Linux 黑话解释：什么是长期支持（LTS）版本？什么是 Ubuntu LTS？
LTS
在 Linux 的世界里，特别是谈到 [Ubuntu](https://ubuntu.com/) 的时候，你会遇到 LTS（<ruby> 长期支持 <rt>  Long Term Support </rt></ruby>）这个词。


如果你是一个经验丰富的 Linux 用户，你可能知道 Linux 发行版的各个方面，比如 LTS 版本。但是，新用户或不太懂技术的用户可能不知道。


在这一章 Linux 黑话解释中，你将了解什么是 Linux 发行版的 LTS 版本。


### 什么是长期支持（LTS）版本？


长期支持（LTS）版本通常与应用程序或操作系统有关，你会在较长的时间内获得安全、维护和（有时有）功能的更新。


LTS 版本被认为是最稳定的版本，它经历了广泛的测试，并且大多包含了多年积累的改进。


需要注意的是，LTS 版本的软件不一定涉及功能更新，除非有一个更新的 LTS 版本。但是，你会在 LTS 版本的更新中得到必要的错误修复和安全修复。


LTS 版本被推荐给生产级的消费者、企业和商家，因为你可以获得多年的软件支持，而且软件更新不会破坏系统。


如果你注意到任何软件的非 LTS 版本，它通常是具有新功能和较短支持时间跨度（例如 6-9 个月）的前沿版本，而 LTS 版本的支持时间为 3-5 年。


![](/data/attachment/album/202009/15/212047vtqjdqs8aqufqunn.png)


为了让大家更清楚的了解 LTS 和非 LTS 版本的区别，我们来看看选择 LTS 版本的一些优缺点。


#### LTS 版本的优点


* 软件更新与安全和维护修复的时间很长（Ubuntu 有 5 年支持）
* 广泛的测试
* 软件更新不会带来破坏系统的变化
* 你有足够的时间为下一个 LTS 版本准备系统


#### LTS 版本的缺点


* 不提供最新和最强的功能
* 你可能会错过最新的硬件支持
* 你也可能会错过最新的应用程序升级


现在，你知道了什么是 LTS 版本及其优缺点，是时候了解一下 Ubuntu 的 LTS 版本了。Ubuntu 是最流行的 Linux 发行版之一，也是少数同时拥有 LTS 和非 LTS 版本的发行版之一。


这就是为什么我决定用一整个章节来介绍它。


### 什么是 Ubuntu LTS？


自 2006 年以来，Ubuntu 每六个月发布一个非 LTS 版本，每两年发布一个 LTS 版本，这一点一直如此。


最新的 LTS 版本是 [Ubuntu 20.04](https://itsfoss.com/download-ubuntu-20-04/)，它将被支持到 2025 年 4 月。换句话说，Ubuntu 20.04 在那之前都会收到软件更新。非 LTS 版本只支持九个月。


你会发现 Ubuntu LTS 版本总是被标为 “LTS”。至少，在 [Ubuntu 官方网站](https://ubuntu.com)上浏览最新的 Ubuntu 版本时是这样的。


为了让你更清楚，如果你见过 Ubuntu 16.04 LTS，那就意味着：**它早在 2016 年 4 月就已经发布，并且支持到 2021 年**（想想**5 年的软件更新**）。


同样，你也可以通过计算每个 Ubuntu LTS 版本发布日期接下来的**5 年**软件支持期来估计其更新支持情况。


### Ubuntu LTS 软件更新包括什么？


![](/data/attachment/album/202009/15/212115j18bz2mn4cr6z3ba.png)


Ubuntu LTS 版本在其发布的生命周期内都会收到安全和维护更新。除非该版本达到[生命末期（EOL）](https://itsfoss.com/end-of-life-ubuntu/)，否则你将获得所有必要的安全和错误修复。


在 LTS 版本中你不会注意到任何功能升级。所以，如果你想尝试最新的实验性技术，你可能需要将你的 Ubuntu 版本升级到一个非 LTS 版本。


我建议你参考我们最新的 [Ubuntu 升级指南](https://itsfoss.com/upgrade-ubuntu-version/)来了解更多关于升级 Ubuntu 的信息。


我也建议你阅读我们的文章[安装哪个 Ubuntu 版本](https://itsfoss.com/which-ubuntu-install/)，以消除你对不同 Ubuntu 版本的困惑，比如 [Xubuntu](https://xubuntu.org/) 或 [Kubuntu](https://kubuntu.org/)，它们有什么不同。


我希望你现在对 LTS 这个术语有了更好的理解，尤其是在 Ubuntu LTS 方面。敬请关注未来更多的 Linux 黑话解释。




---


via: <https://itsfoss.com/long-term-support-lts/>


作者：[Ankush Das](https://itsfoss.com/author/ankush/) 选题：[lujun9972](https://github.com/lujun9972) 译者：[wxy](https://github.com/wxy) 校对：[wxy](https://github.com/wxy)


本文由 [LCTT](https://github.com/LCTT/TranslateProject) 原创编译，[Linux中国](https://linux.cn/) 荣誉推出


OK
![Warp Terminal](/assets/images/warp-terminal.webp)


![Warp Terminal](/assets/images/warp-terminal.webp)

In Linux world, specially when it comes to [Ubuntu](https://ubuntu.com/?ref=itsfoss.com), you’ll come across the term LTS (long term support).

