The complete step-by-step guide for upgrading from Xubuntu 24.04 LTS to 26.04 LTS. Covers terminal and GUI methods, Xfce configuration backup, known post-upgrade issues, and what to check after the upgrade finishes.
-d flag until thenWhy Upgrade to Xubuntu 26.04?
If you are on Xubuntu 24.04 and things are running smoothly, the upgrade case is solid. Xubuntu 26.04 ships Xfce 4.20 – the most significant Xfce release in years, bringing initial Wayland support, a modernized file manager (Thunar 4.20), improved display handling for HiDPI and multi-monitor setups, and a cleaner Settings Manager. Under the hood, you get Linux kernel 7.0, which improves hardware support across modern AMD, Intel, and ARM platforms. You also reset your support clock: Xubuntu 26.04 LTS is supported until April 2029, giving you three years of security updates from a stable base. If you are still on Xubuntu 22.04, you are approaching end of life – upgrading now is the right call. One more thing worth knowing: Xfce 4.20 introduces initial Wayland compositing support in the window manager – a first for the project. Xubuntu 26.04 does not default to Wayland and no action is required on your part, but it signals where the desktop is heading. For a full breakdown of what changed in this release, see the What’s New in Xubuntu 26.04 guide.
Which Upgrade Path Applies to You?
Not every Xubuntu version can upgrade directly to 26.04. The table below shows the supported paths. If your current version is not listed as a direct source, follow the step column first. If you would prefer a clean install over an in-place upgrade, the Xubuntu 26.04 download page has the official ISO links and SHA256 verification steps.
| Current Version | Direct to 26.04? | What to Do |
|---|---|---|
| Xubuntu 24.04 LTS | Yes | Follow this guide directly |
| Xubuntu 25.10 | Yes | Follow this guide directly |
| Xubuntu 22.04 LTS | No | Upgrade to 24.04 first, then to 26.04 |
| Xubuntu 23.10 / 25.04 (EOL) | No | These releases are end-of-life. Fresh install of 26.04 recommended |
| Xubuntu 20.04 LTS or older | No | Upgrade through each LTS in sequence, or do a fresh install |
Before You Upgrade – 4 Steps
Do not skip this section. These steps take less than 10 minutes and prevent the majority of problems that users encounter during and after the upgrade. Also confirm you have at least 3 GB of free space on your root partition before starting – the upgrade downloads and installs a significant number of updated packages. Run df -h / in a terminal to check.
The upgrade preserves your home directory, but hardware failures and power cuts do not care about timing. Back up anything important before starting. A full system snapshot is ideal if you are on a virtual machine.
Xfce stores your panel layout, keyboard shortcuts, appearance settings, and application preferences in two directories. The upgrade does not delete these files, but older Xfce config can conflict with Xfce 4.20 on first login – causing a broken panel or missing widgets. Run this command before starting:
~/.config/xfce4 ~/.local/share/xfce4
This creates a single compressed archive in your home folder. If anything looks wrong after the upgrade, you can restore individual config files from it.
The upgrade tool will refuse to run if your system has pending updates. Run all four commands and reboot if the kernel was updated.
sudo apt upgrade
sudo apt dist-upgrade
sudo apt autoremove
Xubuntu 26.04 ships Linux kernel 7.0. NVIDIA driver series 470 and below are not compatible with it. Check your current version before proceeding.
If the result shows a version below 500 (for example 470.xx), upgrade your NVIDIA driver to 535 or newer before proceeding. Open Software & Updates, go to the Additional Drivers tab, and switch to a supported driver version.
How to Upgrade via Terminal
This is the recommended method. It works on Desktop and any headless Xubuntu system, and gives you the most control over the process.
The update-manager-core package provides the do-release-upgrade command. It is usually already installed on Xubuntu 24.04, but this confirms it.
Because the automatic LTS-to-LTS upgrade prompt is not yet enabled (it activates with 26.04.1 in August 2026), use the -d flag. This tells the tool to fetch the newly available release directly. Xubuntu 26.04 is a full production release – the -d flag does not mean unstable.
