How to Upgrade to Ubuntu 23.10 from 23.04

Ubuntu 23.10 was released on October 12, 2023, with the latest and greatest GNOME 45 desktop, Linux Kernel 6.5 and a good amount of new features – which you can check out at my dedicated feature highlights page.

As of this release, you may be running Ubuntu 23.04 Lunar Lobster or Ubuntu 22.04 LTS.

If you are running Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, it is not recommended to upgrade to this version. Because LTS releases have a completely different package base and objective, you can wait for the next LTS release in 2024.

Those running Ubuntu 23.04 can upgrade to this version, although it is still supported until January 2024.

However, if you want to make the jump and want to upgrade to Ubuntu 23.10, here are the steps.

Upgrade Ubuntu 23.04 (Lunar Lobster) to Ubuntu 23.10 (Mantic Minotaur)

Before you upgrade

Before you upgrade, do the following steps. These are important.

Take backups of your /home, /downloads and other files to USB or any separate partition in case the upgrade fails.

If you have added additional PPA over time, make sure you note them down. However, the upgrade process would disable the PPA before it starts. However, after the upgrade is complete, make sure to enable them manually.

Note down and disable all the GNOME Extensions. Extensions tend to break after the upgrade if it’s not updated by the developer aligned with the GNOME version. For example, few extensions may not be ready for GNOME 45.

Keep a LIVE Ubuntu USB stick handy.

Upgrade steps

Open Software & Update.

Go to the Updates tab.

Select ‘Notify me of a new Ubuntu version' and change it to 'For any new version'. If you are using 23.04, this should already set to this value.

This will tell the package manager to look for the Ubuntu 23.10 release details.

Verify the option to get the Ubuntu 23.10 Update

Open a terminal and run below.

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade

Alternatively, you can open the Software Updater as well. Install all the pending packages.

Once both the commands are complete, open the ‘Software Updates’. And you will see a prompt to Upgrade to Ubuntu 23.10.

Now click on the Upgrade button and follow the on-screen instructions. The upgrade process takes time, so be patient and wait until it finishes. Make sure you have stable internet connectivity for the entire upgrade process.

If you do not see the above prompt, do a manual reboot of your system. Add try again. If you still don’t get the update, wait a day or two and try.

Via terminal

If you prefer updating via terminal, follow the below steps.
Open the following file via the nano file editor in the terminal.

nano /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades

Make sure the Prompt=normal is present at the end of the above file.
Note: If you have changed the updates tab to “For any new version”, as mentioned above, then this file should be updated already. But verify once.

Press CTRL+O and CTRL+X to save and exit.

Finally, you can also run the below command to force the upgrade process from the terminal.

sudo do-release-upgrade -c

sudo do-release-upgrade

If you see “No new release found” message, then wait for a day or two and try the above command again. Also you can try running sudo do-release-upgrade -d. The upgrade process will take some time (minimum half-hour or more) based on your internet connection and hardware. Wait until it is complete. Once done, restart and enjoy the Ubuntu 23.10 Mantic Minotaur.