Ubuntu 26.04 LTS has officially arrived. The new release has passed our in-house testing, and can now be provisioned on any new Linux Virtual Server or Virtual Dedicated Server.
Ubuntu has a tradition of giving new versions alliterative animal nicknames. This version is no different. Those of you who prefer animals to version numbers can call this release “Resolute Raccoon”.
As always, the "LTS" part of the name is what really matters for server workloads. Being a Long Term Support release, Resolute Raccoon will receive security updates and critical bug fixes for five years, with coverage through to April 2031.
What's new in Resolute Raccoon?
This is Ubuntu's 11th LTS release and it's a significant one. The biggest technical changes include:
Rust-based system utilities:
sudohas been replaced bysudo-rs, a memory-safe rewrite that maintains full compatibility with your existing sudoers configuration while eliminating a whole class of historical CVEs. Core utilities have similarly been replaced by Rust-based alternatives.Post-quantum cryptography: OpenSSH and OpenSSL now use post-quantum algorithms by default, which is good forward-thinking for anyone with long-lived infrastructure.
Linux kernel 7.0: the jump from 6.x to 7.0 is more of a numbering reset than a rewrite (Linus Torvalds simply preferred 7.0 over 6.20), but it brings solid hardware support improvements and new kernel drivers written in Rust.
A strong developer toolchain refresh: Including GCC 15.2, Python 3.14, PHP 8.5, Go 1.25, Rust 1.93, OpenJDK 25, PostgreSQL 18, and MariaDB 11.8.
The official release notes cover everything else you might want to know about the new LTS release.
Ready to spin up?
As with any new release, especially in the first few months, you may occasionally find compatibility issues with third-party software. If you run into anything get in touch and we'll do what we can to help.
If you're looking to maximise long-term support for your Linux OS, now's the time to deploy Resolute Raccoon on a new Virtual Server.