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Upgrading from 24.04 LTS to 26.04 LTS

1Full backup

Dump /etc, /home, and your databases at minimum; servers should keep IPMI or a console as fallback.

2apt full-upgrade

Bring the existing 24.04 packages fully up to date so the upgrader starts from a clean baseline.

3do-release-upgrade

Trigger the cross-release upgrade; accept defaults with Y when prompted and do not interrupt power.

Note

26.04.1 was released on August 27, 2026. Upgrades from 24.04 LTS to 26.04.1 were enabled on September 29, 2026: desktop users get the prompt in Software Updater as it rolls out over a few days, and server users, or anyone who doesn’t want to wait, can run sudo do-release-upgrade right away, with no -d flag. Official announcement 

Ubuntu supports direct LTS-to-LTS upgrades. This article provides a detailed guide for upgrading from Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (Noble Numbat) to 26.04 LTS.

Prerequisites

  • Current system is Ubuntu 24.04 LTS with all updates installed
  • At least 5 GB of free disk space
  • Stable network connection
  • Data backup completed
  • For remote servers, ensure you have out-of-band management (such as IPMI, cloud console) as a backup access method
Warning

A version upgrade is a major operation with risks of failure or software incompatibility. Be sure to complete a full data backup before upgrading. For servers, ensure you have out-of-band management or other backup access methods. Do not interrupt power or network connections during the upgrade process.

Pre-Upgrade Preparation

1. Confirm Current Version

lsb_release -a
cat /etc/os-release

2. Update the Current System

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt dist-upgrade -y
sudo apt autoremove -y

3. Ensure update-manager-core Is Installed

sudo apt install update-manager-core -y

4. Check Upgrade Policy

cat /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades

Confirm that Prompt is set to lts:

[DEFAULT]
Prompt=lts

If the value is not lts, change it:

sudo sed -i 's/^Prompt=.*/Prompt=lts/' /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades

5. Handle Third-Party Sources and PPAs

# List all third-party sources
grep -r "^deb " /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ 2>/dev/null
apt-cache policy | grep -v ubuntu.com
 
# It is recommended to disable all PPAs before upgrading
sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:example/ppa
# Or manually comment out third-party sources

The upgrade tool will automatically disable third-party sources, but handling them in advance can reduce potential issues.

6. Record Current System State

# Record installed packages
dpkg --get-selections > ~/packages-before-upgrade.txt
 
# Record running services
systemctl list-units --type=service --state=running > ~/services-before-upgrade.txt
 
# Record network configuration
ip addr > ~/network-before-upgrade.txt
cat /etc/netplan/*.yaml > ~/netplan-before-upgrade.txt 2>/dev/null
 
# Record kernel version
uname -r > ~/kernel-before-upgrade.txt

Performing the Upgrade

Desktop System

# Graphical interface upgrade
sudo do-release-upgrade -f DistUpgradeViewGtk3

Or wait for the system to automatically display an upgrade notification.

Server / Command Line

# Upgrade via SSH
sudo do-release-upgrade

Don’t add the -d flag: it upgrades to the release still in development. Now that the upgrade path is open, run the command without it.

Interactions During the Upgrade

Several prompts will appear during the upgrade process:

  1. Upgrade confirmation - Confirm to proceed with the upgrade
  2. SSH port - The upgrade tool will start a backup SSH service on port 1022 in case port 22 is interrupted
  3. Configuration file conflicts - When a configuration file has been modified, you need to choose whether to keep the local version or use the new version
    • For critical files (like SSH configuration), it is recommended to keep the local version
    • When unsure, keep the local version and manually merge after the upgrade
  4. Remove obsolete packages - Choose whether to delete packages that are no longer needed
  5. Restart confirmation - Restart the system after the upgrade is complete

Special Considerations for SSH Upgrades

# The upgrade tool will prompt to run a backup SSH on port 1022
# If the main SSH connection drops, use:
ssh -p 1022 user@server-ip
 
# Allow port 1022 through the firewall
sudo ufw allow 1022/tcp
 
# It is recommended to run the upgrade in screen or tmux
sudo apt install screen -y
screen -S upgrade
sudo do-release-upgrade
 
# If disconnected, reattach:
screen -r upgrade

Post-Upgrade Verification

1. Confirm Version

lsb_release -a
# Should display Ubuntu 26.04 LTS
 
cat /etc/os-release
uname -r

2. Check System Status

# Check for broken packages
sudo dpkg --audit
sudo apt --fix-broken install
 
# Check for held-back packages
apt list --upgradable
 
# Complete remaining updates
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y

3. Check Service Status

# View failed services
systemctl --failed
 
# Compare with the pre-upgrade service list
systemctl list-units --type=service --state=running

4. Cleanup

# Remove old kernels (keep current and previous version)
sudo apt autoremove --purge -y
 
# Clean package cache
sudo apt clean
 
# Re-enable needed third-party sources (update to 26.04 version)
# Note: The version codename in PPA URLs needs to be updated

5. Restore Third-Party Sources

# After upgrade, third-party sources are disabled with .distUpgrade suffix
ls /etc/apt/sources.list.d/*.distUpgrade
 
# Check if the PPA supports 26.04
# If it does, re-add it
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:example/ppa

Common Issues

Upgrade Process Interrupted

# If the upgrade is interrupted, try to resume
sudo dpkg --configure -a
sudo apt --fix-broken install
sudo do-release-upgrade

“No new release found”

# Confirm the Prompt setting is correct
cat /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades
 
# LTS-to-LTS upgrades are only offered once the next LTS reaches its .1 point release;
# the 26.04.1 path opened on 2026-09-29, so confirm the file says Prompt=lts
 
# Check network connectivity
ping changelogs.ubuntu.com

Package Dependency Conflicts

# View conflict details
sudo apt -f install
sudo dpkg --audit
 
# Force configure unfinished packages
sudo dpkg --configure -a
 
# View logs
cat /var/log/dist-upgrade/main.log
cat /var/log/dist-upgrade/apt.log

System Won’t Boot After Upgrade

If the system fails to boot after upgrading:

  1. Select an older kernel from the GRUB menu
  2. Enter Recovery Mode
  3. Check logs in /var/log/dist-upgrade/
  4. Repair broken packages: dpkg --configure -a && apt --fix-broken install

Upgrade Logs

All upgrade logs are saved in the /var/log/dist-upgrade/ directory:

ls -la /var/log/dist-upgrade/
# main.log      - Main log
# apt.log       - APT operation log
# apt-term.log  - APT terminal output
# history.log   - Upgrade history
# lspci.txt     - Hardware information snapshot
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