Linux mint kernel versions

How to Check Linux Kernel Version on Ubuntu & Linux Mint

Learn how to check Linux kernel version on Ubuntu, Linux Mint, and related Linux distributions, simply by running one single command.

All you need is a working keyboard, a few fingers, and a terminal app of your choice.

Before we share the command to run to check your kernel version, let’s quickly recap the reasons why you might want to find your Linux kernel version in the first place.

Check Kernel Version

One thing unites every Linux distro out there, from Ubuntu to Fedora, Solus to Arch: the Linux kernel.

But what is the Linux kernel?

Well, there are plenty of in-depth, super complex definitions which describe what the Linux kernel is in detail. But the ‘for dummies’ way to describe it is as the engine of your operating system, atop which everything else sits.

The Linux kernel is what allows everything you see on your computer to be there; it’s responsible for managing hardware resources, allocating memory, allowing processes to run, to communicate and to do what you need them to do.

New versions of the Linux kernel are released regularly, including both major releases with new features, performance optimisations, and hardware support, and minor releases that carry critical security fixes or bug patches.

Security issues and hardware support mean it’s important to know which kernel you’re on

Sometimes (like this month, with the whole Spectre and Meltdown security issues) it can be helpful to know what version of Linux you’re running on as different security issues affect different kernel versions.

By knowing which kernel version your Linux distro is using, you’ll be better placed to tell whether you should upgrade your kernel or not (and if you do, you’ll then know how to double-check to make sure you’re in the clear).

Of course, there may be other reasons why you want to know which version of Linux you’re running. Support for new hardware is often kernel-specific too. You need to upgrade the Linux kernel to get your latest gadget or peripheral working just right.

Explanation over, lets see how to quickly find your Ubuntu kernel version number (or that of any other distro)

Find Linux Kernel Version

The quickest way to find the Linux kernel version you’re currently using is to use the command line.

Open the Terminal app from your systems application menu (or press ctrl + alt + t ) and run the following command:

The uname command instantly tells you which Linux kernel version you’re using. The output will look similar to this (but with different numbers, of course)

What do these Linux kernel version numbers mean?

• 4. – Kernel version
• 14. – Major revision
• 0 – Minor revision
• –16 – Bug fix/revision detail
• –generic — architecture/build specific

The first number is the kernel version. This number changes the least frequently. At present Linux 4.x is the current series.

The second number is the major revision. In years past an even revision number would denote a stable release, and an odd number a development release however this is no longer the case.

The third and fourth numbers relate to which minor revision and security/bug fix release you’re using.

View Even More Linux Kernel Info

To get even more information about your kernel, such as whether it’s 32-bit or 64-bit, you can run the same command again, but this time add the -a flag to the end (‘a’ stands for ‘all’):

The uname command will instantly tell you what need to know, including more details on the specific kernel version, your OS, and even the date the kernel was installed!

Am I Running the Latest Linux Version?

Check your kernel number against that of the latest mainline and stable Linux kernel releases on the following website:

Bonus Tip: Use Neofetch to check

The uname command is my go-to suggestion for checking kernel details. But my top tip for those who want to see more system info on the command line or check Ubuntu version, is to install Neofetch,

Neofetch is a great utility. It gives you an organized overview of pretty much everything your system is running, including distro name, desktop shell, GTK theme, plus details on ubuntu version, uptime, and memory.

You can install Neofetch on Ubuntu from the Ubuntu Software. The app is also available in the repos of other major Linux distros too, including Arch and Linux Mint.

Once installed just run the neofetch command from a terminal app:

This article is part of our Ubuntu Basics series. If you have a topic or tutorial suggestion you think we help new Ubuntu users do get in touch using our contact form.

Home » How To » How to Check Linux Kernel Version on Ubuntu & Linux Mint

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3 Ways to Check Linux Kernel Version in Command Line

Last updated October 29, 2020 By Abhishek Prakash 25 Comments

Brief: Wondering which Linux kernel version your system uses? Here are several ways to check your kernel version in the Linux terminal.

You may find yourself in a situation where you need to know the exact Linux kernel version being used on your system. Thanks to the powerful Linux command line, you can easily find that out.

Quick way to check Linux kernel version

You can use the following command to get the Linux kernel version:

uname -r

There are other ways to get even more detailed information about kernel. Read the rest of the article to learn it in detail.

In this article, I’ll show you various methods for finding out your kernel version and tell you what those numbers actually mean. If you prefer videos, here’s a quick one. Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more Linux tips.

How to find Linux kernel version

I am using Ubuntu while writing this article. But these commands are generic and can be used on Fedora, Debian, CentOS, SUSE Linux or any other Linux distribution.

1. Find Linux kernel using uname command

uname is the Linux command for getting system information. You can also use it to find out whether you’re using a 32-bit or 64-bit system.

Open a terminal and type in the following command:

The output will be something similar to this:

This means that you’re running Linux kernel 4.4.0-97, or in more generic terms, you are running Linux kernel version 4.4.

But what do the other digits mean here? Let me explain:

• 4 – Kernel version
• 4 – Major revision
• 0 – Minor revision
• 97 – Bug fix
• generic – Distribution-specific string. For Ubuntu, it means I’m using the desktop version. For Ubuntu server edition, it would be ‘server’.

You can also use the uname command with the option -a. This will provide more system information if you need it.

