Ubuntu 25.04 Beta brings Linux 6.14, GNOME 48, and more to the Plucky Puffin party -- download it now!
Here we go again, folks! Canonical has pushed out the beta release of Ubuntu 25.04, and if you’re someone who lives on the bleeding edge of Linux life, you will want to pay attention. This one goes by the name “Plucky Puffin” and -- despite the typical silly codename -- it’s loaded with big under-the-hood changes and a few surprises baked in.
This new release is based on Linux kernel 6.14, so you’re getting the usual hardware enablement and driver updates. But there’s a lot more going on here than just kernel bumps. Ubuntu 25.04 ships with systemd 257.4, and in a move that may ruffle some feathers, support for utmp is gone. Canonical is also killing off SysV init support in a future systemd release, and cgroup v1 is officially on the chopping block too. Out with the old, in with the whatever-works-now, I suppose.
On the networking front, Netplan has hit version 1.1.2, bringing better Wi-Fi support and smarter routing configs for NetworkManager users. It’s not flashy, but it matters.
Toolchain updates are plentiful: Python 3.13.2, GCC 14.2, glibc 2.41, LLVM 20, Rust 1.84, and Go 1.24 are all in the mix. Ubuntu’s taking its usual stance of staying close to upstream, and developers are the real winners here.
The installer sees some significant changes too. Subiquity continues to mature, and the Desktop experience now lets you overwrite an existing Ubuntu install without having to get clever with partitioning. Dual boot with BitLocker? That’s less of a headache now too.
One of the more curious changes is in the default PDF viewer. Evince is out. Papers is in. Built on GTK4 and rewritten in Rust, it’s a modern replacement that keeps the familiar feel but adds performance and stability improvements.
Other updates worth mentioning: GNOME 48 is here. Firefox is now at version 136. LibreOffice is on 25.2, and Thunderbird jumps to the Supernova version 128. The fish shell has been rewritten in Rust for version 4. It’s fast, it’s fancy, and it might finally be time to ditch bash if you haven’t already.
That said, not everything’s sunshine and Puffins. There lots of bugs. From installation quirks to localization issues, and even some Docker containers misbehaving due to AppArmor hiccups, the beta status is very real. TPM-backed full disk encryption has compatibility issues with Absolute (formerly Computrace), and certain machines (hello ThinkPad X201) might need a nomodeset boot flag just to get going. Raspberry Pi users? Expect mixed results unless you’re rocking a Pi 4 or newer.
As usual, the beta is available for all the official flavors. That means Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu Budgie, MATE, Studio, Unity, Xubuntu, Kylin, and Cinnamon are all part of this release cycle. Each brings its own flavor to the Ubuntu base, but all of them share the same 6.14 kernel, updated subsystems, and short nine-month support window.
Canonical is pointing anyone who needs long-term support to stick with Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS. Plucky Puffin only gets support through January 2026, so it’s not the one to install on your grandma’s laptop unless you’re ready to babysit updates.
So, should you upgrade now? That depends. If you enjoy finding and reporting bugs, or just want to get ahead of the curve, go for it. But if you value a rock-solid system with no surprises, you might want to wait until April -- or stick with the LTS entirely.
Beta testers can download the ISO files using the links below. Canonical also wants feedback, so if you hit a snag, be sure to file a report.