Upgrading to the latest KDE

[EuroNiceguy]

Hi Everyone,

I might be a little behind in terms of the latest in Linux news.

I understand that the latest KDE is 6.4 (please correct me if I am wrong), and my computer is running the following;

Operating System: Kubuntu 24.04
KDE Plasma Version: 5.27.12
KDE Frameworks Version: 5.115.0
Qt Version: 5.15.13
Kernel Version: 6.8.0-71-generic (64-bit)
Graphics Platform: X11
Processors: 16 × AMD Ryzen 7 5700G with Radeon Graphics
Memory: 27.3 GiB of RAM
Graphics Processor: AMD Radeon Graphics
Manufacturer: Micro-Star International Co., Ltd.
Product Name: MS-7C95
System Version: 1.0

Can you advise whether it is recommended to upgrade to the latest KDE, and if so, can you advise on how this can be done.

And at the same time, is there any other software updates or otherwise you recommend for me to do please





Thank you in advance,
Michael

[claydoh]

You won't be able to have the latest Plasma releases on Kubuntu LTS - they generally stay at a version or minor point release for its lifespan.
You are on the last version of Plasma 5, before the switch to Plasma 6. Arguably the most stable and solid version of Plasma 5.

To get to the most current Plasma - 6.4.x, you would need to wait until Kubuntu 25.10 is released in October -- which involves a fresh installation. Or wait until 26.04 is out and upgrade to whatever Plasma version that will have. Your only upgrade path is to wait until 26.04.

Being recommended or not is quite personal. But there will be no more updates for Plasma 5. Kubuntu 24.04 will reach End of Life in April 2027, so there is no rush to move on.

I'd suggest giving Kubuntu 25.04 a try - either in a live USB session, a dual-boot, or in a virtual machine, so you can see how things are.

Having the most-est current-est stuff can bring many good things and bug fixes for you, but also can bring UI changes or new bugs. Kubuntu non-LTS buffers that a bit by trailing a little behind, which can lessen the shock, so to speak.

So, it is up to you and your needs.
If you want 6.4.4 now, you'd need to install a different distro that keeps more current more often, or try a pre-release or daily build of the upcoming 25.10.

Otherwise, just keeping updated normally is all you need.

[EuroNiceguy]

Thank you for this.

I'd rather something solid and reliable. So I may as well stick with what I have.

No word of lie, I am happy with the set up that I have.

In the future when the Upcoming 25.10 comes out, Do I need to install that distro, or is there a Terminal command which allows me to upgrade to 25.10?

[claydoh]

No word of lie, I am happy with the set up that I have.

There is northing wrong with that at all Having a working system you like is the most importasnt thing.

In the future when the Upcoming 25.10 comes out, Do I need to install that distro, or is there a Terminal command which allows me to upgrade to 25.10?

You would need to do a fresh installation in this case. You cannot skip upgrades, so you would need to go from 24.04 >> 24.10 >> 25.04. Or 24.04>>26.04. But in this case, 24.10 has already reaches End of Life (EOL) so you can't upgrade to that any longer.


Non-LTS releases need a full release upgrade every 6 months, with the old version going EOL a few months later.

LTS releases come out every two years, and can either be upgraded to the very next non-LTS after 6 months, or waiting the two years for the next LTS.