Canonical has extended the life cycle of Ubuntu LTS up to 15 yearsa strategic move explicitly aimed at the corporate market and environments where long-term stability is a regulatory, operational or certification requirement, the company qualifies. The extension is applied using the Legacy add-on, available as a plug-in Ubuntu Proand is effective retroactively from Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.
The announcement consolidates a support model that better reflects the useful life of critical infrastructure. The new scheme is structured like this:
- 5 years of standard support.
- 5 additional years of Extended Security Maintenance (ESM).
- 5 extra years with the Legacy add-onthe new component that prolongs coverage.
The goal is to reduce the number of major updates in environments where each change involves validation, auditing or recertification. Canonical highlights that this expansion responds to a clear demand from sectors such as industry, health, administration and regulated services.
What Ubuntu Pro offers in the extended cycle
Ubuntu Pro acts as the foundation of the model: it extends security maintenance to thousands of components in the Ubuntu ecosystem, providing audits, certifications, hardened repositories and continuous patching for critical, high and some medium vulnerabilities. With the Legacy add-on, this coverage is extended for another five years without altering its functional scope.
Throughout the extended cycle, kernel, system base and essential open source components are covered, guaranteeing operational continuity without disruptive migrations.
Availability and contracting
The extension applies from Ubuntu 14.04 LTSwhich becomes supported until April 2029thus completing 15 years since its launch. It does not require reinstallations or additional processes: just keep the subscription active and the system updated.
He Legacy add-on can only be contracted after completing the first ten years of support (standard + ESM) and has a cost equivalent to the 50% off Ubuntu Pro base Price. It is not included in the free version of Ubuntu Pro for personal use.
