Questions tagged [upgrade]

A software upgrade is the process of replacing an older version of one or more programs to a newer version. Use this tag for questions about upgrading individual packages, or the entire operating system to a later release.

What constitutes a software upgrade:

When a software upgrade is performed, an older version of one or more programs are replaced with a newer version, while carrying over the current configuration and settings for the application. Software upgrades are typically performed to address any of the following:

  • Fixing security vulnerabilities
  • Fixing bugs
  • Introducing new features
  • Removing redundant features (often related to security)

Some software upgrades that affect the core part of the system will require a reboot before they are applied. This is true for upgrades, as well as updates to and .


Some basic definitions:

Version - an identifier (usually a number and/or name) which helps to distinguish where the program is in development. Earlier forms (and/or non finished products) may have numbers or names like:

  • 0.01
  • Alpha
  • Unstable
  • Testing
  • 0.90
  • Beta
  • Etc.

Later forms may be:

  • 1.0
  • Release
  • Stable
  • Etc.

Brief introduction to the subject:

The version name of a program usually will increase in value, from 1 - 1.01 for minor releases, and 1.99 - 2.0. With versions of Ubuntu (and other programs/operating systems) the releases are tied to a date, and are given a name (such as Saucy, Lucid, etc.) There are also working versions which will be given terms such as Stable, Unstable, and Testing (when looking at Debian GNU/Linux). This determines what software is available in the repositories, and often is tied into the amount of testing which has gone into the system as a whole.

When a version of anything comes out it must be tested if it is to be released to the public. This is where quality assurance/testing comes into play. During the initial phase the testing may be put into Alpha stage for testing with a small amount of people. After improvements the program may be put into Beta phase, which may open the program up for testing to the public, or a closed group of testers. Then it may go to release. This is not always the case, but it is an example.

Moving from one version of a program to another is called "upgrading". It does not always mean that the new program is better, but usually there is a reason the program has been "upgraded".


Important Links for Learning More:

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Can I skip over releases when upgrading?

I am currently using Ubuntu 10.04. I know there is a 10.10 release, but can I upgrade directly to 11.04? Could you walk me through the steps please?
Jared Reyes
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How do I resume a release upgrade?

Yesterday I started the upgrade from 12.10 to 13.04, but I interrupted it because it was taking too long. Now if I restart it, it doesn't proceed. Is there any possibility to clean the mess it left when I interrupted it and make a clean restart of…
Dave
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Can no longer use Screen Share to connect Mac to Ubuntu since upgrading to 14.04

Worked fine before, but since upgrading to Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, whilst the connection shows in Finder OK when clicking on it says "Connection failed to “XXX's remote desktop on Xxxxx”. The software on the remote computer appears to be incompatible with…
Hugh
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How to upgrade from 18.10 to 19.10, using the command line?

I'm trying to upgrade from 18.10 to 19.10, using sudo do-release-upgrade however I only get an error: An upgrade from 'cosmic' to 'eoan' is not supported with this tool. I performed the steps to update my sources.list to point to old-release server,…
Droopycom
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How to safely upgrade from an older Ubuntu version to a newer one?

How can I safely upgrade an Ubuntu installation from one release to another? What should I do before upgrading to ensure it goes smoothly, and is there any clean-up I need to do afterwards? In particular, do I need to do anything special if I am…
NickTux
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How to upgrade from Ubuntu 21.10 to Ubuntu 22.04

I want to upgrade but i get this below: It should be released today 21 April i don't get it?
Jonte YH
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Disable Ubuntu Update Manager's new version warning

How to disallow Ubuntu to upgrade from like 11.10 to 12.04? I know that its your wish if you want to upgrade, but I don't want the message in update manager that says a new release is available to get displayed. All help will be appreciated
user51447
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How to fix the "Unable to calculate upgrade" issue when upgrading from 12.04 to 12.10?

I've been trying to upgrade to 12.10 ever since it was released today but I keep meeting this error: An unresolvable problem occurred while calculating the upgrade: E:Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages. This can be caused by: …
Vagrant232
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How does updating running application binaries during an upgrade work?

I just upgraded my ubuntu lucid to natty , during the upgrade it replaced most of the running applications with a newer version. How does this work? (Won't the applications crash?) What will happen to the application if a lib file got upgraded…
srinathhs
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Ubuntu GNOME 17.04 -> Ubuntu 17.10 upgrade?

Will users of Ubuntu GNOME 17.04 be automatically upgraded to regular Ubuntu 17.10 when it's released? Asking in light of all the recent news (discontinuing Ubuntu GNOME flavor, GNOME as default desktop in 17.10 & future releases).
Rebel
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Is there a rational reason to wait for the release date to download, install or update to the next version of Ubuntu?

Today, October 6th 2010, Ubuntu 10.10 is in Feature Definition Freeze, Debian Import Freeze, Feature Freeze, User Interface Freeze, Beta Freeze, Documentation String Freeze, Final Freeze, Kernel Freeze and past the Translation Deadlines in both the…
badp
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Upgrade from 13.10 to 14.04: "No new release found"

I am trying to upgrade from lubuntu 13.10 to 14.04 using apt-get update apt-get dist-upgrade do-release-upgrade However the last command returns No new release found I also tried do-release-upgrade -d with the same result. /etc/apt/sources.list…
student
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Am I using beta or stable?

I have been doing so many sudo apt-get update/(dist-)upgrade since yesterday and something happend - so that I am confused now whether I am using still beta or the stable version. How do I figure that out?
Raffael
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Will there be data loss if I upgrade?

I am planning to upgrade from 8.10 to 10.04. But I am wondering whether there will be data loss during the upgrade. For example: Will the applications that I have installed on 8.10 still be there after upgrade? Will the settings of application such…
Tim
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Can I keep using Ubuntu 9.04 if it's outdated?

Possible Duplicate: How to install software or upgrade from old unsupported release? I have a very old laptop (6-7 years) with a 1.6 Ghz Intel processor and 512 Mb DDr2 of RAM and I was wondering if I can keep this version of Ubuntu (9.04)…
Mihnea
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