Linux Mint is a particularly popular distribution that is often highly recommended to Windows users who want to experience Linux. In May of this year, we learned that the successor to Linux Mint 22.1 Xia would be named Linux Mint 22.2 Zara. Subsequent beta versions brought native fingerprint login support, better themes, Wayland fixes, and a more "comfortable" desktop. Now, Linux Mint 22.2 Zara is officially released.
As expected, Linux Mint 22.2 is a long-term support (LTS) release, supported until 2029. This version includes a number of improvements, such as rounded corners for sticky notes and now compatibility with Wayland and the Android companion app StyncyNotes. The login screen supports user avatars and adds blur effects to panels and dialogs. In addition, IPTV streaming app Hypnotix adds a new cinema mode and bezel-less mode, and improves the performance and behavior of the volume slider.
As mentioned earlier, native fingerprint login support is now available through Fingwit XApp. Additionally, libAdwaita has been patched to be compatible with the theme. The gnome-calendar, simple-scan and baobab apps have been upgraded to their respective libAdwaita versions, while the XDG Desktop Portal XApp supports accent colors.
There have also been many enhancements to other XApps, themes, the presentation of blue in themes, artwork, and more. The Software Manager welcome screen has also been improved, and the Apps page now includes an "Information" button that explains the difference between Flatpak packages and system packages.
There are also some known issues in this release, but you can see available workarounds in the release notes here. Note that Linux Mint 22.2 leverages Linux kernel 6.14 and the Ubuntu Noble package base. Developers will continue to work on this foundation until 2026, meaning any subsequent versions of Mint before then should be very easy to upgrade. Finally, it’s important to note that since Linux Mint 22.2 Zara is an LTS release, security updates will continue to be available until 2029.