Here are the complete steps and precautions you need to take before upgrading to Ubuntu 24.04 LTS “Noble Numbat” from Ubuntu 22.04 LTS “Jammy Jellyfish”.
Canonical released the latest and greatest Ubuntu 24.04 LTS “Noble Numbat” on April 25, 2024. Ideally, you should wait for a month at least to upgrade to the latest version. It’s recommended that you should only upgrade to Ubuntu LTS release after the first point release for a safe experience.
But if you are rushing for the upgrade or want to experience the stunning changes and features that Ubuntu 24.04 brings to the table, then read below the steps required for a flawless upgrade process.
Warning: There is no official upgrade path to Ubuntu 24.04 LTS until the first point release (24.04.1) in July 2024. There are many open issues for upgrades and users reported broken system when attempted. Proceed with risk and take backups.
Table of Contents
Before Upgrade
For any upgrade, it is always wiser to follow some best practices. These prevent some post-upgrade problems and lead to a successful upgrade process.
- Backup data to another drive or USB storage from your home directory includes your pictures, videos, or other personal files.
- Keep a LIVE USB ready with Ubuntu if you run into an unstable system.
- Disable all third party PPAs (which you have manually added).
- If you upgrade to a GNOME workstation, disable all the GNOME extensions because they might be incompatible with GNOME 46.
- After a successful upgrade, you can enable the extensions one at a time.
- Ensure that your system is up-to-date with packages by running the command
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade - Close all your running applications.
- Restart your system.
With that said, if you are ready, then follow the instructions below to Upgrade to Ubuntu 24.04 From Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.
Upgrade to Ubuntu 24.04 from Ubuntu 22.04 and Ubuntu 23.10
For a few weeks, Ubuntu will not give you any visual upgrade prompt for an upgrade until the first point release in July 2024. Because the first point release is considered the most stable version after initial bugs are ironed out.
That said, you either wait until July, or you can force the upgrade.
How?
Open software updater. Ensure that the option “For any long-term support version” is selected in the Updates tab of the Software and Updates app.
Then try running the following command from the terminal.
sudo do-release-upgrade -d
Via GUI
Open the Software and Updates, and go to the Updates tab. And change “Notify me of new Ubuntu version” to “any new version”.
Once you do that, open Software Updater. You should see a prompt for an upgrade on the desktop. Follow the on-screen instructions and continue with the upgrade process.
Note: If you are using these steps in 22.04 before first point release of 24.04, you might see a upgrade prompt for 23.10. So, you can either do the upgrade to 23.10, or wait for until July 2024.
The prompt also calculates the list of packages required to upgrade within the needed time, so read the updater output carefully. Once you are ready, start the process.
Finally, after the upgrade process is finished, reboot the system to enjoy the brand-new Ubuntu 24.04 LTS Jammy Jellyfish.
Open the Software and Updates, and go to the Updates tab. And change “Notify me of new Ubuntu version” to “any new version”.
Upgrade to Ubuntu 24.04 from Ubuntu 23.10
You can follow the above exact instructions for Ubuntu 23.10 as well. No extra steps are required to Upgrade to Ubuntu 24.04 from Ubuntu 23.10.
How long does the upgrade to the Ubuntu 24.04 process take?
Per my test, the default install requires a little more than 35 minutes to finish the upgrade process. It might be higher for your system based on how many software packages you installed and the installation’s age. So plan your time accordingly.
Conclusion
Finally, I hope these steps help you successfully upgrade your Ubuntu system to Noble Numbat. If you are planning to upgrade, I wish you all the best.
Please let me know how the upgrade process goes in the comment box below.
