A few more discoveries - you learn the hardway I guess. Quite a few models that were fine on a Windows based XP12 are a complete bust and always will be on Linux, so now spending a lot of time weeding them out - serves me right for being an inveterate collector of models in the first place. It appears that quite a few addon developers base their models on MS WIN not linux so they just will not work. The others are a mixed bag.

The IXEG 737 is not for Linux. 

Any old Carenado model that has been modded and worked well in Windows are now a complete loss so they are gone too - I will miss the Fokker F50 and the PA31. A few older models from Windows worked there but have a lot of issues when XP is running on a LInux system - and it is always the buttons and manipulators. 

Still having issues with the Felis 747-200 and all my Toliss Airbuses and the AFL KIng Air 350 is another not the models they load up fine but the activation process is proving to be a real problem - still working through that as other Linux users report they work fine. The problem there is the scripts that developers and people use are outdated or not really Linux compatible. Still yet to see if the Rotate stuff will play the game and Thranda as well. 

Otherwise yes lost a few but way it is! As for Linux wish I had done it years ago. 

@mSparks

Pic your poison ... 

Different apps/hardware will have different results, but if you look at the linked article, the do several different apps and the conclusion was Win11 is on average faster.

1 hour ago, SayAgain said:

@mSparks

Pic your poison ... 

Different apps/hardware will have different results, but if you look at the linked article, the do several different apps and the conclusion was Win11 is on average faster.

Pretty much the same

But yeah, my poisen has excluded windows since windows 8 graced us with its presence and never looked back. 

Linux is the go to for anything doing massively parrelel compute or reading lots of data from disk.

Windows isnt the go to for games, and that was all it had left.

I installed Linux Mint Cinnamon (Dual Boot) to see if there is a benefit for XP12 as opposed to running it in Windows 11.  The install is pretty easy but it is SO SLOW on my system.  Windows are slow to open and XP12 takes ages to open - maybe five times longer than on Windows 11.  When it runs I see the CPU frametime is around 0.0100 but the GPU is showing up to 0.0950!

I have never used Linux, so am well aware I may have done something incorrectly.  I have used the update manager to upgrade everything it showed in the update list, which includes the NVIDIA 800 series driver. 

XP12 FPS is no different in Linux for me, so I am not sure what the benefit is!

Edited December 27, 2025Dec 27 by MrBitstFlyer

Trying X-Plane 12 on Linux for the first time is an interesting experiment because it mirrors the classic debate over why more pilots don't switch from MSFS to X-Plane.

I just tried installing SimHeaven. In Windows, it's a simple double-click on a .bat file to link the Vegetation Library. In Linux, I’m stuck in the terminal. Despite following the instructions, I couldn't get the '1200 forests' link to appear. Beyond that, I still have to figure out TrackIR and the TDS 750 units.

Currently, the system is sluggish-even key presses have a delay, and the FPS lags behind Windows 11. I now fully understand why people dismiss the 'effort' required to make X-Plane look good when MSFS looks great by default. I’m currently searching for the justification that makes this Linux 'effort' worth the reward.

🙂

2 hours ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

Linux Mint

Out of curiosity, why did you pick this one? I said previously that performance benefit would depend on the distro. This one is known for being behind the curve as far as software versions go (eg nvidia drivers). In my own past morbid-curiosity testing I've seen ubuntu be slower than the others (raw debian, arch-based, etc) and mint is based on ubuntu. There's lots of reasons Valve chose Arch as the base for SteamOS. These are some of the big ones.

 

15 minutes ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

I’m stuck in the terminal.

This should be advertised from the roof tops. There isn't a distro out there that won't require fiddling in a terminal at some point, so to folks like you: "abort, abort!!". 

2 hours ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

I just tried installing SimHeaven. In Windows, it's a simple double-click on a .bat file to link the Vegetation Library. In Linux, I’m stuck in the terminal. Despite following the instructions, I couldn't get the '1200 forests' link to appear. 

Dont know what you are doing. but I just extracted to custom scenery and it worked. No terminal at all.
Modern linux barely let you need a terminal
(Linux Mint)

2 hours ago, blingthinger said:

This should be advertised from the roof tops. There isn't a distro out there that won't require fiddling in a terminal at some point, so to folks like you: "abort, abort!!". 

I am definitely not against using the Terminal-I'm happy to give it a go! It took me a week of testing to be convinced that XP12 was a better flight sim for my needs than MSFS, so I'm ready to put in the work to see if Linux is beneficial.  I chose Mint Cinnamon as a starting point for beginners, but I’ve noted the suggestions for Arch. I'm going to look into it, though I'm mindful of the learning curve involved.

I noticed I was running the nvidia-driver-580-open, so I'm taking advice to roll back to the nvidia-driver-535 proprietary version. I'm hoping this clears the input lag and FPS gap compared to Windows 11. Once the performance is stable, I can focus on getting the TDS 750 and TrackIR sorted (if that is possible). I’m still in the process of justifying why the extra effort for Linux is worth the payoff!"

16 minutes ago, Johan_Dees said:

Dont know what you are doing. but I just extracted to custom scenery and it worked. No terminal at all.
Modern linux barely let you need a terminal
(Linux Mint)

What I was doing was following the instructions in the SimHeaven text file. 

