Linux Mint's Upgrade Tool is now available for beta testing

A few months ago, developers of the Linux Mint team announced that they would release an Upgrade Tool soon to improve major Linux Mint version upgrades.

The graphical user interface tool would add an option to the upgrade process to make it more comfortable and easier for many of the operating system's users. Instead of having to run commands from Terminal windows, most Linux Mint upgrades could be completed using just the tool.

Linux Mint point release updates are simpler, as they don't require the use of the command line. In fact, the entire process is not that different from updating other applications or operating systems. A device that is updated from Linux Mint 20.2 to 20.3 is ready in no time, provided that no issues are encountered during the process.

Updates from Linux Mint 20.3, the latest stable version of the Linux distribution, to Linux Mint 21, the next stable version, are not that easily performed. To address this, and improve the process, development of the Upgrade Tool began.

In early April 2022, Linux Mint's Upgrade Tool was available as an alpha version. Now, the developers have released the first beta version of the Upgrade Tool. The particular version of the Upgrade Tool is designed to upgrade Linux Mint Debian Edition 4 to Linux Mint Debian Edition 5. The Upgrade Tool for upgrading Linux Mint 20.3 to Linux Mint 21 will follow in the future.

Since it is a beta tool, it is advised to create backups of the system and important data before using it. While there is Timeshift, which can be used to revert changes, it may be better to have another option to restore the previous system state.

The beta release is available for testing, and users may want to report bugs and issues to the Linux Mint development team.

The following commands need to be run to install and run the Linux Mint Upgrade Tool on the LMDE 4 system:

1. apt update
2. apt install mintupgrade
3. sudo mintupgrade

The last command runs the Upgrade Tool on the device. The application's user interface launches on the screen. All it takes is to follow the instructions to upgrade to the new major LMDE 5 release.

The following two commands may be run to remove the Upgrade Tool and restart the system after the process completes:

1. apt remove mintupgrade
2. sudo reboot

Closing Words

Linux Mint's Upgrade Tool improves the process of upgrading to major Linux Mint releases, especially for users who don't feel too comfortable using the command line. Experienced users may still upgrade using the command line, as the Upgrade Tool adds an option to the process without taking anything away.

Now You: will you use the Upgrade Tool?

Linux Mint's Upgrade Tool is now available for beta testing