After 26.04.1 ships in August 2026, you can drop the -d flag and run sudo do-release-upgrade on its own.
The tool walks you through a series of prompts. Here is what to expect at each stage:
The tool checks for blockers, then shows a summary: how many packages will be upgraded, installed, and removed. Read this. If anything looks unexpected, press N to cancel and investigate before continuing.
The tool downloads all required packages. Xubuntu is a lighter install than full Ubuntu, so this step is generally faster. Do not close the terminal or interrupt this process.
For system configuration files you have previously modified, the tool asks whether to keep your version or install the package maintainer’s version. If you have not customized the file, choose the maintainer’s version. If you have, keep yours and compare the two manually after the upgrade.
Once all packages are installed, the tool asks if you want to restart. Choose yes. The system reboots into Xubuntu 26.04 LTS with Xfce 4.20.
When you run sudo do-release-upgrade -d on a remote Xubuntu system over SSH, the tool automatically opens a secondary SSH port (default: 1022) as a fallback in case your main connection drops. Before starting, open port 1022 through your firewall. If you use UFW: sudo ufw allow 1022/tcp. The tool will remind you and wait for confirmation before continuing.
A clean install gives you a fresh Xfce 4.20 setup with no leftover configuration from older releases. Get the official ISO directly.
How to Upgrade via Software Updater (Desktop Only)
The graphical upgrade path on Xubuntu uses the Software Updater application, which runs the same do-release-upgrade backend as the terminal method. There is one important caveat: Software Updater will not show a 26.04 upgrade prompt until Xubuntu 26.04.1 ships in August 2026. Until then, you need to launch it with a flag that tells it to check for newly available releases.
Software Updater opens and begins checking for updates. After applying any pending updates, it will show a banner: “Xubuntu 26.04 LTS is now available.” Click Upgrade to begin. The GUI walks you through the same process as the terminal method – with a visual progress bar and dialog boxes for configuration decisions. Total time: 35-55 minutes.
When the upgrade finishes, Software Updater will ask you to restart. Click Restart Now. Your system reboots into Xubuntu 26.04 LTS with Xfce 4.20.
After the Upgrade – What to Check
Once the system reboots into Xubuntu 26.04, run through these checks to confirm everything is working correctly.
The output should show Ubuntu 26.04 LTS and codename resolute.
Should report xfce4-session 4.20.x. You can also check via About Xfce in the Applications menu.
sudo apt upgrade
A handful of packages often have updates available immediately after a release upgrade.
Known Issues and Fixes
These are the issues most likely to affect users upgrading from Xubuntu 24.04. Both are documented in the official Xubuntu 26.04 release notes and have straightforward solutions.
Cause: The xfce4-session manager in Xubuntu 26.04 no longer auto-launches a graphical SSH agent by default. If you use SSH keys with passphrases and relied on the automatic agent prompt, those prompts will stop appearing after the upgrade.
Fix (option 1 – session startup): Open the Xfce Settings Manager, go to Session and Startup, then the Application Autostart tab. Add a new entry with the command ssh-agent. Log out and back in. The agent will start with your session and handle key prompts as before.
Fix (option 2 – keychain): Install the keychain package and add one line to your shell profile. This approach works reliably across terminals and is preferred for users who work heavily with SSH keys.
echo ‘eval $(keychain –eval –agents ssh)’ >> ~/.bashrc
Open a new terminal after adding the line. Keychain will prompt for your passphrase once per session and cache it for all subsequent connections.
Cause: LightDM and the Xfce lock screen use a separate wallpaper path from your desktop wallpaper. After the upgrade, this path may point to the old location, so the lock screen shows the previous release’s default wallpaper instead of yours.
Fix: Open the Settings Manager, go to LightDM GTK+ Greeter Settings, and re-select your preferred wallpaper in the Background section. The change applies immediately – you do not need to reboot. If you do not see the LightDM GTK+ Greeter Settings option in your Settings Manager, install it first with sudo apt install lightdm-gtk-greeter-settings.
Cause: The upgrade tool disables third-party PPAs during the upgrade to prevent conflicts. They are not deleted, just disabled. Some may also not yet have packages built for Ubuntu 26.04.
