Linux 7.1 brings new NTFS driver, Steam Deck OLED audio fix + more
Linux 7.1 brings new NTFS driver, Steam Deck OLED audio fix + more
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/06/linux-7-1-kernel-features
Publish Date: 2026-06-14 23:17:00
Source Domain: www.omgubuntu.co.uk
Linus Torvalds has announced the release of Linux 7.1 with a rewritten NTFS filesystem driver, battery reporting for Apple Silicon devices and a Steam Deck OLED audio fix.
Other notable changes include improved power-management switching on AMD CPUs, performance gains for Intel Arc Battlemage graphics and, unusually, a big set of legacy hardware removals that saw over 140,000 lines of code dropped.
The loss of legacy hardware drivers has a purpose: a leaner kernel is a more maintainable kernel, and its developers no longer carry the burden of having to fix security flaws found by AI models in obsolete drivers to support ancient hardware few people use.
What’s been added is more newsworthy than what’s been junked, so here’s an overview of the biggest changes.
Linux 7.1: What’s New?
A new NTFS driver
Accessing your Windows drives is easier in Linux 7.1
Linux has had NTFS drivers for an age. The original was read-only, then ntfs3, contributed by Paragon in Linux 5.15, added write support. Paragon’s interest has tailed off and despite a flurry of improvements in Linux 7.0, it isn’t where it needs to be.
Enter. a new, optional NTFS driver in Linux 7.1, created by Namjae Jeon, the developer behind the kernel’s exFAT driver. The old read-only NTFS driver was rebuilt, gaining write support, iomap-based file operations and even new tools to help fix corrupted drives.
While ntfs3 remains in the kernel as the default NTFS driver, it might not be there for long. You can use the new NTFS driver in Linux 7.1 using a Kconfig switch. If you dual-boot with Windows or regularly mount Windows-formatted drives, it might be worth trying.
AMD CPUs get smarter power management
AMDXDNA drivers adds monitoring features for Ryzen AI NPUs
The AMD amd-pstate driver supports Dynamic EPP (Energy Performance Preference) in Linux 7.1, allowing the driver to automatically switch the CPU’s performance profile…
