A Linux dedicated server gives you a whole physical machine with no hypervisor in the way, but which distribution should you run on it? Ubuntu, Debian, the CentOS successors, and RHEL each make different trade-offs around release cadence, support, and cost. This guide explains what a bare-metal Linux server actually is, when it beats a VPS or cloud instance, and how to pick a distribution by workload and support needs, with a side-by-side comparison and links to the right server for each.

Netplan is the YAML layer that configures networking on Ubuntu Server: you describe addresses, routes and DNS in one file, and a generator renders that into config for systemd-networkd. This crash course is written for a dedicated box with a static public IP, no Wi-Fi, and SSH as the only way in. It covers where the files live, the root-only 600 permission rule, a full static IPv4 and IPv6 example, the generate, try and apply commands that stop you locking yourself out, plus VLANs, bonds, bridges, and the cloud-init file that keeps overwriting people's edits.

Three Ubuntu LTS releases are in service right now: 22.04 approaching the end of standard support, 24.04 in its comfortable middle years, and the new 26.04 "Resolute Raccoon" with Linux 7.0. Which one belongs on your server depends on where you are in the cycle, and the answer is different for new deploys and existing fleets. This guide gives the support-window table, what actually changed in 26.04 for server operators, the honest reasons to stay on 24.04 for now, and the upgrade mechanics, including the August 2026 date when the LTS-to-LTS path opens.

Ubuntu is built from Debian, so this is a comparison between close relatives: same package format, same init system, largely the same administration. The real differences are cadence, support windows, kernel freshness, and who stands behind the updates: a fixed two-year LTS rhythm with optional paid coverage to 2036, versus a community release that's done when it's done and free forever. This guide lays out what the two actually share, where they genuinely differ, and which server workloads favour which, with current versions and support dates, not folklore.