Fix: Open Software & Updates, go to the Other Software tab, and re-enable the PPAs you need. Run sudo apt update after. If a PPA fails, check whether the software maintainer has released a 26.04-compatible version yet.
If the upgrade is interrupted – by a power cut, a dropped SSH connection, or a package error – do not panic and do not try to reboot straight away. Open a terminal and run these two commands in order. They repair any packages left in a half-installed state and resolve broken dependencies.
sudo apt install -f
Once both commands complete without errors, run the upgrade command again. The tool will pick up where it left off rather than starting from scratch.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I upgrade directly from Xubuntu 22.04 to 26.04?
No. Xubuntu follows the same LTS upgrade path as Ubuntu. You cannot skip releases. You must first upgrade from Xubuntu 22.04 LTS to 24.04 LTS, then from 24.04 LTS to 26.04 LTS. Run sudo do-release-upgrade on your 22.04 system to reach 24.04, then repeat the process from there.
Why does do-release-upgrade say no new release found on my Xubuntu 24.04 system?
This is expected. The automatic LTS-to-LTS upgrade prompt is not enabled until the first point release, which for 26.04 is planned for around August 2026. To upgrade before then, run sudo do-release-upgrade -d to access the release directly. The -d flag means development or newly released, not unstable. Xubuntu 26.04 is a full production release.
Do I need to back up my Xfce settings before upgrading?
Yes. Xfce stores your panel layout, keyboard shortcuts, appearance settings, and application preferences in ~/.config/xfce4/ and ~/.local/share/xfce4/. The upgrade does not delete these files, but mismatches between older config and Xfce 4.20 can cause a broken panel or missing widgets on first login. Run tar -czf ~/xfce-config-backup.tar.gz ~/.config/xfce4 ~/.local/share/xfce4 before starting. It takes under a minute.
The SSH agent is no longer prompting for my key passphrase after upgrading. What happened?
This is a documented change in Xubuntu 26.04. The xfce4-session manager no longer auto-launches a graphical SSH agent by default. To restore the behavior, either add ssh-agent to your autostart applications in Session and Startup settings, or install the keychain package (sudo apt install keychain) and add eval $(keychain --eval --agents ssh) to your ~/.bashrc. Either method restores SSH key handling on login.
The lock screen is showing the wrong wallpaper after upgrading. How do I fix it?
This is a known cosmetic issue documented in the Xubuntu 26.04 release notes. LightDM and the lock screen use a separate wallpaper path from your Xfce desktop. After the upgrade, this path may point to the old wallpaper location. Open Settings Manager, go to LightDM GTK+ Greeter Settings, and re-select your preferred wallpaper in the Background section. The change applies immediately without a reboot.
Will my Xfce themes and panel customizations survive the upgrade?
Your configuration files are preserved during the upgrade. However, some themes built for Xfce 4.18 or earlier may not render correctly under Xfce 4.20. If you see visual glitches, try switching to the default Greybird theme first to confirm the desktop itself is working correctly, then re-apply your preferred theme. If a theme fails entirely, check whether the theme maintainer has released an updated version for Xfce 4.20.
How long does the upgrade from Xubuntu 24.04 to 26.04 take?
On a typical broadband connection, the full upgrade takes between 35 and 55 minutes including the download, package installation, and reboot. Xubuntu is a lighter install than full Ubuntu, so it often finishes faster than a standard Ubuntu upgrade. The process is unattended after the initial prompts, so you can leave it running.
Can I upgrade over SSH on a remote Xubuntu system?
Yes. When you run sudo do-release-upgrade -d on a remote system over SSH, the tool automatically opens a secondary SSH port (default: 1022) as a fallback in case your main connection drops during the upgrade. Allow port 1022 through your firewall before starting. If you use UFW, run sudo ufw allow 1022/tcp first. The tool will prompt you to confirm before continuing.
More Xubuntu 26.04 guides: Xubuntu 26.04 ISO Download · What’s New in Xubuntu 26.04 · Xubuntu 26.04 Wallpapers
