Ubuntu 18.04.2 LTS released and here is how to upgrade it

The Canonical LTD has released an updated version of its long term support (LTS) Linux distribution Ubuntu Linux 18.04.02. You must upgrade to get corrections for security problem as this version made a few adjustments for the severe issue found in Ubuntu version 18.04.02. The Ubuntu LTS enablement (also called HWE or Hardware Enablement) stacks provide newer kernel and X support for existing Ubuntu LTS releases. These enablement stacks can be installed manually but are also available when installing with Ubuntu LTS point release media. These newer enablement stacks are meant for desktop and server and even recommended for cloud or virtual images.



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Ubuntu 18.04.2 LTS released

From the release note:

Like previous LTS series, 18.04.2 includes hardware enablement stacks (HWE) for use on newer hardware such as Nvidia cards and other GPUs. This support is offered on all architectures and is installed by default when using one of the desktop images. Ubuntu Server defaults to installing the GA kernel; however, you may select the HWE kernel from the installer bootloader. This update also adds Raspberry Pi 3 as a supported image target for Ubuntu Server, alongside the existing Raspberry Pi 2 image. As usual, this point release includes many updates and updated installation media has been provided so that fewer updates will need to be downloaded after installation. These include security updates and corrections for other high-impact bugs, with a focus on maintaining stability and compatibility with Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.

How to upgrade Ubuntu from version 18.04.01 to 18.04.02

The procedure is as follows. First, note down the current version:

lsb_release -a

uname -mrs

Sample outputs:

No LSB modules are available. Distributor ID: Ubuntu Description: Ubuntu 18.04.1 LTS Release: 18.04 Codename: bionic

Upgrade the Ubuntu Linux system

Type the following apt-get command/apt command to upgrade your system:

$ sudo apt update

$ sudo apt dist-upgrade



Finally reboot the Linux system:

$ sudo reboot

Please note that those who frequently install Ubuntu updates won’t have to update many packages, and most such updates are included in the point release.

Verification

Verify that upgrade went smoothly with help of cat command/grep command/egrep command:

$ uname -mrs

$ lsb_release -a

$ dmesg | egrep -i 'err|warn|critical'

$ sudo tail -f /var/log/yourapp.log



Linux kernel 4.18 kernel and HWE

The new version comes with updated Linux kernel version 4.18. Also includes an updated version of GPU drivers and useful for AMD GPU users for better performance and stability. Here is how to search for updated version using apt-cache command along with grep command and apt command:

sudo apt update

apt-cache search linux-generic-hwe

apt-cache search xserver-xorg-hwe | grep 18.04



How to install the latest HWE

Just run the following apt-get command:

sudo apt update

## install only 4.18 kernel ##

sudo apt install linux-generic-hwe-18.04

## install update gpu stack ##

sudo apt install xserver-xorg-hwe-18.04

A note about Cloud hosting provider

Use the following hwe image on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS VM instead of generic:

Azure cloud : linux-image-azure-edge GCP (Google) cloud : linux-image-gcp-edge AWS (EC2/Lightsail) : linux-image-aws-edge

Conclusion

By now you should have a good understanding of HWE and how to upgrade Ubuntu system to 18.04.2. I strongly suggest that you run the latest kernel and GPU stack. For more info see this page here and here.