You Can Now Install Linux Kernel 6.13 on Ubuntu, Here’s How

Linux 6.13 is now the latest stable kernel and Ubuntu users can install it on their machines via the official Ubuntu Mainline Kernel PPA archive. Here’s a quick tutorial on how to do that via graphical or command-line methods.

Linux kernel 6.13 was released on January 19th, 2025, with new features like lazy preemption support, user-space shadow stack support for AArch64 (ARM64) via Guarded Control Stack (GCS), support for running Linux in protected virtual machines (a.k.a. realm) under the Arm CCA (Confidential Compute Architecture), support for 6-node sub-NUMA clustering on Intel, split-lock detection support for AMD CPUs, and much more.

Ubuntu users who need extra hardware support or just want a taste of the new features can now install Linux kernel 6.13. I’ve tested this tutorial on Ubuntu 24.10 (Oracular Oriole) and it worked without issues. Packages are available for 64-bit (x86_64), AArch64 (ARM64), ARMhf, PowerPC 64-bit Little Endian (ppc64el), and IBM System z (s390x) architectures.

As mentioned before, this tutorial uses the official Linux kernel packages built by the Ubuntu Kernel Team. However, I must warn you that these kernels are produced with no warranty. The Ubuntu Kernel Team will NOT offer support for these kernels in case you have issues, and they will NOT be held responsible for any damages these kernels may cause due to improper installation or use.

Method 1: Install Linux kernel 6.13 on Ubuntu with the “Mainline Kernels” tool

The easiest way to install Linux kernel 6.13 on your Ubuntu computer is by using a graphical tool called Mainline Kernels, which you can install from this PPA by running the commands below in the Terminal app. Open the Terminal app and run the following commands to install the Mainline Kernels tool:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:cappelikan/ppa sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade sudo apt install -y mainline
Once the Mainline Kernels tool is installed, you can open it from the applications menu of your Ubuntu system. The tool will quickly check the availability of all kernel versions from Canonical’s Mainline Kernel PPA archive and list the latest kernel at the top.

Click on the latest kernel entry to select it, then click on the big “Install” button on the right to install it on your Ubuntu machine. Wait for the installation to complete and then reboot your computer.

The advantage of using this method is that you will receive new kernel versions (e.g. Linux 6.13.1, 6.13.2, 6.13.3, etc.). Even better, the Mainline Kernels tool will inform you of newer kernel versions if you enable the notification feature in the tool’s settings.

Method 2: Install Linux kernel 6.13 on Ubuntu via CLI

The second method is recommended for experienced users who know what they’re doing and don’t want to use the Mainline Kernels tool from the first method above. This method can be used as a fallback method when the Mainline Kernels tool doesn’t pick up the latest kernels from the Ubuntu Mainline Kernel PPA archive.

This method implies that you must manually download and install the Linux 6.13 kernel packages for your specific architecture (64-bit (amd64), AArch64 (ARM64), ARMhf, PowerPC 64-bit Little Endian (ppc64el), or IBM System z (s390x)) from the official Ubuntu mainline kernel PPA archive and install them on your system via the command line.

For example, to install Linux kernel 6.13.2 on a 64-bit (amd64) Ubuntu system, download the packages listed below in a folder in your Home directory. Once you have downloaded all the kernel packages in the respective folder, you can install them all at once by running the sudo dpkg -i *.deb command.
linux-headers-6.13.2-061302-generic_6.13.2-061302.202502081010_amd64.deb linux-headers-6.13.2-061302_6.13.2-061302.202502081010_all.deb linux-image-unsigned-6.13.2-061302-generic_6.13.2-061302.202502081010_amd64.deb linux-modules-6.13.2-061302-generic_6.13.2-061302.202502081010_amd64.deb

Going back to Ubuntu’s default kernel or another installed kernel

If you experience any issues with Linux kernel 6.13 and you want to go back to Ubuntu’s default kernel or another kernel that’s installed on your system, press the Esc key when your computer boots to view the boot menu, then access the “Advanced options” boot entry and select a different kernel version from the list of available kernels.