I’m sorry to announce that Ubuntu on ZFS looks to be an inactive project.
Canonical was enthusiastic about their support for the disputed file system in 2019, making headlines with the release of Ubuntu 19.10, which included an experimental option to instal Ubuntu (kernel, system files, and user data) on a ZFS volume. Despite the licencing concerns, Ubuntu was the first major Linux distribution to integrate ZFS.
However, the enthusiasm has diminished since then.
Last year, Ubuntu developers fought to have Zsys removed from the Ubiquity installation. This is an essential utility developed by Ubuntu to help managing and maintaining ZFS-based systems easier. In a bug report they simply indicated that ‘priority changes’ in the desktop team meant Zsys was no longer something they wish to “advertise utilising”.
Zsys was supposed to be downgraded from the future LTS, however for unknown reasons, this did not happen.
As of this writing, Zsys is still available in the Ubuntu archives, although development isn’t going well. Based on GitHub commits, Canonical’s contributions virtually drop off a cliff around April 2021, with only a minor modification made in April of last year.
Daily builds for the next Ubuntu 23.04 release include a brand-new installer created using Flutter to Canonical’s exact specifications. But guess what this new Ubuntu installation lacks? Installing Ubuntu on the ZFS file system is a possibility.
With no apparent public indication of any attempt to enhance or improve the Ubuntu ZFS experience, members of the Ubuntu community are justified to wonder: what is the current state of Ubuntu’s ZFS support?
Your guess is as good as mine, but things aren’t looking bright: Zsys has been decommissioned, and the current version of Ubuntu cannot be installed on ZFS.
As a result, it appears that Ubuntu’s brief obsession with this controversial file system has ended. It’s off to join Ubuntu TV, Ubuntu Phone, Unity 8, and other corpses in Canonical’s (sob) disappointment cemetery.
Source:
OMG! Ubuntu: The Future of ZFS on Ubuntu Desktop is Not Looking Good
OS News: The future of ZFS on Ubuntu desktop is not looking good
Discourse: Future of ZFS on Ubuntu desktophttps://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/future-of-zfs-on-ubuntu-desktop/33001