Debian 10 (Buster)
Debian 10 (Buster) left LTS on 2024-06-30 and only third-party ELTS remains (until 2029-06-30). Step-wise migration route 10→11→12→13 and practical advice.
Debian 10, codename Buster, was released on July 6, 2019. Its LTS support ended on June 30, 2024, and skipping releases is not supported — systems still on 10 should migrate step-wise via 10 → 11 → 12 → 13, or evaluate third-party ELTS (until 2029-06-30).
Double EOL: migrate soon
Debian 10 has had no official security updates for years, and its kernel and toolchain are far behind the current stable. Unless regulation forces you to keep it, prefer a fresh Debian 13 install or the step-wise upgrade route.
📌 Historical reference
| Item | Info |
|---|---|
| Release date | 2019-07-06 |
| Kernel | Linux 4.19 LTS series |
| Desktop | GNOME 3.30 |
| LTS ended | 2024-06-30 |
| ELTS | Until 2029-06-30 (third-party commercial, subset of packages) |
🔄 Migration route
Debian does not support skipping releases — from 10 you must go step by step:
- 10 → 11 (Bullseye): fully update, switch sources from
bustertobullseye,apt full-upgrade, reboot and verify - 11 → 12 (Bookworm): repeat the process, updating third-party repository addresses
- 12 → 13 (Trixie): the final switch — see the upgrade guide
Back up /etc and your data at every step and confirm services before moving on. For old hardware with rebuildable data, a fresh Debian 13 install is usually faster and safer than three upgrades.
🔗 Related pages
Debian 11 (Bullseye)
Debian 11 (Bullseye) reached End-of-Life on 2026-08-31. Options for running systems: upgrade via 12 to 13, buy third-party ELTS, or isolate and decommission.
Debian Release History & Upgrade Paths
Debian release timeline from 10 Buster to 14 Forky, the support-window pattern, and the step-wise upgrade route between versions. Know where your system stands and where to go next.