New Update Linux Mint 22.2 Will Feature Fingerprint Authentication with Fingwit App

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It can be used for the login screen, the screensaver, as well as for sudo commands and apps that require administrative privileges.

The upcoming Linux Mint 22.2 (Zara) operating system will feature a brand-new app called Fingwit, providing users with fingerprint authentication capabilities.

In the latest monthly newsletter, Linux Mint project leader Clement Lefebvre revealed one of the attractions of the forthcoming Linux Mint 22.2 release: a new in-house application for managing fingerprint authentication and configuration on computers with fingerprint readers.

Fingerprint authentication on Linux Mint 22.2 can be used for the login screen to log into your Linux Mint session, the screensaver when you lock your computer, as well as for sudo commands and apps that require administrative privileges (pkexec).

Under the hood, the Fingwit app relies on the well-known fprintd daemon, but provides a smarter PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules) module than pam_fprintd.so allowing the application to detect problematic cases and dynamically switch between fingerprint and password authentication.

“For instance if you’re trying to log in but your home directory is encrypted, fingerprint authentication would log you in but your session would crash since ecryptfs requires your password. Fingwit detects that kind of things so you get fingerprint authentication as much as possible, but avoid such issues,” explains Clement Lefebvre.

Linux Mint 22.2 Will Feature Fingerprint Authentication with Fingwit App - 9to5Linux

Linux Mint 22.2 operating system will feature fingerprint authentication capabilities with a brand-new app called Fingwit.

9to5linux.com

 

[A N G E L]

Thank you for this news, but is this support Huawei laptop fingerprint?

 

[lokamoka820]

Device compatibility is the main factor determining whether fingerprint login will work. Linux Mint relies on the fprintd framework, which supports a wide range of fingerprint readers. To verify compatibility, identify your device and check it against the official list.

Step 1: Identify your fingerprint device using lsusb. This command lists all USB devices and their IDs.

lsusb

Step 2: Locate the fingerprint reader in the output and note its vendor and product ID (the format is usually xxxx:yyyy).

Step 3: Visit fprint supported devices and search for your device ID to confirm support. If your device is not listed, check the unsupported devices page for additional information.

If your hardware is unsupported, Linux Mint may not be able to use the fingerprint reader. Some users have reported partial success with community drivers or by compiling custom firmware, but these approaches require advanced troubleshooting and are not guaranteed.

 

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Linux Mint 22.2

The team is working on a BETA release for Linux Mint 22.2.

This new version introduces an HWE kernel, fingerprint authentication, theme updates, accent color support and improved libAdwaita compatibility. Work also continues in the Cinnamon edition, to make input methods and keyboard layouts compatible with Wayland.

Packages and projects are being finalized. Pull requests are being merged. There is no set date for the release but we’re hoping to get the BETA out by the end of July or the beginning of August.

Monthly News – July 2025 – The Linux Mint Blog

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