Hello,
How do I keep Ubuntu up to date?
For context, I just installed Ubuntu 24.04 as dual-boot with macOS on a 2017 MacBook Pro (MacBookPro14,1).
Upon opening App Center (Manage), it is instructing me to use Software Updater for “Debian package updates” so I am assuming App Center is only responsible for updating Snaps.
So, are these the only two apps I need to use to keep Ubuntu up to date?
Yes only these 2 apps are needed
In Ubuntu 20.04 LTS if we run Software Updater it will run four Linux commands that will update/upgrade all the Debian packages and all the snap packages and also remove packages that are no longer required.
The App Center>Manage will let us control the updating of snap packaged applications and system snap packages. Snap packaged applications will also update themselves automatically in the background. You will see this happen with Firefox. You will be requested to close Firefox to allow the update to happen.
I have an early install of Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. It still has Ubuntu Software which updates Debian Packages but does not manage snap packages.
We can also use the terminal to update & upgrade. The commands are:
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade
sudo apt autoremove
sudo snap refresh
From Ubuntu 26.04 LTS the sudo prefix will be replaced by sudo-rs
Regards
You can also adjust the frequency of checks and how often you want to be bothered by the system about updates in the “Software & Updates” settings (parts of this will be integrated into the App Center with 26.04 and as others mentioned, snap packages update themselves as soon as there is something new in the store for the channel you are tracking with a specific snap)
That was not my experience. Software Updater did not update my Snap packages. But I will try again in a VM this time around.
It is really hard to spot but there is usually a “checking for snap updates” line it shows very quickly after it is done with the .deb based updates, but since snaps do update in the background automatically it would really only do something if you actually had an outdated snap at exactly that moment the SW updater runs …
You’re right, I saw something similar (although I am now on an Ubuntu 25.10 VM because ARM). However, I have an outdated Firefox (143.04), while 148.0.2 is already released and available in the App Center, that Software Updater did not update. Is this a bug?
Some snaps use phasing (so the package initially goes only out to a percentage of users that gradually raises, that way potentially missed issues can be identified before the whole world gets the update and it could be withdrawn) for their updates, firefox is one of them, sadly the store provides the updated metadata for the snap for everyone even though the payload (i.e. the actual package) does not yet roll out to you specifically … that said, I just checked on my laptop and I got 148.0.2-1 4 days ago, so yes, perhaps you found a bug …
Thx for the sanity check. Submitted a report in https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/update-manager/+bug/2144671
If, by “up to date,” you are trying to say “I want my Ubuntu system to always have the latest security updates,” then you need do nothing at all except when prompted to occasioally restart applications or to reboot every few weeks.
Security updates are completely automatic and may occur several times daily. You don’t need to turn it on or change a setting. It’s already the default.
The system will occasionally prompt you that “updates are available.” It’s talking about bugfix updates. These are optional, non-security updates to fix bugs. Advice: Go ahead and install them.
Alternately, if “up to date” meant “I want the newest version of software, with the latest features,” then try a newer release of Ubuntu. LTS releases specifically avoid changes to the software. 24.04 is 2 years old, and the software in it is two years old.
I meant that I want the latest software updates available for my current major release. But it’s nice to know that security updates are automatic by default!
When you say “major release” you mean of a given piece of software (like Python 3.14.* for instance)? You’d need a rolling release distro to get the latest version of Python 3.14.* for example, because you’re stuck with whatever version that was initially made available in Ubuntu (see https://askubuntu.com/questions/151283/why-dont-the-ubuntu-repositories-have-the-latest-versions-of-software for why this is the case). Major things like Python, etc. get distro-patches by the Security team to keep them patched for security vulnerabilities, but for example on Ubuntu 24.04, the Python 3 version shipped is 3.12.3, and then ‘locked’ at that version. You wouldn’t get the latest Python 3.12.12 for example unless you compiled and installed it manually side-by-side with the existing Python 3.12.3 Ubuntu installs.
So, to clarify, do you mean “latest software updates available for a version of software in Ubuntu?” or do you mean “latest software updates available for my Ubuntu version”? (Because those can be different)
I meant the latest available software for my current Ubuntu version.