MrBitsFlyer - not an expert on these things but my understanding is the dual boot systems never seem to perform well. Lots of technical reasons about the way the different systems read files i.e Windows cannot see anything that is Linux but Linux can see windows files. My reason for going Linux was - I had used it a long time ago in its early days (circa mid 1990's) I had learnt Unix a long time ago and but most importantly - my custom built gaming PC barely 12 months old was not suitable for WIN 11 because of the motherboard and CPU. I think you will find that Linux adoption now accelerates due to MS WIn11 requiring a different hardware architecture. Besides I spent $3000 on a new PC just over a year ago and MS wants me to get another one they can backdoor on me  - no way Jose as they say!

I opted for a full Linux system - I tried a couple of Linux distributions and then reinstalled LinuxMint - yes it is maybe not as flash as say other stuff but works well on my PC, even got the NVIDIA drivers installed and fixed some issues related to some other software - for example LIttleNavmap - had issues but the developers help and web page gave very good instructions and sure enough it fixed it and it works together with XP12.4. Linuxmint may not be the best or classiest Linux distribution but I like the way it works and looks - suits me better that is all! And yes there will be somethings that will require using terminal (aka Command Line in Windows) but it is not that bad really and I find there is heaps of good references and help on the web for Terminal stuff - that it is not a problem, for me, at least.

I now have a number of installation hiccups sorted, LR update fixed some issues with MFPL stuff. On my pure Linux system I have effectively doubled my FPS compared to my previous Windows installation (like at a medium density airport with the Felis B747 and all sliders maxed - 60FPS on linux compared to say 30 on the old Windows install.

Lost a few models that were not really Linux compatible - but no drama, none of my favourite rides anyway. So Felis, Tollis etc are all good now just had to say goodbye to the IXEG B737 (a real shame - yet their BN2T Islander installed properly (No Gizmo word not allowed) and works fine - so go figure. The rest I lost well most were shall we say amateur developments that were quirky in Windows 10 but even more disfunctional under LInux.

My only problem at the moment is X-Organiser will see if the WINE (Or windows emulation) works for me - otherwise back to doing the INI stuff on my own.

AND life is very peaceful on my PC now compared to the Commercial anarchy that was Windows and its daily bombardment of superflous stuff. Another small point with Linux - I had always used GPL or open source software for most of my applications such as office, media players and not MS stuff. I even found a free video screen recorder program that I paid $$$ for when I was on Windows. So all my old favourite software suits like Open Office, VLC etc are all go on Linux. I also have encrypted my data on my LInux drive and not more BS virus and malware programs with their overheads and stuff like on Windows. As I said peaceful. Oh and XP12 load in less than a minute for me-that is 5 times faster than on WIN10.

 

Edited December 27, 2025Dec 27 by coastaldriver

A small point but worth noting for those making the jump - peripherals like bolt on throttle quads, pedals etc are a problem with Linux on XP. I only use a Joystick so that works fine but the axis are not the same order. As for VR no idea do not use it as I have visions problems that make VR a problem for me thats all. But I think there are some VR issues as well. 

4 minutes ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

What I was doing was following the instructions in the SimHeaven text file.

The windows version:

1.  Translate to Linux command using "ln -s -f  "

2.  Or install "Wine" and use it's translation for .BAT Windows commands

3.  Or just copy from X-Plane 12/Resources/default scenery/  the 1200 forest to your Custom Scenery

4.  Use suggestion in SimHeaven.txt and replace "PATH-TO-X-PLANE-12" with whatever path you installed XP12.

I'm using SimHeaven along with Map Enhancement 4.0.5 and Orbx Trees ... certainly an improvement.

3 hours ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

I’m currently searching for the justification that makes this Linux 'effort' worth the reward.

There is no reward in terms for making anything easier or better for XP12 ... not sure who told XP12 on Linux or MacOS is better, but they took you down a road less travelled and really of no benefit specific to XP.  Linux is great for those of us that like to get involved in our OS and have more control over it (especially in regards to privacy).  It's open source, so if you're a software engineer you can modify the OS to meet one's specific needs.  But this is not your typical end user OS and there is a reason it only has 5% market share for desktop OS.  It's increasing in popularity but still has a LONG way to go and I doubt it'll ever reach the same level of saturation Windows has (around 70%).

 

5 hours ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

TrackIR sorted

https://github.com/StarTuz/linuxtrack-Qt6-Wayland That link popped up just today on the org. For trackir support. Not a clue if it works or how to use it as I don't have the hardware to test. Looks promising though I'd wager some terminal work will be involved. I see wayland in the title which is likely a problem for mint cinnamon. If it is a problem, then no better time to jump to 

5 hours ago, MrBitstFlyer said:

Arch

If you go that route, start with EndeavourOS which is arch-based and much more user friendly.

Fedora might be a close second place for a second distro. It's kept up to date and from what I hear is stable as well. Can't speak to the user-friendliness.

I just unzipped them straight into Custom Scenery, ran Xplane12, and let it make the .ini up to date. (on Linux)
I didnt made symlinks, no need for me.

15 hours ago, blingthinger said:

Fedora might be a close second place for a second distro. It's kept up to date and from what I hear is stable as well. Can't speak to the user-friendliness.

Fedora cinemon spin is my choice of poisen.

Two main gotchas for first using linux regardless.

Avoid wayland like the plague.

Switch to the performance profile, very likely the default power profile severely limits performance.

Re: terminal use.

Gotta say, support via terminal commands is orders of magnitude easier than trying to describe which buttons to click, especially now the windows interface has been through like a thousand iterations and all the old instructions no longer work.