Canonical has introduced a significant change to Ubuntu’s release process with the launch of monthly snapshot releases starting this month. Although this new initiative may resemble a shift towards more frequent stable releases, Canonical affirms its commitment to maintaining the regular six-month release schedule, alongside Long Term Support (LTS) releases every two years.
In the past, Ubuntu’s ambitious goal of delivering a major release every six months was seen as unconventional. As the operating system landscape has matured, however, Ubuntu’s release strategy appears more conservative compared to the dynamic environment of rolling-release distributions and iterative image-based systems prevalent today.
The monthly snapshots represent development milestones rather than stable releases. These snapshots, which will not be assigned unique version numbers, serve as curated testable versions designed to enhance the testing and feedback loop for developers, testers, and enthusiasts.
The upcoming release cycle for Ubuntu 25.10 "Questing Quokka" includes:
- May 29: Snapshot 1
- June 10: Snapshot 2
- July 15: Snapshot 3
- August 19: Snapshot 4
- September 18: Beta release
- October 9: Final release
The initiative aims to implement extensive automated testing throughout the development cycle, allowing major issues to be identified well in advance of key release dates, thereby reducing pressure when it comes time to finalize the release. Oracle’s open-source workflow tool, Temporal, is at the heart of this new approach, facilitating more transparent and efficient testing processes.
While current Ubuntu testing largely relies on volunteers, Canonical plans to automate many testing procedures, freeing volunteers to focus on more complex testing elements. This refinement aims to create a more reliable Ubuntu experience for users, while enhancing the contributions of community developers.