The first update of the latest Linux Kernel 3.18 series has been released recently. Greg Kroah-Hartman urges all users of this kernel series to upgrade as soon as possible.

Linux Kernel 3.18.1 is a small release which brings some fixes to wireless and alsa drivers. If you’re using the Asus Z99He laptop, a EAPD fixup has been added to solve “internal speaker not working” issue. For details, see the Linux Kernel Mailing List page.

How to Upgrade to Kernel 3.18.1 in Ubuntu:

The Ubuntu Kernel Team has made the packages for the new kernel release, available for download at the link below:

Download Kernel 3.18.1 .debs

First check out your OS type, 32-bit (i386) or 64-bit (amd64), then download and install the packages below in turn:

1. linux-headers-3.18.1-031801_xxx_all.deb
2. linux-headers-3.18.1-031801-generic_3.18.1-031801.xxx_i386/amd64.deb
3. linux-image-3.18.1-031801-generic_3.18.1-031801.xxx_i386/amd64.deb

For Ubuntu Server edition with graphical session, run below commands one by one to download & install the kernel debs:

For 64-bit system, run:

cd /tmp/

wget http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.18.1-vivid/linux-headers-3.18.1-031801-generic_3.18.1-031801.201412170637_amd64.deb

wget http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.18.1-vivid/linux-headers-3.18.1-031801_3.18.1-031801.201412170637_all.deb

wget http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.18.1-vivid/linux-image-3.18.1-031801-generic_3.18.1-031801.201412170637_amd64.deb

sudo dpkg -i linux-headers-3.18.1-*.deb linux-image-3.18.1-*.deb

For 32-bit system, run:

cd /tmp/

wget http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.18.1-vivid/linux-headers-3.18.1-031801-generic_3.18.1-031801.201412170637_i386.deb

wget http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.18.1-vivid/linux-headers-3.18.1-031801_3.18.1-031801.201412170637_all.deb

wget http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v3.18.1-vivid/linux-image-3.18.1-031801-generic_3.18.1-031801.201412170637_i386.deb

sudo dpkg -i linux-headers-3.18.1-*.deb linux-image-3.18.1-*.deb

Once done, restart the machine.

If for some reason, the new kernel does not work properly for you, reboot with the previous Kernel (Grub boot loader -> Advanced -> select previous kernel) and run below command to remove Linux Kernel 3.18.1:

sudo apt-get remove linux-headers-3.18.1-* linux-image-3.18.1-* && sudo update-grub

That’s it. Enjoy!