktops: install update-manager on all desktops but Hyprland and KDE Plasma. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1105
- desktops: install without Recommends unless the YAML asks for them. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1099
- desktops: KDE Plasma branding that survives the first login. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1089
- desktops: network-manager-applet on Debian forky and sid. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1090
- desktops: Numix icon theme as the GNOME default. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1088
- desktops: split docs into Supported and Community. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1102
- desktops: Terminator without the inner title bar, more transparency. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1086
- desktops: wallpapers with the current Armbian logo. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1083
- Do not mirror debug packages. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#12
- docs: compare builds with a Launchpad PPA. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#23
- docs: package site moves to external.armbian.com. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#26
- docs: show the album instead of the section image. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1108
- Document KERNEL_CVE_PATCHES. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/documentation#1716
- dshanpi-a1-cm5: enable the NPU on rockchip64-7.3. by @sckiyo in armbian/build#11203
- dshanpi-r1: match the serialcon boot.cmd template. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11233
- dts: add Orange Pi 5 Ultra WiFi support. by @pdapandapda in armbian/build#11283
- edk2-qualcomm: check the Radxa Dragon Q8B package too. by @SuperKali in armbian/external#22
- extensions: apply armbian/cve kernel security fixes. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11166
- extlinux: no splash arguments without Plymouth. by @frederic-mahe in armbian/build#11256
- extpkg: next build number when changed inputs reuse a version. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#49
- fastfetch: revision 2 for the new Debian packaging. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#48
- Fetch apt indexes by hash; avoid the word "upload" in logs. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#10
- Fix a race when two architectures place one _all.deb. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#3
- Fix build on Linux 7.4. by @EvilOlaf in armbian/rtl8723ds#26
- Fix build on Linux 7.4. by @EvilOlaf in armbian/wifi-rtl8852bs#31
- Fix the configs that the dependency check found broken. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#16
- fix(flash): flash images with a partial last sector on Windows. by @SuperKali in armbian/imager#234
- fix(ui): read the tip of the day from the featured feed. by @SuperKali in armbian/imager#235
- FUNDING: drop Open Collective. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/.github#3
- getting-started: document flashing SpacemiT boards with TitanFlasher. by @leoppark94 in armbian/documentation#1699
- grub: larger menu font on HiDPI panels. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11223
- helios64: u-boot: set the SD I/O domain in SPL. by @iav in armbian/build#11206
- Hyprland desktop: armbian-hyprland-shell (Omarchy port) and companion packages. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#29
- images: build forky, refresh the GitHub CLI key each run. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/docker-armbian-build#45
- imx8m: move edge to 7.3 for the whole family. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11287
- install: select the SPI image by install target. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1070
- kde-plasma: install System Settings, Discover and its update notifier. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/configng#1106
- kernel-headers: drop CC_HAS_MIN_FUNCTION_ALIGNMENT if target gcc lacks it. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11202
- kernel/qcs6490: enable the QSEE fTPM on edge and vendor. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11218
- kernel: fix false test_fortify failures in 6.18, 7.2 and 7.3. by @BKPepe in armbian/build#11212
- kernel: rk35xx vendor: enable beeper inputs and TLV320AIC31xx codec. by @mingzhangqun in armbian/build#11210
- kernel: rk35xx vendor: enable PCF85063 RTC driver. by @mingzhangqun in armbian/build#11197
- mainline: bump to 7.4-rc2. by @EvilOlaf in armbian/build#11284
- media: i2c: add GalaxyCore GC02M0 and GC02M1 support. by @JasonYANG170 in armbian/linux-rockchip#609
- mekotronics-r58-4x4: switching to u-boot 2026.10. by @150balbes in armbian/build#11217
- meson64-7.3, rockchip64-7.3: drop the stmmac irq-shut patch. by @iav in armbian/build#11193
- mirror: Install menu apps (Claude, 1Password, Brave, Heroic). by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#34
- mirror: Install menu apps from vendor repositories; extpkg key fixes. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#35
- mvebu: bump edge to 7.3. by @BKPepe in armbian/build#11200
- mvebu: disable the ATSHA204A driver. by @BKPepe in armbian/build#11189
- Name url downloads after their version. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#19
- nanopi-m5: bump mainline U-Boot to v2026.10. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11235
- net-network-manager: fix desktop packages on forky and sid. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11246
- Nightly: build Debian trixie and Ubuntu resolute minimal only. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#533
- nvidia: add Tegra210 nvdec/nvenc firmware. by @vidplace7 in armbian/firmware#157
- odroidu2: fix false test_fortify failures with colored diagnostics. by @BKPepe in armbian/build#11205
- omarchy-hyprland-titlebars: rebuild for Hyprland 0.57.0. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#46
- orangepi5-ultra: register KingFalse as maintainer. by @KingFalse in armbian/build#11277
- orangepi5: bump uboot version to v2026.10. by @EvilOlaf in armbian/build#11255
- overlays: support prefix lists on Allwinner, Meson64, Sophgo, SpacemiT. by @lukaszsobala in armbian/build#11161
- Package site on GitHub Pages. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#25
- profile-sync-daemon: build 8.0 for forky and resolute. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#47
- qcs6490: move vendor to Radxa 7.0.11 and edge to Linux 7.3.1. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11207
- qrb2210: bump edge kernel to Linux 7.3.1. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11231
- radxa-dragon-q8b: drop BSP firmware that armbian-firmware-full ships. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11199
- radxa-dragon-q8b: install EDK2 and update the SPI NOR from armbian-install. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11216
- README: add package pipeline diagram. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#32
