The OS will remain based on Linux kernel 4.4.6 LTS

Apr 15, 2016 00:25 GMT  ·  By

The launch of the highly anticipated Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (Xenial Xerus) operating system is upon us, and now Canonical has just announced that the GNU/Linux distro has entered final freeze.

On April 14, 2016, Adam Conrad announced that the "Final Freeze" development state was in effect for Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. This means that there will be no new features added to the upcoming operating system, nor major changes will happen until its official launch next week, on April 21, 2016, with the exception of critical bugs.

Time flies when you're having fun testing the latest release of Ubuntu Linux, which we've been using on some of our computers since the beginning of the year to keep up with all the changes Canonical had planned for its next LTS (Long Term Support) release of Ubuntu, and share the highlights with our readers.

"As of nowish, xenial has entered the Final Freeze period in preparation for the final release of Ubuntu 16.04 LTS next week," said Adam Conrad on behalf of the Ubuntu Release Team. "The current uploads in the queue will be reviewed and either accepted or rejected as appropriate by pre-freeze standards."

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS Release Candidate images available for testing soon

Dubbed Xenial Xerus by Mark Shuttleworth, Ubuntu 16.04 LTS launches in one week from the moment of writing this article with many new features, among which we can mention Linux kernel 4.4 LTS, support for installing snap packages alongside Debian ones, support for moving the Unity Launcher to the bottom, and much more.

This weekend, you'll be able to help test the Release Candidate images of Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, but there won't be an official announcement for them, so you need to check the testing tracker regularly until the RC ISOs are released. Make sure you report any issues found to Canonical through the official channels.