Using the ubuntu-security-status command (with examples)

1: Display the number of unsupported packages

Code:

ubuntu-security-status

Motivation: This command is useful to determine the number of installed packages that are no longer receiving security support. By running this command, users can assess the level of vulnerability their system may have due to unsupported packages.

Explanation for the arguments: This command does not take any arguments.

Example output:

3746 packages installed, of which:
- 3179 receive package updates with LTS until 4/2025 (64.09%)
- 205 receive package updates with ESM until 4/2030 (5.47%)
- 22 packages are from third parties (0.59%)
- 339 receive updates through canonical-livepatch (9.04%)
- 1 package has version 4.8.2-1ubuntu1.20.04.1 available
- 1 package has version 5.4.0-58.64 available
- 2 packages are unsupported (0.05%)

2: List packages that are no longer available for download

Code:

ubuntu-security-status --unavailable

Motivation: This command is helpful to identify packages that were previously installed but are no longer available for download. Knowing which packages are unavailable can assist in troubleshooting and finding suitable replacements if needed.

Explanation for the arguments: The --unavailable argument instructs the ubuntu-security-status command to list packages that are no longer available for download.

Example output:

The following packages are no longer available for download:
- java-common 0.72 (main)
- libfluidsynth1 1.1.11-1 (universe)
- libxkbfile1 1:1.1.0-1ubuntu1 (main)
- libasound2-plugins 1.2.2-2.1ubuntu2 (main)
- libcairo-gobject2 1.16.0-4ubuntu1 (main)
- libcairo-script-interpreter2 1.16.0-4ubuntu1 (main)
...

3: List third-party packages

Code:

ubuntu-security-status --thirdparty

Motivation: This command helps identify packages that are not part of the official Ubuntu repositories and are instead provided by third-party sources. Knowing which packages are from external sources can be crucial for determining the trustworthiness and support levels of installed software.

Explanation for the arguments: The --thirdparty argument tells the ubuntu-security-status command to display a list of third-party packages.

Example output:

The following third-party packages are installed:
- teamviewer 15.12.4 (commercial)
- google-chrome-stable 90.0.4430.85 (extra)
- spotify-client 1:1.1.56.595 (extra)
- slack 4.14.0 (extra)
- virtualbox-6.1 6.1.22-144080 (extra)
- zoom 5.6.4 (extra)
- vscode 1.55.0 (extra)
...