X11 or Wayland?

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I have been trying out Cosmic DE. I am now on Alpha 4, and so far the DE is pretty stable. The only major issue is that Cosmic DE is based on Wayland.

Now I see other DEs, like Gnome switching over to Wayland as the default, however I see that some if not most software is still built to use X11.

So my question is, have you moved to a Wayland DE or are you still on X11?

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I switched my KDE to Wayland ~ two month ago.
It feels a bit smoother and in someway, modern. I can’t say why but it feels more pleasant.
Anyway, no problems. Everything is working good

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It depends on your specific use case and priorities. Here’s from an IT/Sysadmin view:

X11

  • Pros:

    • Mature and Stable: Decades of development mean excellent support for a wide range of applications and environments.
    • Remote Access: Built-in support for forwarding via SSH (e.g., ssh -X), which is invaluable for remote sysadmins.
    • Compatibility: Works well with legacy applications and older hardware.
    • Customizability: Endless options to tweak with tools like xrandr or xinput.

  • Cons:

    • Security: Lacks modern security features; everything runs in a shared space.
    • Performance: Not optimized for high refresh rates or modern GPUs. Screen tearing can still be an issue.
    • Complexity: The protocol is over-engineered for modern needs.

Wayland

  • Pros:

    • Security: Uses isolated processes for applications, reducing attack surfaces.
    • Performance: Designed for modern hardware, offering smoother animations and better support for high-DPI displays.
    • Simplicity: Aims to reduce legacy cruft, making it lighter and more streamlined.
    • Modern Features: Great for gaming (e.g., with Vulkan) and supports fractional scaling on many environments.

  • Cons:

    • Immaturity: Not all applications and drivers play nice with Wayland yet.
    • Remote Access: Limited options for remote desktop or app forwarding (though this is improving with projects like PipeWire and RDP integration).
    • Fewer Customization Tools: Advanced tweaks can be limited.

Recommendations

  • Stick with X11 if you:

    • Need rock-solid compatibility.
    • Rely on remote access (e.g., headless servers with GUI tools over SSH).
    • Use older hardware or specific software that’s not Wayland-compatible.

  • Try Wayland if you:

    • Use a modern desktop like GNOME, COSMIC or KDE on new hardware.
    • Prioritize security or smooth performance.
    • Work on graphics-heavy tasks like video editing or gaming.

For most server-side or utility setups, X11 remains the safer bet for now. However, Wayland is the future for desktop environments—just make sure your workflows are compatible before switching.

The more of us that use Wayland will probably lead to faster improvements and compatibilty.

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Thanks @hydn for this clear view!

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@hydn , The point that hits home for me is Stick with X11 if you use specific software that’s not Wayland-compatible.

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I use Wayland exclusively now. Of course, I am an Ubuntu/ZorinOS user, so that makes sense, I guess. Zorin lets you log into an X11 session, but I never do. I have no issues with any of the apps I use, and for my purposes everything runs smoothly. That’s on a variety of devices, too, with a variety of graphics processors. Two of those computers are over 5 years old.

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@QuietType It’s great that Wayland works so well for you across a variety of devices, especially older ones. The maturity of desktop environments like ZorinOS and Ubuntu really shines here. Have you noticed any significant benefits with Wayland on those systems compared to X11?

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I was preparing to ditch Wayland and go back to X11 when @QuietType gave me a pause. I installed QTile Wayland and gave it a quick run at some of the software that was glitchy under Cosmic, and what you know, it worked fine.

So as @hydn mentioned, how well Wayland works may come down to the maturity of desktop environments.

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Fedora uses wayland by default and that is the best part no additional switches needed.