{"id":2934,"date":"2026-11-02T10:40:08","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T10:40:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hostry.com\/blog\/?p=2934"},"modified":"2026-11-02T10:40:10","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T10:40:10","slug":"upgrade-ubuntu-24-04-to-26-04","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hostry.com\/blog\/upgrade-ubuntu-24-04-to-26-04\/","title":{"rendered":"Upgrade Ubuntu 24.04 to 26.04 on a VPS: What Breaks, How to Recover"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Upgrade<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
A stock Ubuntu 24.04 server upgrades in place with sudo do-release-upgrade over SSH once two blockers are cleared: the upgrader refuses to run without cgroup v2, or with MySQL accounts on mysql_native_password while that plugin is disabled. A heavily customized server is usually better rebuilt. Either way, start only with an off-server backup you have restored once.<\/strong><\/em><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Canonical enabled upgrades to 26.04.1 LTS on September 29, 2026, and Ubuntu Server users can start whenever they are ready. To upgrade Ubuntu 24.04 to 26.04<\/strong> safely, the order matters more than the command. The usual way to strand a VPS is to run the upgrader from your only SSH window with port 1022 closed: the connection drops while dpkg is unpacking, and the spare sshd the upgrader started cannot be reached.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a server with years of hand edits, a fresh KVM VPS with root access<\/a><\/strong> and a data migration is often less risk than an in-place upgrade. Commands below were checked on November 2, 2026 against the release notes, the Ubuntu Server docs and the code of the 26.04 upgrader (version 26.04.27).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Upgrade Ubuntu 24.04 to 26.04 in place or rebuild on a new VPS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The upgrader can undo very little. Its source shows that an abort before packages install puts your APT sources back, but once dpkg has started, the only recovery it attempts is dpkg –configure -a<\/span>. do-release-upgrade has no downgrade option; returning to 24.04 means restoring from backup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your server<\/th>Upgrade in place<\/th>Rebuild and migrate<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Packages only from the Ubuntu archive, a few services<\/td>Good fit, one maintenance window<\/td>More work than the server needs<\/td><\/tr>
Docker or LXC host still booted with cgroup v1 or hybrid<\/td>Only after switching to cgroup v2 and rebooting; the upgrader refuses otherwise<\/td>Starts on cgroup v2 with nothing to switch<\/td><\/tr>
Several PPAs, vendor repos or keys added with apt-key<\/td>Each one needs a 26.04 suite and a signed-by keyring<\/td>Add back only the repos you still use<\/td><\/tr>
MySQL accounts on mysql_native_password, or RabbitMQ<\/td>Upgrader stops until you fix them<\/td>Fix accounts during the dump and import<\/td><\/tr>
No restore you have actually tested<\/td>Do not start<\/td>The old VPS stays untouched as the fallback<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
A rebuild means restoring data onto a new VPS and switching DNS once it passes your checks, while the old server stays a working rollback during the overlap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n