Ubuntu Focal Upgrades
Ubuntu Focal's ESM period will start in April 2025.
In the following article, we answer the most important questions about upgrading to Ubuntu 22.04 LTS Jammy Jellyfish and go into detail about the associated changes.
Ubuntu Jammy will be actively supported until April 2027, when it will enter its ESM period.
Ubuntu Upgrades
Ubuntu upgrades are an established standard process that are carried out regularly by Nine. With experience of several hundred upgrades, we would like to share with you the most important information for an upgrade from Ubuntu Focal to Ubuntu Jammy.
Version Changes between Focal and Jammy
The following table provides an overview of the most important version changes between the Ubuntu versions.
| Service | Ubuntu Jammy 22.04 | Ubuntu Focal 20.04 |
|---|---|---|
| PHP | 8.0 - 8.3 | 7.4, 8.0 - 8.2 |
| MySQL | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| PostgreSQL | 14 | 12 |
Further software as well as an overview of all Ubuntu versions can be found in this support article.
Discontinued Services
Elasticsearch
Nine is aware that the Elasticsearch license has once again been changed on August 30., 2024. We're investigating on how to advance in this regard and will update the article as soon as possible.
After Elasticsearch has changed their licensing in 2021, Nine can't offer the service as Managed Service anymore. Instead, Nine is offering OpenSearch, which was forked from Elasticsearch's latest version before the license change.
During an "in-place" upgrade, Elasticsearch will be replaced by OpenSearch.
As a fork of Elasticsearch, OpenSearch offers compatible REST APIs for ingest, search and administration. The query syntax and responses are also identical.
Regardless, Nine recommends to check the compatibility of your software with OpenSearch before scheduling an upgrade.
Requirements for an Upgrade
The two most important server components to be considered in advance for an upgrade are usually the PHP version and the version of the database software that is in use.
Databases
Please note that usually only one of the two database systems is used. MySQL is more widely used by Nine customers than PostgreSQL. If you are unsure which database system you are using, please do not hesitate to contact us.
MySQL
The MySQL version for Ubuntu Focal and Ubuntu Jammy are the same, both operating systems provide MySQL in version 8.0 .
PostgreSQL
The PostgreSQL version will change from 12 to 14 after the upgrade.
The PostgreSQL upgrade routine will be executed after the operating system has been upgraded. To do this, a copy of the database environment is created and a check is made in the upgrade process to see whether all the requirements for an upgrade are met.
If this is not the case, PostgreSQL can be downgraded to the old version.
Please check in advance whether your application is compatible with PostgreSQL 14.
PHP Version
For Ubuntu Jammy, Nine provides PHP versions 8.0 - 8.3.
To check if you are currently running older versions, you can connect to your server via SSH with the www-data user
and execute the following command:
sudo nine-manage-vhosts virtual-host list --json | jq -r '.[] | select([.template_variables.PHP_VERSION] | inside(["7.4"])) | ([.domain, .template_variables.PHP_VERSION] | join(" "))'
All vhosts that currently use PHP version 7.4 will be output in JSON format.
These vhosts should be adapted before the planned upgrade to PHP 8.0 or newer. Alternatively, ensure that they are at least compatible with PHP 8.0 before upgrading. Older versions will no longer be available after the upgrade.
Applications and Libraries installed in User Space
Components installed in the user space, such as applications and libraries, may have dependencies on certain versions of shared libraries provided by the operating system. An in-place upgrade or a migration to a newer version of Ubuntu can lead to these components no longer working properly due to changes in the shared libraries. The proper functioning of the components should be ensured immediately after an upgrade or during testing.
If errors occur, it is recommended to first reinstall the affected components, if possible with a newer version. In some cases, the installation or upgrade programs require a compiler tool chain, which can be installed on the system by Nine Support. An example of this is the application server uWSGI, which links to the shared library 'libcrypto' available during installation.
Upgrade Procedure
Virtual Server
For virtual servers, we perform an "in-place" upgrade. This eliminates the need to transfer data or test operation on a separate environment. The IP address of the system is retained.
Preparations
Before starting the upgrade routine, Nine creates backups of all databases and a snapshot of the virtual machine.
If an unforeseen situation should arise after the upgrade has been completed or if there are unplanned deviations during the upgrade, the previous status can be restored in a timely fashion and operation of the server can be guaranteed.
Duration of the Upgrade
The "in-place" upgrade usually takes 45 to 60 minutes. During this time, the server is not available for use.
Timeslots for "In-Place" Upgrades
Nine is offering "in-place" upgrades during office hours at the following days and times. If you're interested in an upgrade, please note your preferred date when reaching out to us.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11:00 | 16:00 | 14:00 | 09:30 16:30 |
On request, Nine offers upgrades outside office hours from 18:00 to 05:00 at the hourly rate of CHF 250 plus the out of office hours one time fee of CHF 250.
Dedicated Server
We do not offer "in-place" upgrades for dedicated systems.
In the course of renewing the operating system, we recommend replacing the hardware and switching to our new hardware platform at the same time for dedicated systems.
Hardware performance increases regularly and since we introduced two new hardware generations since September 2021, it is advisable to carry out both steps at the same time and thus avoid duplicate work.
Procedure for Dedicated Servers
For dedicated systems, Nine provides a new server according to your desired configuration and copies over all data from the current production server.
You can then test the functionality of the new environment. The server is offered free of charge for a test period of 2 weeks.
After your approval, we agree on an appointment for the migration to the new server. In the process, we synchronise the data with the production system again and forward all traffic from the old server to the new one.
Finally, you must update the DNS entries of affected domains to point to the new IP address.
Upgrade to Ubuntu Noble
"in-place" upgrades (for virtual servers) perform an upgrade to the next newer Ubuntu version. A direct upgrade from Ubuntu Focal to Ubuntu Noble is therefore not possible. An "in-place" upgrade option from Ubuntu Jammy to Ubuntu Noble will be available the earliest in summer 2026.
If you wish to upgrade directly to Ubuntu Noble, we're providing you with a new system instead. We will gladly transfer the data of the current productive system and support you with the migration.
The procedure is identical to the migration of a dedicated server.
Upgrade and Migration Costs
Nine offers the "in-place" upgrade free of charge during office hours (09:00 - 18:00).
For migrations, Nine offers one hour work free of charge, which is usually sufficient. Additional work or clarifications will be charged at our hourly rate of CHF 250.
If you wish the work to be carried out outside business hours (18:00 to 05:00), our out of office hours one time fee of CHF 250 will be charged in addition to the regular hourly rate.
Contact
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or uncertainties about Ubuntu upgrades, questions about specific services or details about the procedure as well as to arrange an appointment. You can reach us by email at or via our Service Desk Portal.