> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://itsfoss.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # No More Reboots During Kernel Patching for ARM64 Systems on Ubuntu - URL: https://itsfoss.com/news/arm64-livepatching-on-ubuntu/ - Published: 2026-06-23T12:35:24.000Z - Updated: 2026-06-23T12:35:24.000Z - Description: Canonical's Livepatch finally extends to the platform in Ubuntu 26.04 LTS and Ubuntu Core 26. - Author: Sourav Rudra - Tags: News Canonical's [Livepatch](https://ubuntu.com/security/livepatch?ref=itsfoss.com) can now patch the Linux kernel on ARM64 systems without forcing a reboot. This has been possible on AMD64 machines for years, but [ARM64](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AArch64?ref=itsfoss.com) users had no equivalent option until now. It is available for users on **Ubuntu 26.04 LTS** and **Ubuntu Core 26**, and if this sounds familiar, that's because Canonical has already talked about this before. The first time was when the [Ubuntu 26.04 release](https://canonical.com/blog/canonical-releases-ubuntu-26-04-lts-resolute-raccoon?ref=itsfoss.com) was out, back in April, and the second instance was when [Ubuntu Core 26](https://canonical.com/blog/canonical-launches-ubuntu-core-26?ref=itsfoss.com) arrived. We are covering this now because they have put out [a dedicated writeup](https://ubuntu.com/blog/canonical-announces-live-kernel-patching-for-arm64?ref=itsfoss.com) explaining the effort that went behind getting this ready. **Work started back in 2023**, where the company ran a gap analysis (*a study of what's missing*) on what ARM64 needed to support live kernel patching, and the results weren't very encouraging. The issue was that the upstream ARM64 kernel lacked a stable implementation of [reliable stacktraces](https://docs.kernel.org/livepatch/reliable-stacktrace.html?ref=itsfoss.com), a feature livepatching depends on to know when it's safe to swap code in a running kernel. The compiler toolchain wasn't ready either, with *GCC*, *objdump*, and *Kpatch* all missing stable ARM64 support at the time. Work picked up through 2024 and into this year as [Arm](https://www.arm.com/?ref=itsfoss.com) processors became more common in cloud and edge deployments. Upstream kernel maintainers, hardware vendors, and Canonical's own engineers had to step up for closing those gaps. **By late February**, the ARM64 Livepatch client was already applying patches in Canonical's test environments for Ubuntu 26.04 LTS and Ubuntu Core 26. ## Why should you Livepatch? ![the ubuntu pro section in the security center app for ubuntu](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2026/06/ubuntu-pro-livepatch-option.png) **Some bug was preventing me from enabling Livepatch on a VM.* Livepatch comes as part of [Ubuntu Pro](https://ubuntu.com/pro?ref=itsfoss.com), Canonical's subscription that bundles security patching, support, and compliance tools all while also covering the kernel by patching critical and high-severity vulnerabilities. You don't need to pay for any of this if you just want to try it out, since Canonical offers Livepatch **free for personal use on up to five machines**. That should cover most home setups and small server fleets without forking over payment details. The real advantage shows up once you are managing more than a handful of machines, because instead of scheduling downtime to patch a kernel vulnerability, Livepatch applies the fix in-memory and **lets administrators decide when each machine gets the update**. It isn't a complete replacement for patching, though, since Livepatch only touches the kernel. **Canonical still recommends rebooting every so often** regardless, because long uptimes pile up memory leaks and other state issues that a livepatch can't clear. None of this really matters if you are a desktop user who restarts their machine fairly regularly, since Livepatch is built for systems where a reboot means real downtime and risk of cost overruns.