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How to Tell What Version of Ubuntu You Are Running

Telling what version of Ubuntu you are running is extremely easy. You would commonly use this command to figure out if you are running Edgy after you upgraded from Dapper.

cat /etc/issue

Ubuntu edgy (development branch)

Note that the version numbers might change over time. I'm running the beta version so that's what shows up when I run that command. Either way, it should be clear that you are running Edgy.

The Geek is the founder of How-To Geek and a geek enthusiast. When he's not coming up with great how-to articles, he's probably writing at his personal blog. This article was written on 10/19/06 and tagged with: Ubuntu, Ubuntu Tips & Tweaks

Comments (7)

  1. John Kraft

    I think that the file /etc/lsb-release should be more reliable

  2. It's me

    I agree w/ John — you don't really know what "issue" is used for, do you?

    I suggest you RTFM by: "man issue motd"

    The more paranoid you get, the less hints you give to non-authenticated users, y'know?

  3. The Geek

    You are correct, lsb-release is a better option for ubuntu, but in my experience /etc/issue works across most linux varieties.

  4. Jaymes

    uname ?

  5. The Geek

    uname really just prints information about the kernel version… and while much more useful, is not the same as the version of the OS.

    For instance, uname -a on my dev server:

    Linux superfast 2.6.17-10-server #2 SMP Tue Dec 5 22:29:32 UTC 2006 i686 GNU/Linux

    No mention of Ubuntu in there.

  6. Vulcan

    $ uname
    Linux
    $_

  7. MeduZa

    I use: lsb_release in this way:

    $ lsb_release -d -s -c

    uname tell you the kernel vercion only not the distribution information


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