Ubuntu 24.04 LTS is expected in April 2024. The new long-term service support release of the popular Linux distribution may receive up to 12 years of support.

The extended support range was announced by Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth in an interview with the YouTube channel Destination Linux. The interview begins at 8.46 and the revelation about extended support happens at the 17:36 mark.

Here is the video for you to watch:

Core support for Ubuntu won't change according to Shuttleworth. Ubuntu LTS versions continue to be supported for 5 years and non-LTS releases for 9 months. Ubuntu 23.04 is the current release version, Ubuntu 22.04 LTS the current long-term support release.

Ubuntu Pro subscribers may extend support of LTS versions by an additional 7 years going forward. Ubuntu Pro is available for Home users and Enterprise / business customers. The subscription is free at the time of writing for Home users and starts at $25 per year and machine for Enterprise customers. Server subscriptions start at $500 per month.

Canonical introduced Ubuntu Pro back in January of 2023. Back then, the company announced that subscribers would be able to get 10 years of security updates for Ubuntu Main and more than 20,000 additional packages. Ubuntu Pro promises other advantages, including a kernel livepatch service or optional phone and ticket support.

The livepatch service works through notifications. Canonical releases a security notice when a critical or high Linux kernel vulnerability is found. Systems with livepatch enabled will download and install these patches automatically once they have been released.

Organizations may subscribe to Ubuntu Pro to run a specific LTS version of the Linux distribution for an extended period of time. Canonical has increased the maximum support length by 2 years to 12 years now for Ubuntu Pro subscribers according to Shuttleworth. Extended support will be backdated to previous LTS versions of Ubuntu as well. Shuttleworth calls it "Platinum grade Enterprise commitment".

Support for packages is also improved and has reached the 30,000 packages mark. This means that Ubuntu Main and these packages will be supported by Canonical for up to 12 years.

Closing Words

Ubuntu Pro subscribers may get 12 years of support for their desktops and servers. This extends the previous support period of 10 years by another 2. Enterprise customers who require long-term support benefit from this the most.

Most Home users may want to upgrade their desktop systems regularly to gain access to new features and support for new technologies.

Now You: for how long would you like your OS to be supported?