Canonical released Ubuntu 26.04 LTS, codenamed ‘Resolute Raccoon’, on 23 April 2026. It’s the new long-term support (LTS) release, with five years of standard maintenance until April 2031 and the option to stretch that to five more years, up to April 2036, through Ubuntu Pro.
Key highlights
- Linux kernel 7.0: improves support for Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors and adds the real-time kernel to the main archive, free for public use.
- GNOME 50: the desktop arrives with parental control enhancements, a more capable Orca screen reader, reduced motion options and better performance in the Files app.
- Refreshed toolchain: GCC 15.2, Python 3.14, glibc 2.43 (with ISO C23 changes), LLVM 21, Rust 1.93, Go 1.26, binutils 2.46 and OpenJDK 25 as the certified default Java.
- New Resources app: replaces System Monitor, written in Rust with a GTK 4 interface, with GPU tracking and NPU monitoring.
- systemd 259.5: enforces cgroup v2 for good and drops cgroup v1 support.
- Server and databases: PostgreSQL 18 with a new I/O subsystem, MariaDB 11.8.6 with AppArmor profiles, MySQL 8.4.8 LTS and OpenStack 2026.1.
What Ubuntu is and who it’s for
Ubuntu is one of the most popular GNU/Linux distributions in the world, built by Canonical and based on Debian. It aims to be a free, stable and easy-to-use operating system that works just as well for home users taking their first steps with Linux as for professionals, developers and large server and cloud deployments. LTS releases like this 26.04 fit anyone who wants stability and long-term support without upgrading every few months.
With this release Canonical leans harder into hardware acceleration (NVIDIA CUDA, AMD ROCm 7.1.0, Intel QAT 2.0) and a current development environment, which makes ‘Resolute Raccoon’ a very solid pick for workstations, AI/ML teams and server infrastructure.
You’ll find all the details, requirements and downloads on its page within LinuxGratis: Ubuntu.