Framework Sponsors CachyOS

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Real‑world experiences with CachyOS & Framework hardware

  • Multiple users report good results running CachyOS on Framework laptops and desktops, especially for gaming (Steam/Proton), with small but noticeable FPS gains and “snappy” responsiveness.
  • On Framework 13 AMD, proton-cachyos is recommended for significantly faster shader compilation, but can stress CPUs hard and expose unstable overclocks.
  • Some users note good sleep/wake behavior and low idle power on Framework Desktops; others ask about battery life and scaling on laptops, which remains largely unaddressed in the thread.

Gaming, Proton, and desktop environments

  • Most games work fine via Proton; Battle.net can be run either directly via Steam+Proton or via Lutris configured to use proton-cachyos.
  • Conflicting reports on KDE Plasma: some find it stable for gaming, others see frequent glitches (e.g., disappearing dock) and switch to tiling WMs (Sway, Hyprland) or GNOME.
  • Debate over Wayland vs X11: some claim X11 (e.g., Cinnamon) is still better for gaming; others report solid Wayland performance including VRR and HDR. Steam Deck is mentioned as using a Wayland compositor but often via XWayland.

Stability and update issues

  • A few users report CachyOS installs running smoothly long term; others hit unbootable systems during an Arch-wide linux-firmware split/update, often recoverable but sometimes leading to reinstall.
  • Omarchy-on-Cachy scripts are mentioned as unmaintained and brittle.

Framework’s sponsorship strategy & finances

  • Sponsorship here is described as providing a Framework Laptop 16 plus a $250/month donation; overall 2025 OSS sponsorship is stated as ~$225k, a small fraction of revenue.
  • Framework positions this as marketing and ecosystem investment, driven by what their customers actually run (Arch derivatives, Debian, Fedora/Bazzite, etc.), not a CachyOS-only strategy.
  • One commenter asks what “sponsoring CachyOS” concretely funds (hosting vs upstream devs); this remains unclear in the thread.

Politics, controversy, and community channels

  • Past Framework sponsorships (e.g., Hyprland) and Omarchy/other figures spark discussion about far-right or exclusionary views and whether such projects should be funded. Opinions range from “tempest in a teapot” to strong opposition.
  • The shutdown of Framework’s Discord after a moderator strike over sponsorship is recalled; several participants criticize Discord as a primary support medium, arguing it burns out maintainers and produces non-searchable knowledge.

Arch vs Debian/Ubuntu for vendors

  • Several speculate hardware vendors like Framework/Valve favor Arch/Arch-based systems for:
    • Rolling releases with fast hardware enablement.
    • Easier contribution to packaging.
    • Minimal patching and fewer distro-specific “isms.”
  • Others note that Framework also sponsors Debian and Fedora-based projects, and that Debian testing or Fedora Atomic could also be strong bases.
  • Arch’s lack of official multi-arch support (e.g., ARM, Apple Silicon) is discussed; maintainers confirm ongoing but slow volunteer work toward ports.