Fedora version matrix: F44 versus F45, measured

A version matrix is usually written by copying the release notes. This one does the opposite: run rpm -q on the same lab machines and put the readings side by side. Every number below comes from real F43, F44 and F45 output.

1. Component versions (measured)

Same host, same commands, one run per virtual machine (F43 from a Server DVD automated install; F44 and F45 from existing lab machines):

uname -r
for p in systemd glibc python3 openssl dnf5 rpm podman kmscon; do
  printf "%-10s " "$p"; rpm -q --qf '%{VERSION}-%{RELEASE}\n' "$p" 2>/dev/null || echo "-"
done

Component	Fedora 43	Fedora 44	Fedora 45
kernel	6.17.1-300.fc43	6.19.10-300.fc44	7.2.0-61.fc45
systemd	258	259.5	261.2
glibc	2.42	2.43	2.44
python3	3.14.0	3.14.3	3.15.0~rc1
openssl	3.5.1	3.5.5	4.0.1
dnf5	5.2.17.0	5.4.1.0	5.4.6.0
rpm	6.0.0	6.0.1	6.1.0
podman	not installed	5.8.1	6.1.0
kmscon	not installed	not installed	10.0.3
repository config	/etc (4 files)	/etc (4)	/usr (4)

Three major jumps are worth remembering separately: kernel 6 → 7, OpenSSL 3 → 4, Podman 5 → 6. What they share is that post-upgrade failures tend to come from ABI and default behaviour, not from configuration.

The last row is not a version but a location: F43 and F44 both keep repository configuration in /etc/yum.repos.d; only F45 moved it to /usr/share/dnf5/repos.d. Three machines make that unambiguous, faster than any release note.

Note

python3 on F45 is 3.15.0~rc1 — a release candidate. That is not an artefact of the lab; it is the version the distribution selected. Watch for rc-versus-final differences in production.

2. Behaviour matrix (not version numbers — what actually happens)

Version numbers are only a hint; behaviour is what trips people. All three below were verified on the lab machines; details live on the linked pages.

Behaviour	Fedora 44	Fedora 45	Details
unsigned RPM via rpm -i	installs (rpm 6.0.1)	refused (does not verify: no signature)	Signature enforcement
repository configuration	/etc/yum.repos.d	/usr/share/dnf5/repos.d	Repository configuration moves to /usr
GPG keys	/etc/pki/rpm-gpg	/usr/share/pki/rpm-gpg	same page
console	in-kernel fbcon	kmscon installed (kmsconvt@ enabled)	kmscon console
secret service	gnome-keyring	oo7 (owns org.freedesktop.secrets)	oo7 in F45
podman generate systemd	works	prints a deprecation notice, use Quadlet	Podman 6
dnf updateinfo --summary	—	invalid argument (Unknown argument)	Cheat sheet

Caution

This table matters more than the version table above. Work through it before upgrading and you avoid the hardest class of problem: the command did not change but the result did.

3. Repository location: one command shows the generational difference

Beyond version numbers, location changes are what break scripts. The same command on three machines:

echo "$(grep VERSION_ID /etc/os-release) -> /usr: $(ls /usr/share/dnf5/repos.d/*.repo 2>/dev/null | wc -l)  /etc: $(ls /etc/yum.repos.d/*.repo 2>/dev/null | wc -l)"

VERSION_ID=43 -> /usr: 0  /etc: 4
VERSION_ID=44 -> /usr: 0  /etc: 4
VERSION_ID=45 -> /usr: 4  /etc: 0

That third column flipping is the F45 boundary. Any script that counts repositories by reading /etc/yum.repos.d/*.repo goes from 4 to 0 on that line — the repositories did not disappear, they moved.

3. Release timeline

Release	GA	Note
Fedora 45	2026-11	current; supported to about four weeks after F47 ships
Fedora 44	2026-04	still inside its support window
Fedora 43	2025-10	counting down
Fedora 42	2025-04	EOL

The support rule and the countdown arithmetic are in release cadence and support window; current official state per release is in releases and EOL table.

4. Building the same table for your own machine

Save this as a script and run it before and after upgrading to get your own comparison:

#!/bin/bash
echo "== $(grep VERSION_ID /etc/os-release)"
echo "kernel: $(uname -r)"
for p in systemd glibc python3 openssl dnf5 rpm podman kmscon oo7-daemon; do
  printf "%-12s %s\n" "$p" "$(rpm -q --qf '%{VERSION}-%{RELEASE}' "$p" 2>/dev/null || echo '-')"
done
echo "repos: $(ls /usr/share/dnf5/repos.d/*.repo 2>/dev/null | wc -l) in /usr, $(ls /etc/yum.repos.d/*.repo 2>/dev/null | wc -l) in /etc"

Keep one copy before and one after; the diff is exactly “what this upgrade changed”. More direct than reading release notes.

Related pages

• Fedora releases and EOL table — official state
• Fedora release cadence and support window — the N+2 rule and upgrade windows
• Upgrading to Fedora 45 — the steps from 44
• Signature enforcement — the behaviour change most likely to block you
• Repository configuration moves to /usr — the path change
• Cheat sheet — the F45 form of everyday commands