how to update my ubuntu 24.10 droplet

Question

i have a ubuntu droplet VPS which worked good for the past years but i started getting error every time i try to install anything so i googled it and it seems that the ubuntu 24.10 reached it EOL, so how do i update my system safely?

that’s the error i get when running apt update:

Error: The repository 'http://mirrors.digitalocean.com/ubuntu oracular Release' no longer has a Release file.
Notice: Updating from such a repository can't be done securely, and is therefore disabled by default.
Notice: See apt-secure(8) manpage for repository creation and user configuration details.

KFSys · Answer

Heya,

Before you begin, I recommend that you create a snapshot of your Droplet. You can do that by following this document:

https://docs.digitalocean.com/products/snapshots/

Once that is done, you can update your Ubuntu to 24.04 LTS following these steps:

Because the repos are gone, you must temporarily point to old releases just to perform the upgrade.

sudo sed -i 's|mirrors.digitalocean.com|old-releases.ubuntu.com|g' /etc/apt/sources.list

Then:

sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade -y

Install the upgrader if needed:

sudo apt install update-manager-core

Start the upgrade:

sudo do-release-upgrade

Follow the prompts:

Accept package maintainer versions unless you know you customized them
When asked about restarting services, say yes

Reboot when done.

Verify:

lsb_release -a

You should now see Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (noble).

Once upgraded:

sudo sed -i 's|old-releases.ubuntu.com|mirrors.digitalocean.com|g' /etc/apt/sources.list
sudo apt update

You’re back on supported repositories.

Bobby · Answer

Hi there,

In addition to what has already been mentioned by KFSys, the key thing to keep in mind is that Ubuntu 24.10 is a non-LTS release and once it reaches EOL, the repositories are removed, which is why apt update is now failing.

Taking a snapshot first is the right move. After that, temporarily switching to old-releases.ubuntu.com just to get the system into an upgradeable state and then upgrading straight to 24.04 LTS is the safest path forward. Once the upgrade is complete, switching the sources back to the DigitalOcean mirrors puts you back on supported repos.

After the reboot, make sure to verify the version with lsb_release -a and you should be good to go.

alexdo · Answer

Heya, @kadialjohani As a temporary step only, you can switch APT to old-releases.ubuntu.com just to unblock the upgrade, then move to a supported version. Hope that this helps!

Report this

how to update my ubuntu 24.10 droplet

Become a contributor for community

DigitalOcean Documentation

Resources for startups and AI-native businesses

The developer cloud

Start building today