The output of the command should like this:

Let me explain the output and what it means:

• Linux – Kernel name. If you run the same command on BSD or macOS, the result will be different.
• itsfoss – Hostname.
• 4.4.0-97-generic – Kernel release (as we saw above).
• #120-Ubuntu SMP Tue Sep 19 17:28:18 UTC 2017 – This means that Ubuntu has compiled 4.4.0-97-generic 120 times. A timestamp for the last compilation is also there.
• x86_64 – Machine architecture.
• x86_64 – Processor architecture.
• x86_64 – Operating system architecture (you can run a 32-bit OS on a 64-bit processor).
• GNU/Linux – Operating system (and no, it won’t show the distribution name).

But I’ll save you from information overload. Let’s see some other commands to find your Linux kernel version.

2. Find Linux kernel using /proc/version file

In Linux, you can also find the kernel information in the file /proc/version. Just look at the contents of this file:

You’ll see an output similar to what you saw with uname.

You can see the kernel version 4.4.0-97-generic here.

3. Find Linux kernel version using dmesg commad

dmesg is a powerful command used for writing kernel messages. It’s also very useful for getting system information.

Since dmesg provides an awful lot of information, you should normally use a command like less to read it. But since we’re here just to check the Linux kernel version, grepping on ‘Linux’ should give the desired output.

The output will have a few lines but you should be able to identify the Linux kernel version there easily.

How do you check your Linux kernel version and other information?

Of the three ways discussed here, I use uname all the time. It’s the most convenient.

What about you? Which command do you prefer for getting Linux kernel information?

Like what you read? Please share it with others.

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Upgrade Kernel on Linux Mint

Each of the operating systems use their own kernels. For example, Windows uses its proprietary kernel whereas most other operating systems, especially the open-source ones use the well-known, tested and proven Linux kernel.

The Linux kernel is a living marvel of the software world. It’s one of the FINEST pieces of software that’s both INCREDIBLY complex and so, INCREDIBLY powerful with an INCREDIBLE community backing it up. It’s the core of all the Linux distros. Started by Linus Torvalds, Linux kernel v1.0.0 came out back in 1994. Now, it’s 2019 and the latest version is 4.20.5 (stable).

Throughout its course, the Linux kernel is getting advanced day by day. The kernel update is released every couple months with improved performance, stability, bug fixes, patches and additional features.

However, not all the Linux distros instantly incorporate the latest update right away. After the release, it usually takes time for getting it into your system officially.

That’s why I love to manage the kernel by myself.

Before we proceed any further, it’s worth to mention that unless you’re sure that you need that next-gen kernel, it’s not really worth making the leap. The kernel that comes with the distro is well-maintained by the developers as well.

Manage kernel on Linux Mint

If you’re a user of Linux Mint, then it’s way easier to perform “proven” actions on the kernel without worrying about something going wrong. Of course, things can go completely out of whack if you become too much adventurous. There are 2 available ways for managing a newer kernel version – using a GUI tool named “Ukuu” and installing the kernel manually.

Changing kernel using Ukuu

Ukuu is available directly for all the Debian/Ubuntu-based distros via the PPA.

Fire up a terminal –

Add the Ukuu repository –

Now, update the APT repository cache –

Finally, install Ukuu –

As you can see, the ones with the Ubuntu mark are the installed ones. The others are stable kernel releases throughout the journey.

It’s clear that my Linux Mint system is using Linux Kernel 4.15. It’s a quite old model.

Let’s install Kernel v4.18.20. Select the kernel and hit “Install”.

The installation process will start immediately.

Now, reboot your system for completing the installation.

Voila! The new kernel is all set!

Changing kernel manually

Note that this is a more risky process and might end up with some unwanted issues with your system.

Downloading the kernel

At first, download the latest Linux kernel package.

Verify the package

The process of downloading isn’t complete YET, unless you’ve ensured that the file is the verified package. Don’t you DARE skipping this step! Because it’s the kernel, even the slightest bit change can cause serious trouble!

Verify the downloaded package –

Upon trying to verify the package,

See? It’s not possible. Grab the public key from the PGP keyserver –

Here, the key string is going to be the key that the previous command showed.

Once the download is complete,

You can successfully verify the signature of the downloaded file.

The warning should be fine as long as you don’t get “BAD signature”. Now, it’s safe to proceed with the rest of the installation process.

Configuring kernel features and modules

Now, before you install the new kernel, you must configure its features. You also must specify all the necessary kernel modules that your system needs.

This can be overwhelming, so we’ll be using the existing config file. Run the following command –

Install the necessary compiler tools

For building the kernel package, you need the necessary dependencies available. Otherwise, the building step is going to be a mess.

Configuring the kernel for build

There are 3 available options –

• make menuconfig
  Text-based radio lists, color menus and dialogs. Useful for remote servers.
• make xconfig
  X Windows (Qt) based config tool. It works the best under KDE desktop.
• make gconfig
  X Windows (GTK) based config tool. It works the best under GNOME destkops.
• make oldconfig
  A series of y/N questions that you’re free to skip by pressing Enter.

For my case, I’ll be going with “make oldconfig”.

Just hold Enter until the nightmare ends!

Building the kernel

This is going to take a while, folks. Let’s concentrate on something else! It’s also going to take a lot of disk space and by that, I mean A LOT!

Installing the kernel

Start installing the kernel with the modules.

Then, it’s time to install the kernel itself.

Update GRUB config

Run the following commands –

For taking the result into effect, reboot your system.

About the author

Sidratul Muntaha

Student of CSE. I love Linux and playing with tech and gadgets. I use both Ubuntu and Linux Mint.

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