Upgrading to Ubuntu 26.04 LTS

[lipaul]

Hi,

I am currently using Ubuntu Mate 24.04, is it possible to upgrade to Ubuntu 26.04 without reinstalling?

[pavlos]

not yet, wait for the .1 release (26.04.1)

[graymech]

You should read this topic:

Upgrade options for Ubuntu Mate

You are on Ubuntu Mate 24.04. It is still in support life. Stay were you are until Ubuntu Mate 24.04 nears end of support life.

[guiverc]

I’ll agree with @graymech in referring you to the other link, my own view can be found there anyway.

If you want more, esp. if interested in security, I’ll also suggest a reading of Thomas’ (@teward) answer on this question too, as it covers security & details I don’t address.

https://askubuntu.com/questions/1565457/ubuntu-mate-24-04-help-for-understanding-no-26-04-lts-version-will-be-release

[fryegg]

I installed 24.04.3 on VMware and updated it twice, then it automatically upgraded to 26.04. But many plugins are no longer supported.

[Norm24]

Here’s another great read @teward posted in his blog that @guiverc had posted on another linux site:

Ubuntu, Ubuntu Flavors, and Ubuntu Pro: General Overviews

[guiverc]

If you’re not happy with details we’ve provided in this thread, Thomas has attempted to answer this question in the following thread

MATE: No 26.04 Release, How does that Affect You, and What Is the Future of Ubuntu MATE?

These questions have been asked numerous times, in numerous varying ways, both here on this Discourse section of the site and on Ask Ubuntu and elsewhere: What do I do since there was no 26.04 release? Does this mean I’m screwed, and can’t use MATE anymore? How do I upgrade if there was no 26.04 release? What does this mean for the future of the MATE flavor? This post attempts to be an all-inclusive post that can answer most of these questions. If your question sounds similar to one of these…

The new Ubuntu MATE team have also now introduced themselves on the following thread

Hello from the new Ubuntu-MATE maintainers team

Hello world! , You probably are aware by now, of the mid-life crisis the Ubuntu MATE project is undergoing, and I don’t regurgitate those issues here. Following Martin Wimpress’ stepping down from the Ubuntu MATE project and subsequent announcement here , some of us have volunteered to help with the project . As it stands today, the following are the Ubuntu MATE Reboot members : Victor Kareh (@vkareh, https://launchpad.net/~vkareh ): upst…

---

If the question was just about 24.04 upgrades to 26.04 being offered yet, as per Ubuntu documentation (I talked about it a little here, those are only supported after the release of Ubuntu 26.04.1 LTS which hasn’t yet happened… that is covered in other threads too and you’ll find the following useful

Best practice for a successful release-upgrade to 26.04

1. Be Patient Wait until the supported release-upgrade window opens. Your system will prompt you. 25.10 users: Your window opens a few weeks. 24.04 users: Your window opens in August. You’ll see bad advice telling you to use do-release-upgrade -d. Don’t do it…unless you want to be a tester and know how to troubleshoot and report bugs properly. Using the 26.04 installer won’t upgrade your system. The installer will overwrite your system, erasing all data and configuration. 2. Backup your da…

The release-upgrade system will thread a 24.04 system as a noble system and upgrade it to resolute or 26.04, which includes the packages you have installed.

If you’re using Ubuntu MATE, Ubuntu Desktop, Lubuntu, Xubuntu or any other flavor; its still a Ubuntu system with the flavor details hidden within the packages that update as part of the release-upgrade process.

Upgrades from 25.10 to 26.04 are currently open as they are supported.

Upgrades from the prior LTS aren’t yet open; as they don’t open until after release of the .1 LTS ISO (ISO release being for new installs, the upgrades usually open the week or two after ISO release).