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Ubuntu Server

Ubuntu Server is the server edition of Ubuntu, a Debian-based Linux operating system. It provides a maintained base for network services, applications, virtual machines, containers, and cloud workloads without requiring a desktop interface.

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Ubuntu Server

Ubuntu Server is the server edition of Ubuntu, a Debian-based Linux distribution maintained by Canonical and the Ubuntu community. It combines the Linux kernel, GNU user-space tools, Debian packages, the APT package manager, systemd, and Ubuntu-specific integration into an operating-system platform for physical servers, virtual machines, and cloud instances.

A server operating system sits between hardware or a hypervisor and the services users need. Ubuntu Server detects compute, memory, storage, and network devices through the kernel. systemd starts the operating-system services. APT installs and updates packaged software. Configuration under /etc defines persistent behavior. Applications then listen for network requests, process data, and write state to storage.

users and other systems
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 network interfaces and firewall
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 application services and systemd units
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 packages, libraries, kernel, storage
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 physical server, virtual machine, or cloud instance

Ubuntu Server usually runs without a graphical desktop. Administrators connect through a console or Secure Shell, commonly called SSH. The absence of a desktop reduces the default software set and keeps attention on services, automation, and remote operations. It does not make the system self-managing. Accounts, updates, storage, network policy, logs, backups, and service health still need deliberate administration.

Releases and support

Ubuntu publishes a release every six months. An interim release receives nine months of support and offers newer kernels, compilers, and libraries. A Long Term Support release, or LTS, appears every two years and receives five years of standard security maintenance for packages in the main repository component. Ubuntu Pro can extend security maintenance and cover packages in universe.

LTS releases are the usual starting point for long-lived servers because their maintenance window reduces the frequency of operating-system migrations. Interim releases fit short-lived testing, development, or workloads that need newer platform components. This choice is a lifecycle decision, not a measure of whether a release is suitable for production.

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