How to know if Ubuntu Server 16.04 is updated/upgraded

BigToeHunt

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After running apt update and upgrade, the console displays that 3 packages can be upgraded/updated.

I'm pretty new to this so I'm not sure if that means that the updates/upgrades were successful or if the command only checked for me if packages can be updated/upgraded.

Is there a way to know if everything is up to date? Some kind of comparison of versions or something to that effect?

Attached is what is displayed when the command is run:

Screen Shot 2019-08-11 at 10.53.04 PM.png


The three listed are the upgradable packages but I have no idea how to know if they were updated or just listed as updatable. Is there a command needed to complete the updating?
 


sudo apt list --upgradable shows you what isn't up to date. You need to first run 'sudo apt-get update' to download all the latest updates (just the updatable list not the updates themselves). Then run 'sudo apt-get upgrade' to download and install those updates. Afterwards, if you run 'sudo apt list --upgradable', it shouldn't return any package names.
 
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Those are kernel packages... I wonder if the server isn't configured to restrict automatic kernel updates? Seems like that might be a conservative setting to protect the server from unexpected problems.

Cheers
 
sudo apt list --upgradable shows you what isn't up to date. You need to first run 'sudo apt-get update' to download all the latest updates (just the updatable list not the updates themselves). Then run 'sudo apt-get upgrade' to download and install those updates. Afterwards, if you run 'sudo apt list --upgradable', it shouldn't return any package names.

That is what I expect to happen. All of this is after the sudo apt-get update/upgrade commands are run. That is why I made the post. Logically, it should return no updatable/upgradable packages. I think I'm willing to let this go anyway (not being totally up to date) because the use of this server will be a very restricted LAMP server for an app I'm working on. It just seems odd that it wouldn't have done the updating/upgrading after running the commands to do so.

Would not having these things up to date affect the function of the server in the situation I described above? Keep in mind that I don't care if a security breach would take the machine down outside of the reconfiguring of the server to do what I want.
 
Those are kernel packages... I wonder if the server isn't configured to restrict automatic kernel updates? Seems like that might be a conservative setting to protect the server from unexpected problems.

Cheers

Thanks for you input. I believe I set it to the first option for updating when installing the server so no updates but I'm not sure.

Do you believe that leaving the system in its "out of date" state would affect the performance of the server if used as a LAMP server? It will be an experimental one that only I will have any access to or control over. I'm not worried about security at this point since it will be only myself that is using it.
 
I don't have server experience. Some desktop distros make kernel updates available, and some do not. Kernel updates can sometimes break applications, and that explains why people may choose to stay with the stable kernel that works for them. I don't recall ever having a problem myself from a kernel update, so I don't know which might be better in your case. If it is all an "experiment" for you... you might want to know if updates will risk breaking your application.
 
I don't have server experience. Some desktop distros make kernel updates available, and some do not. Kernel updates can sometimes break applications, and that explains why people may choose to stay with the stable kernel that works for them. I don't recall ever having a problem myself from a kernel update, so I don't know which might be better in your case. If it is all an "experiment" for you... you might want to know if updates will risk breaking your application.

Thanks atanere. I'll keep all of that in mind while going through this. I appreciate the help.
 

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