How to upgrade Ubuntu including kernel to the latest stable release

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How to upgrade Ubuntu including kernel to the latest stable release 2 hours

In this article, I will show you how to upgrade your Ubuntu 20.04. As a bonus, we will also update kernel to the latest stable version 5.7.7 or mainline 5.8-rc3, which contains the following improvements:

  • WireGuard Support
  • New processor cooling driver
  • USB4 support
  • Amazon Echo Support
  • Improved hardware support
  • VirtualBox Folder Sharing
  • F2FS data compression using LZO/LZ4

And here is a short list of what's new in Ubuntu 20.04:

  • Best and fastest GNOME 3.36 desktop with dark theme support
  • Improved support for 4K monitors and zoom
  • New themes and visual settings
  • Quick install, fast boot
  • Global do not disturb
  • Best Thunderbolt Support
  • Best support for nVidia graphics cards

To upgrade Ubuntu to the latest stable release 20.04, follow these steps:

Preparation

Update packages list
sudo apt-get update
Upgrade packages
sudo apt-get upgrade
Install update-manager-core package
sudo apt-get install update-manager-core

Upgrade Ubuntu

Upgrade distro
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
Upgrade Ubuntu
sudo do-release-upgrade

Upgrade kernel

Change current directory to /tmp
cd /tmp
Download latest stable kernel
						wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.7.7/amd64/linux-headers-5.7.7-050707_5.7.7-050707.202007010943_all.deb
						wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.7.7/amd64/linux-headers-5.7.7-050707-generic_5.7.7-050707.202007010943_amd64.deb
						wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.7.7/amd64/linux-image-unsigned-5.7.7-050707-generic_5.7.7-050707.202007010943_amd64.deb
						wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.7.7/amd64/linux-modules-5.7.7-050707-generic_5.7.7-050707.202007010943_amd64.deb
Or download latest mainline kernel
wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.8-rc3/amd64/linux-headers-5.8.0-050800_5.8.0-050800.202006282330_all.deb
wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.8-rc3/amd64/linux-headers-5.8.0-050800-generic_5.8.0-050800.202006282330_amd64.deb
wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.8-rc3/amd64/linux-image-unsigned-5.8.0-050800-generic_5.8.0-050800.202006282330_amd64.deb
wget -c https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.8-rc3/amd64/linux-modules-5.8.0-050800-generic_5.8.0-050800.202006282330_amd64.deb
Install new kernel
sudo dpkg -i *.deb
Reboot the system
sudo shutdown -r now

Finishing up

Update packages list
sudo apt-get update
Upgrade packages
sudo apt-get upgrade
Reboot the system if needed
sudo shutdown -r now
Check the OS distro
lsb_release -a
Check kernel version
uname -r

That's it, now you should be running on the latest best-looking Ubuntu 20.04 and most secure Linux Kernel.