If you’re an experienced Linux user, you probably know the various aspects of a Linux distribution like an LTS release. But, new users or less tech-savvy users may not know about it.

In this chapter of Linux Jargon Buster, you’ll learn about what is an LTS release for Linux distributions.

## What is a Long Term Support (LTS) Release?

Long-Term Support (LTS) release is normally associated with an application or an operating system for which you will get security, maintenance and (sometimes) feature updates for a longer duration of time.

The LTS versions are considered to be the most stable releases which undergoes extensive testing and mostly includes years of improvements along the way.

It is important to note that an LTS version of software does not necessarily involve feature updates unless there’s a newer LTS release. But, you will get the necessary bug fixes and security fixes in the updates of a Long Term Support version.

An LTS release is recommended for production-ready consumers, businesses, and enterprises because you get years of software support and no system-breaking changes with software updates.

If you notice a non-LTS release for any software, it is usually the bleeding-edge version of it with new features and a short span of support (say 6-9 months) when compared to 3-5 years of support on an LTS release.

![Display Server Linux](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/wordpress/2020/09/display-server-linux.png)

To give you more clarity on LTS and non-LTS releases, let’s take a look at some pros and cons of choosing an LTS release.

### Pros of LTS releases

- Software updates with security and maintenance fixes for a long time (5 year support for Ubuntu).
- Extensive testing
- No system-breaking changes with software updates
- You get plenty of time to prep your system for the next LTS release

### Cons of LTS releases

- Does not offer the latest and greatest features
- You may miss out on the latest hardware support
- You may also miss out on the latest application upgrades

Now, that you know what is an LTS release and its pros and cons it’s time to know about Ubuntu’s LTS release. Ubuntu is one of the most popular Linux distribution and one of the few distributions that has both LTS and non-LTS releases.

This is why I decided to dedicate an entire section to it.

## What is Ubuntu LTS?

Ubuntu has a non-LTS release every six months and a LTS release every 2 years since 2006 and that’s not going to change.

The latest LTS release is — [Ubuntu 20.04](https://itsfoss.com/download-ubuntu-20-04/) and it will be supported until **April 2025**. In other words, Ubuntu 20.04 will receive software updates till then. The non-LTS releases are supported for nine months only.

You will always find an Ubuntu LTS release to be labelled as “**LTS**“. At least, when it comes to the [official Ubuntu website](https://ubuntu.com/?ref=itsfoss.com) to explore the latest Ubuntu releases.

To give you some clarity, if you notice Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, that means — it was **released back in April 2022 and is supported until 2027** (considering **5 years of software updates**).

Similarly, you can guess the update support for each Ubuntu LTS release by considering the next **5 years** of its release date for software support.

## Ubuntu LTS software updates: What does it include?

![Ubuntu LTS Release](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/wordpress/2020/09/ubuntu-lts-release-800x397.png)

Ubuntu LTS versions receive security and maintenance updates for the lifecycle of their release. Unless the release reaches the [End of Life](https://itsfoss.com/end-of-life-ubuntu/), you will get all the necessary security and bug fixes.

You will not notice any functional upgrades in an LTS release. So, if you want to try the latest experimental technologies, you may want to upgrade your Ubuntu release to a non-LTS release.

I’d suggest you to refer our latest [Ubuntu upgrade guide](https://itsfoss.com/upgrade-ubuntu-version/) to know more about upgrading Ubuntu.

## Further readings…

I would also recommend you to read our article on [which Ubuntu version to install](https://itsfoss.com/which-ubuntu-install/) to clear your confusion on different Ubuntu flavours available like [Xubuntu](https://xubuntu.org/?ref=itsfoss.com) or [Kubuntu](https://kubuntu.org/?ref=itsfoss.com) and how are they different.

[Explained: Which Ubuntu Version Should I Use?Confused about Ubuntu vs Xubuntu vs Lubuntu vs Kubuntu?? Want to know which Ubuntu flavor you should use? This beginner’s guide helps you decide which Ubuntu should you choose.](https://itsfoss.com/which-ubuntu-install/)![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/03/which-ubuntu-version-to-use.png)


![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/03/which-ubuntu-version-to-use.png)

Another common term you'll come across is the [rolling release](https://itsfoss.com/rolling-release/). You should learn more on that as well.

[What is a Rolling Release Distribution?What is rolling release? What is a rolling release distribution? How is it different from the point release distributions? All your questions answered.](https://itsfoss.com/rolling-release/)![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/wordpress/2020/09/what-is-rolling-release-distribution.png)


![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/wordpress/2020/09/what-is-rolling-release-distribution.png)

I hope you have a better understanding of the term LTS now specially when it comes to Ubuntu LTS. Stay tuned for more Linux jargon explainers in the future.