Tomorrow Ubuntu 14.04 LTS Trusty Tahr will stop receiving support by Canonical as after five years after its release During all this time, this version of Ubuntu received update support.
Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, will end its life cycle, end of life marks the end of all support for both desktop and server users, Ubuntu 14.04 LTS will no longer have any more security updates, package updates or maintenance updates.
Remember that Ubuntu 14.04 LTS was characterized as one of the Ubuntu versions to attract Windows users to Linux thanks to the end of support for Windows XP at the time.
Things to consider?
With this announcement, those users who do not update to a later version that will appear on May 1 will already be able to receive security patches or functionality updates as well as the ability to solve problems will be limited.
What can they do?
The options are only two and the first one for those who do not want to lose their data or make a backup of them to install a new system.
The recommended path in Ubuntu 14.04 is to update to the next version with support which is Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, which will continue to receive support until April 2021 and if the user wishes to continue scaling to the next version which is Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.
Unfortunately, Ubuntu 14.04 cannot be directly upgraded to 18.04. Users can choose the appropriate version and upgrade path according to their needs.
Although the most recommended if you plan to have Ubuntu 18.04 LTS on your computers, the official recommendation is install Ubuntu 18.04 LTS from scratch.
Since they will not only have the benefits that this version will not only be supported until 2023 but will also provide a direct upgrade to Ubuntu 20.04 LTS after launch next year.
Besides that they will avoid possible conflicts with the system packages and avoid having a system with corrupt packages or that cause problems.
Extended security maintenance an option to consider
Since Ubuntu 14.04 LTS is about to be discontinued, this nor does it mean it is completely inoperable the operating system itself will continue to work and third-party repositories may even continue to provide package updates.
For those companies or users who refuse to perform an update right now for whatever reason.
Canonical officially stated that business users Ubuntu who do not want to upgrade to a newer version can choose to register Ubuntu 14.04 ESM (Extended Security Maintenance) via Ubuntu Advantage.
Now, after almost five years since its launch, Ubuntu 14.04 LTS (Trusty Tahr) is also nearing the end of its useful life which will happen tomorrow "April 30, 2019".
Therefore, Canonical announced from last year he plans to extend the ESM program to Ubuntu 14.04 LTS operating system users who are willing to pay for security updates after the five-year support period.
ESM provides mission-critical service providers and organizations with a protected buffer where they can plan their migration to a newer version of Ubuntu, which offers full support, without being vulnerable to discovered security issues.
This extended “ESM” support is aimed fairly and directly at companies that have purchased Canonical's commercial support package, Ubuntu Advantage (UA) (although it can be purchased only if required).
The UA toIt currently costs $ 150 per desktop per year, while for a server, which is the most likely candidate for something that administrators do not want to update, it will cost $ 750 a year.
And well knowing the cards that are laid on the table, users, administrators and companies will have to make a decision.
If you are a desktop user and want to update, do not forget that here on the blog you will find the update and installation guides from scratch for the current versions with Ubuntu support.