Spaced Linux 9.26 has been released. Spaced Linux is a desktop Linux distribution based on Devuan's "Unstable" branch and featuring the MATE desktop environment with the Compiz compositing window manager. "Spaced Linux 9.26 is a major production release focused on upgrade reliability, graphics-driver recovery, desktop startup resilience, signed package delivery, and substantially stronger automated release validation. System updates and upgrade reliability: reworked Spaced Update to handle complete operating system upgrades more safely and predictably; added a dedicated APT transaction guard so package changes are protected during the actual locked package-management operation rather than only during preliminary checks; improved handling of package refreshes, native package upgrades, Flatpak updates, release-marker changes, and error reporting; added explicit testing for upgrades from earlier Spaced Linux installations to reduce the chance of regressions affecting existing users; added package-payload validation to confirm that the packages delivered by the production repository match the expected release; added release-identity checks so the built ISO, installed release metadata, package repository, and release version cannot silently drift apart...."