I still haven't received any notice to update from 18.04 to 20.04.

[Fargo]

So its been almost a year since 20.04 has been released and I still haven't seen any option to update from 18.04 to 20.04. I have Kubuntu on 3 different systems. None of them have ever mentioned the option to upgrade. Why don't I get an option to do an upgrade to 20.04? I thought Kubuntu was supposed to be easy to update, but I am confused why I never got an update notice. Everything I find online requires manually going into command line to do the update. Doesn't Kubuntu offer an option to do a GUI update? Do I need to do a fresh install every 2 years?

Please provide some insight into how an update should be completed. I'm tired of waiting for Kubuntu to give me the option to upgrade to 20.04. It seems like that should have happened already.

[Snowhog]

Several things could be involved here.

First, if you are running a 32-bit version of 18.04, you cannot upgrade to 20.04; it is only available as a 64-bit OS. (32-bit support was dropped in 2019). If you are running a 64-bit version of 18.04, check that you have Software & Updates > Updates > Notify me of new Ubuntu version: set to For any new version.

See https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2020/04/...o-ubuntu-20-04

[Fargo]

Several things could be involved here.

First, if you are running a 32-bit version of 18.04, you cannot upgrade to 20.04; it is only available as a 64-bit OS. (32-bit support was dropped in 2019). If you are running a 64-bit version of 18.04, check that you have Software & Updates > Updates > Notify me of new Ubuntu version: set to For any new version.

See https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2020/04/...o-ubuntu-20-04

I am running 64 bit OS on all machines. When you say to go to "Software & Updates" are you referring to the software settings in Discoverer? Are your directions more directed at Ubuntu than Kubuntu? In the software settings for Kubuntu I had "Updates' set for 'Long term support release only'. Why do I need to set it for 'Normal Release' to get updates if I only want 'Long term release' updates. That doesn't make sense.

Forgive me if I am ignorant here. I just thought that when 20.04.1 was released I would get notice of the update. But I can't find any way to update apart from going through the command line. I've now set my settings for all releases, but I'm still not getting any options to update.

[claydoh]

The upgrade notifications sometimes are bugged, and do not comer for some people.
Enabling 'normal releases' is a workaround that may work, LTS can only be upgraded to LTS, so only 20.04 would be available to 18.04 users.
If it works then switch back to the 'LTS only " option.

if this is not working, one can start the upgrade manually

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/FocalUpgrades/Kubuntu
The terminal command used to start the GUI upgrade tool is a little different, so may be worth trying if the standard Ubuntu command does not work.
It should, as the '-d' option in Snowhog's link 'forces' the upgrade, another workaround.

[Fargo]

The upgrade notifications sometimes are bugged, and do not comer for some people.
Enabling 'normal releases' is a workaround that may work, LTS can only be upgraded to LTS, so only 20.04 would be available to 18.04 users.
If it works then switch back to the 'LTS only " option.

if this is not working, one can start the upgrade manually

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/FocalUpgrades/Kubuntu
The terminal command used to start the GUI upgrade tool is a little different, so may be worth trying if the standard Ubuntu command does not work.
It should, as the '-d' option in Snowhog's link 'forces' the upgrade, another workaround.

Thanks claydoh. I am following the directions in that link now. The first line in the "Upgrade" section opened the gui for the upgrade. So I have now started the process.
Thank you

[jglen490]

Sometimes, it's just easier, faster, and cleaner to do a clean install.

[oldgeek]

I used the upgrade method from 20.04 to 20.10 and was sorry I did. Took way too long. A clean install using a btrfs snapshot of the @home folder would have done the job much much quicker. I will never do an upgrade again.

[GreyGeek]

Ditto to both of you!

[Fargo]

Thanks for the additional comments about doing a clean install. I considered doing a clean install or doing an install and saving the /home folder. I have had success in the past doing an install and keeping the /home folder. But I really wanted to use the upgrade option to see how it worked. Although it worked well enough once I figured out how to start the process, I am undecided if that is the best option. I always have concerns when I get those prompts if I want to keep some file 'I changed' of if I should use the 'maintainers version'. Especially when I never made the changes. These prompts confuse me. In this case I didn't keep any old files but chose to use the new files. Everything seems to work fine.

But it did slow down the process as I walked away from the update expecting it to complete on its own as a fresh install does.

All in all things went OK, but I'm still undecided if its better to do:
1) Full fresh install and take the time to manually change all my settings and copy back all data,
2) Hybrid Install that re-uses /home and all my previous settings, or
3) Upgrade to latest release via upgrade option.

It seems to me a full new install will be most time consuming but likely the most stable system for the next 2 years. But if I want to save time and re-use existing settings, I'm still undecided if its better to do a hybrid install and reuse my /home folder or if its better to do an upgrade. If I recall correctly, both options should save most if not all of your settings, but which one will provide the best results in the long term?

[claydoh]

Hybrid is the most sensible, if upgrading is a concern. 'Old' configs are not going to pose an issue, and definitely will save time setting things up if you have lots of settings tweaks and customization.