Canonical Releases Ubuntu 23.04 with Azure Active Directory Support

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Last week, Canonical announced the release of Ubuntu 23.04. The latest version of its Linux distribution includes improved Azure Active Directory support, a new desktop installer, and other enterprise-focused features.

Codenamed Lunar Lobster, Ubuntu Desktop 23.04 provides native user authentication with Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). This release enables Microsoft 365 enterprise customers to authenticate their Ubuntu Desktops with a common set of credentials. Canonical will continue to listen to user feedback before backporting Azure AD support to Ubuntu 22.04 Long-Term Support (LTS) later this year.

“This Ubuntu milestone release demonstrates our progress in raising the bar for the enterprise developer desktops, thanks to our best-in-class Linux integration with Active Directory (AD) Domain Services and now Azure Active Directory,” explained Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth.

Canonical also announced that the latest release adds support for the Active Directory Bridging Toolsuite’s Samba winbind domain service. It lets customers use Ubuntu with AD on Amazon Workspaces and older AD configurations. Other capabilities include support for network shares, app confinement, and enterprise proxy. However, keep in mind that some enterprise features may require an Ubuntu Pro license.

Canonical Releases Ubuntu 23.04 with Azure Active Directory Support

Ubuntu 23.04 adds a new installer and snap improvements

Ubuntu Desktop 23.04 adds a new desktop installer called Subsiquity. It’s a streamlined installer designed to help IT admins with enterprise deployment and image customization at scale. Canonical has introduced an updated Snap package manager that allows users to download updates in the background and install them automatically when the desktop app is closed.

Canonical Releases Ubuntu 23.04 with Azure Active Directory Support

Last but not least, Ubuntu Desktop 23.04 brings improved toolchains and runtimes for all popular programming languages such as C++, .Net, Java, and Python. The latest distribution also comes with enhanced debugging support and container security and lifecycle management capabilities.

Canonical notes that Ubuntu 23.04 is available to download for free on the Ubuntu website. If you’re interested, we invite you to check out the official blog post to learn more about the aforementioned features.