- release-targets: add Debian forky Hyprland image for uefi-x86. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#548
- Remove old versions after a successful upload. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#4
- repo.sh: keep only the newest packages, add packages in batches. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11208
- repository update: build branch input, kernel versions to keep. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#538
- repository update: copy only x86 and arm64 edge kernels. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#543
- repository update: copy stable kernels from a config file. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#407
- repository update: do not copy from incoming while CI uploads. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#540
- repository update: fail stable copy when cp fails. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#552
- repository update: fix beta permissions like stable. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#541
- repository update: keep the beta repository between runs. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#539
- repository update: keep the external file list out of the step summary. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#536
- repository update: manual input to publish stable now. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#542
- repository update: move generic packages from incoming into storage. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#406
- repository update: remove only copied cron files, as root. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#537
- repository update: take external packages from armbian/external. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#534
- repository update: warn on a missing stable kernel image. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#553
- repository: copy all edge kernels and x86 current to stable. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#545
- Revert "rootfs: key desktop cache on configng and install that commit (#11228)". by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11237
- rk3568: add 780MHz LPDDR3 DDR v1.10. by @JasonYANG170 in armbian/rkbin#54
- rk3588: vendor-next: fix CPU frequency scaling (thermal zone, OPP mask). by @lukaszsobala in armbian/linux-rockchip#608
- rk35xx: keep systemd-executor off ttyGS0 gadget TTY. by @mingzhangqun in armbian/build#11184
- rockchip64-7.3: ROCK Pi 4: SD UHS-I (SDR104). by @iav in armbian/build#11195
- rockchip64: add 164.82MHz fractional PLL rate for RK356x HDMI. by @nk-ctrl in armbian/build#11264
- rockchip64: backport runtime PM fixes for Linux 6.18. by @lch08 in armbian/build#11187
- rockchip64: bump
bleedingedgeto 7.4-rc1. by @EvilOlaf in armbian/build#11198 - rockchip64: dw-hdmi-qp: add HDMI 2.0 scrambling for 4K@60. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11188
- rockchip64: let armbian-install select the SPI image by install target. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11087
- rockchip64: update dw-rockchip system suspend to v8. by @iav in armbian/build#11225
- rootfs: key desktop cache on configng and install that commit. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11228
- rtl88x2cs: bump driver to e12226b6 (2026-11-06). by @adeepn in armbian/build#11245
- Run Sync every 2 hours; remove files of disabled and deleted configs. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#17
- sc8280xp: move edge to Linux 7.3.1. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11214
- site: show Architecture: all builds for every arch. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#41
- Skip unchanged files without a hash; check Code and Edge again. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#13
- SpacemiT K1: jpu: fix dangling class name (3-minute boot stall). by @frederic-mahe in armbian/build#11248
- SpacemiT K1: jpu: Fix module compilation and export missing symbols. by @pyavitz in armbian/build#11267
- SpacemiT K1: U-Boot: fix vprintf() overflow with PRINT_TIMESTAMP. by @frederic-mahe in armbian/build#11259
- spacemit: raise U-Boot CONFIG_SYS_CBSIZE to 1024. by @frederic-mahe in armbian/build#11257
- Speed up Sync: index cache, parallel upload streams, no disk cleanup. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#11
- Split the docs; add a guide and a Claude skill to add a package. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#2
- Status: drop the utility packages table. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/documentation#1725
- Status: move third-party packages to external.armbian.com. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/documentation#1724
- sun60iw2: orangepizero3w: fix USB-C DP-alt on DP+USB sinks (combophy CMN PLL1 clock). by @chufleco in armbian/build#11211
- sunxi-7.3: forward-port KickPi K2B V2 OPP and MAE0621 RGMII delay fixes. by @Novice-PG in armbian/build#11262
- sunxi64: nanopi-neo-plus2: add cpu-supply to fix freezes under load. by @emanuele-f in armbian/build#11232
- thinkpad-x13s: switch to
BRANCH=edge; many fixes. by @rpardini in armbian/build#11221 - turris-omnia: add omnia-mcutool and the MCU firmware. by @BKPepe in armbian/build#11190
- u-boot sunxi64: fix PCIe enumeration behind a PCIe switch (Cubie A5E). by @serg987 in armbian/build#11226
- u-boot sunxi64: try the NVMe boot target before PXE and DHCP. by @serg987 in armbian/build#11227
- uefi-x86 desktop: clean splash from GRUB to the desktop. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11224
- uefi-x86: edge: restore sound drivers. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11243
- uefi-x86: fix the Goodix 27C6:01EA touchpad. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/build#11220
- unisocwifi: fix build on Linux 7.4. by @EvilOlaf in armbian/uwe5622#29
- unisocwifi: skip non-IP addresses in the multicast filter. by @materko in armbian/uwe5622#30
- update-manager: publish to stable. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#51
- update-manager: ship a hicolor icon. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#52
- Upload while downloading, and send each file once. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#7
- why: tell whether a CVE is covered, and if not, why. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/cve#212
- workflows: stop using the archived armbian/os repository. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/armbian.github.io#544
- Workflows: use the Node 24 versions of cache and upload-artifact. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#9
- Write the sync status on the server for the repository update. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/external#8
- x13s: drop old qcom/sc8280xp/LENOVO/21BX/qcvss8280.mbn as it's now in upstream linux-firmware. by @rpardini in armbian/firmware#158
- youyeetoo: move YY3588 and R1 V3 to U-Boot v2026.10. by @SuperKali in armbian/build#11219
Automaticrefresh repository README. by @igorpecovnik in armbian/rtl8723ds#25
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