Ubuntu users faced severe update delays following 36-minute Canonical server downtime

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Ubuntu users faced major disruptions

Ubuntu
(Image credit: Future)
  • Canonical says the downtime only lasted 36 minutes
  • Users were unable to install updates for days
  • Ubuntu is back up and running now

Canonical has reported a series of outages affecting security.ubuntu.com and archive.ubuntu.com on both September 5 and 7, but despite the minutes-long downtimes, users are reporting ongoing issues.

The brief downtime created a large backlog of requests that servers struggled to process, even though the status page was promptly updated to resolved.

In the days that followed, users continued to experience failed installations, frozen updates and broken repositories.

Ubuntu hit by minutes-long downtime

“They say the outage was only 36 minutes, but two days later it still isn't working,” one user noted (via The Register).

Another noted that they had failed to install Ubuntu Server 24.04.2 LTS on their machine because it was freezing mid-process and failing to download some packages.

“It is known that the backlog caused by the outage is causing the mirrors and security updates to be ‘broken’ at this time due to the backlog in the queue for processing,” Ubuntu Studio Lead Erich Eickmeyer confirmed in a thread, which described the queue as “very large.”

At the peak of the disruption, Eickmeyer explained that there was nothing users could do except for wait.

Self-proclaimed Linux hobbyist Rubi1200 confirmed on September 7 that users were still reporting issues with updates, but by September 8 things had restored to normal.

However, many users were unhappy with the days-long disruption despite the minutes-long outage, with the status page not truly reflecting the impact.

The disruption also highlights how much of the Linux community leans on security.ubuntu.com for security fixes – failure to access the server could result in serious issues if this were a patch for a critical vulnerability.

For now, though, it seems that users can install security updates as normal once more.

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Craig Hale
Craig Hale

With several years’ experience freelancing in tech and automotive circles, Craig’s specific interests lie in technology that is designed to better our lives, including AI and ML, productivity aids, and smart fitness. He is also passionate about cars and the decarbonisation of personal transportation. As an avid bargain-hunter, you can be sure that any deal Craig finds is top value!

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