Configuration and device management
Ubuntu Pro with Landscape
Canonical's subscription for Ubuntu machines, covering security updates, compliance tools and Landscape, its tool for managing and patching fleets of Ubuntu machines from one place.
Price from
$25
per device per year
Buying model
Subscription
Overall adoption risk
Medium
for a 10 to 100 person business adding Ubuntu laptops alongside its existing machines
Reseller / MSP programme
Yes
Sells through resellers
Risks and mitigations
Overall adoption risk: Medium
For a 10 to 100 person business adding Ubuntu laptops alongside its existing machines.
The tooling is mature and comes from the company that makes Ubuntu, but it covers Ubuntu machines only and asks your IT team or MSP to learn a new way of managing devices.
Feature gaps: Landscape manages Ubuntu machines, not Windows or Mac
- What it means for you
- If you keep some Windows or Mac machines, you will run two management tools side by side, with two places to check patch status and settings.
- How to reduce it
- List the controls you rely on today (patching, encryption, software installs, remote wipe) and test each one in Landscape before buying.
- Keep your existing device management for Windows and Mac machines, and move one team to Ubuntu first.
- What's left
- A mixed fleet still needs two consoles, and reporting across both is manual.
Skills and training: Your IT team or MSP needs Ubuntu administration skills
- What it means for you
- Tasks your team does by clicking through a familiar console will be done differently, and early mistakes are likely.
- How to reduce it
- Start with a pilot group of a few machines and an internal champion.
- Use an MSP that already supports Ubuntu fleets, and ask for references.
- What's left
- Expect slower changes for the first few months.
Support depth: The cheapest plan has no support
- What it means for you
- The $25 Workstation plan gives you the updates and tools, but if something goes wrong you have no one at Canonical to call.
- How to reduce it
- Buy the plan with support for machines the business can't do without; Canonical's pricing page says weekday support costs half the price of 24/7 support.
- Arrange support through an MSP if you don't buy it from Canonical.
- What's left
- Support for unsupported machines depends on your own team.
Total cost: Per-machine yearly fees add up, and support plans cost much more
- What it means for you
- Twenty workstations cost $500 a year without support or $6,000 a year with 24/7 support, before the time your team spends running it.
- How to reduce it
- Build a three-year cost model that includes admin time and training, and compare it like for like with what you pay now.
- What's left
- Prices are in US dollars, so UK costs move with the exchange rate.
Vendor viability: Your fleet management depends on one company
- What it means for you
- If Canonical changed the product or its prices, moving to another management tool would take work.
- How to reduce it
- Choose self-hosted Landscape if you want to control where it runs.
- Keep your machine setup documented and scripted, so it can be rebuilt with another tool.
- What's left
- Ubuntu itself would keep working; the management layer is what you would replace.
When not to switch
If most of your machines will stay on Windows or Mac and you need one console for everything, a second management tool may cost more effort than it saves. Start with a hybrid setup instead, moving one team to Ubuntu while the rest stay put.
Sources
- Ubuntu Pro, checked 27 October 2026
- Ubuntu Pro plans and pricing, checked 27 October 2026
- Landscape: management and patching automation for Ubuntu, checked 27 October 2026
- Ubuntu Pro Description, Ubuntu and Canonical Legal, checked 27 October 2026
- Ubuntu Pro service terms, checked 27 October 2026
Last reviewed 27 October 2026.