Do Ubuntu MATE 16.04 .iso images ever get updated?

When downloading the UM 16.04 .iso images do I get exactly the same .iso image that was made available on the first release day? Do bugfixes ever get worked into the actual .iso images or are bugfixes handled exclusively through updates?

Hi @Maro. Yes they get updated but someone correct me if I’m wrong. Ubuntu-Mate uses the Ubuntu process (no surprise). If and when the image changes, it’ll become 16.04.1 (.2, .3 etc).

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There’s also a daily live of Xenial you can use if you don’t feel like waiting for the point releases:

http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntu-mate/xenial/daily-live/current/

If I understand correctly those images are basically 16.04.0 + every update shipped since.
I used one of those images to install 16.04 on a machine and indeed, there was only one day worth of updates to do after install, instead of the classic mass update.

Edit: I did not understand correctly. See @lah7’s post below.

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My experience with the daily images for 16.04 is they’re not really release quality. For testing and experimenting they’re just fine, but for using as a LTS release I have my doubts.

Perhaps @lah7 can provide some clarity.

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They are the same system you’d get by installing the release 16.04 and running the updates, so unless there’s regression in an installer update, you should end up the same. The pre-release daily images (so 16.10 dailies right now) certainly aren’t always release ready until closer to the final release.

Edit: I was wrong, see the following answer.

Truthfully I wasn't sure myself, but a quick look confirms the Xenial daily images are intended for development testing.

These images enable pre-released updates by default, as seen by this check mark in Software & Updates:

Also, from a quick look at the kernel versions:

  • My actual system: 4.4.0-24-generic
  • Xenial's daily image for today: 4.4.0-27-generic

Pre-released updates are definitely not stable, so not exactly 16.04 + all updates. They could be withdrawn at any time and leave you with a broken system, or software that should never have been updated for the general user.

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Thank you guys and @lah7 for clarifying this.