The Boot Interruption
Ubuntu Linux is designed to be user-friendly, and part of that design involves ensuring your system is always running the latest, most secure software. By default, shortly after you boot up and log into your desktop, a background service checks the Ubuntu repositories for new software versions. If updates are available, Ubuntu will automatically launch the graphical “Update Manager” window, popping it up directly in the center of your screen. While helpful, if you are booting up your PC to immediately join a critical video conference or start a time-sensitive task, this sudden, screen-stealing pop-up is a frustrating interruption.
Silencing the Update Prompts
To stop Ubuntu from automatically launching the Update Manager window upon login and interrupting your workflow, you must adjust the frequency of its automated checks.
Press the Super (Windows) key to open the Activities overview and type “Software & Updates”. Click the Software & Updates application icon. Navigate to the Updates tab. Look for the dropdown menu labelled Automatically check for updates. The default is typically set to “Daily”. Click the dropdown and change this setting to Never. By doing this, the background service will no longer query the servers upon boot, and the Update Manager window will never pop up on its own. Crucially, this means you are now entirely responsible for your system’s security. You must remember to manually open the “Software Updater” application or run sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade in the terminal regularly to apply critical patches.