Ubuntu 20.04 LTS is now available to download, six (rather hectic) months after development on the release first began.
This is the final, stable release of Ubuntu 20.04, codename ‘Focal Fossa’. It comes with 5 years of guaranteed security updates, critical fixes, and select software updates from Canonical.
You can download Ubuntu 20.04 direct from the Ubuntu image server using the link below. This will download a 64-bit .iso image of the release that is around 2.7GB in size.
Once the download completes you will need to write the Ubuntu 20.04 .iso image to a blank DVD or flash it to a USB stick using a tool like Etcher. Then just pop the DVD in or plug in the USB and reboot, selecting the appropriate boot option.
I always recommending using the ‘Try Ubuntu without installing’ option first. This drops you into a full desktop session that you can explore safely and check that all of your hardware works okay. If you like what you see you can then run the installer app from the live image to install the OS on to your system.
If you’re a regular reader of this site you’ll be pretty clued up on the changes the Focal offers by now — I feel like I hadn’t stopped talking about it for months — But on the off chances you’re not…
Ubuntu 20.04 rides atop the Linux 5.4 kernel, boasts faster boot speeds thanks to new kernel compression algorithms, and carries a clutch of new graphics drivers, software, and utilities:
- Linux 5.4
- Improved ZFS install support
- OEM logo displayed during boot
- GNOME Shell 3.36
- Performance improvements
- New Lock screen
- Do not disturb mode
- Refined app folder creation
- Updated Settings panels
- Visible ‘Suspend’ option in Status Menu
- Optional ‘dark’ theme
- Fractional scaling support
- Snap-based Ubuntu Software store
- Feral Game Mode included by default
Don’t forget that you can also upgrade to 20.04 from 19.10 or 18.04 directly, which may be easier than starting afresh, especially if you have a lot of files to back up.