You can use following commands to bring in newer version of glibc in ubuntu 20.04, but note that as it is a system package, upgrading it may impact your system.

apt-get install gawk bison gcc make wget tar -y
wget -c https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/glibc/glibc-2.35.tar.gz
tar -zxvf glibc-2.35.tar.gz && cd glibc-2.35
mkdir glibc-build && cd glibc-build
../configure --prefix=/opt/glibc
make
make install
Answer from Atur on askubuntu.com
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Ubuntu
launchpad.net › ubuntu › +source › glibc › 2.38-1ubuntu4
2.38-1ubuntu4 : glibc package : Ubuntu
glibc (2.38-1ubuntu4) mantic; urgency=medium * Import the upstream maintenance branch * d/p/lp2031912.patch: Fix regression in sem_open that breaks OpenMPI (LP: #2031912) -- Simon Chopin <email address hidden> Mon, 28 Aug 2023 17:23:19 +0200
Top answer
1 of 2
6

You can use following commands to bring in newer version of glibc in ubuntu 20.04, but note that as it is a system package, upgrading it may impact your system.

apt-get install gawk bison gcc make wget tar -y
wget -c https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/glibc/glibc-2.35.tar.gz
tar -zxvf glibc-2.35.tar.gz && cd glibc-2.35
mkdir glibc-build && cd glibc-build
../configure --prefix=/opt/glibc
make
make install
2 of 2
0

Introducing glibc will break your core binaries. Updated core binaries require a newer kernel which breaks hardware drivers (like NVIDIA) that need your old kernel. This "vicious cycle" makes it impossible to use new glibc w/o breaking your system.

The only solution is to compile the unsupported drivers somehow for the new kernel. So far this is not possible.

If you try using GLIBC without updating its dependencies, you will get complaints of a version mismatch on its dependencies which go all the way down to the kernel, which is why it is not possible.

Your options are limited and it is not possible unless you use a virtual machine. But likely VM is not what you want because VMs do not have the advantage of talking to your hardware directly. They have some VM extensions for making that better but they only cover CPU and RAM, not the video/sound card, that is all emulated.

Summary

If you want to run something that needs newer hardware, there is just no way around that:

  1. You cant use unsupported hardware on newer kernel, and therefore linker, and then GLIBC.

  2. You can't use unsupported GLIBC on older kernel which relies on the new kernel features. If you try to do it by force (point to new compiled version of the new binaries) you will get an error that the linker/kernel versions are incorrect.

  3. The only solution to this is if there was a way to update your hardware drivers. If that isn't your problem, then UPGRADE UBUNTU to the latest version. If that IS your problem, then you are out of luck.

  4. Companies like NVIDIA and AMD drop video support after a few years and leave you up a creek with no paddle, stranded on an old OS unless you buy yet another video card (even if your current one is fast and does just fine, they do NOT care).

  5. Sandboxing in flatpak still needs those libraries to be able to link with your kernel. Sandboxing only fixes dependencies that are above the base system level. HOWEVER, if any of those libraries were built against a binaries that recursively rely on newer core libraries, you will still be stuck and it will still not work, below is an example:

/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6: version `GLIBC_2.34' not found
(required by /tmp/.mount_my2newapp.a9fz3/usr/bin/../../usr/lib/liblzma.so.5)

As you can see here, even though the appimage/flatpak/snap was sandboxed, it still needed these new libraries further down the dependency chain.

Discussions

Running into a version `GLIBC_2.38' not found error
The program is too new for the distro. You're correct not to just "upgrade glibc". This is an integral part of the OS and difficult/impossible to do reliably. You could try running the program in a Distrobox using a distro which has a newer glibc, probably Fedora or Arch will work. You could wait until Kubu 24.04 and try there. It's already April so you could probably install the beta now and update to the full version when it comes out in a few weeks. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/linux4noobs
22
7
April 7, 2024
How do i get a newer version of glibc? (2.38 or above?)
Not on Debian stable. But you could run another distro's userspace (one that has a sufficiently new glibc) in a container or chroot. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/debian
11
11
June 9, 2024
How to install GLIBC 2.29 or higher in Ubuntu 18.04 - Stack Overflow
So I am trying to install truDesk on my local system. I am getting this error while running the command npm install -g yarn: node: /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6: version `GLIBC_2.28' not found ( More on stackoverflow.com
🌐 stackoverflow.com
GLIBC_2.38 not found - Ubuntu 22.04
Have you checked our README? I have checked the README Have you followed our Troubleshooting? I have followed your Troubleshooting Is there already an issue for your problem? I have checked older i... More on github.com
🌐 github.com
12
January 22, 2026
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Launchpad
answers.launchpad.net › ubuntu › +source › glibc › +question › 708407
Question #708407 “How to install GLIBC_2.38? (newbie)” : Questions : glibc package : Ubuntu
Upgrading glibc to a higher version within an Ubuntu release is not recommended at all. If you need glibc version 2.38 (or higher), then the best way is upgrading your Ubuntu release to 23.10
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Pkgs.org
pkgs.org › download › libc.so.6(GLIBC_2.38)(64bit)
Libc.so.6(GLIBC_2.38)(64bit) Download for Linux (rpm)
Search and download Linux packages for Adélie, AlmaLinux, Alpine, ALT Linux, Arch Linux, CentOS, Debian, Fedora, KaOS, Mageia, Mint, OpenMandriva, openSUSE, OpenWrt, RHEL, Rocky Linux, Slackware, Solus, Ubuntu and Void Linux distributions
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Puppy Linux Discussion Forum
forum.puppylinux.com › board index › puppy linux main › house training › users help
How to update to glibc 2.38? - Puppy Linux Discussion Forum
I use the 'layout' as a guide to what I need to 'borrow' from another Puppy which contains the glibc I want..... And of course, you need the "ldd" script from /usr/bin; this is what's called-on when you run ... .....to establish what version of the glibc is installed.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/linux4noobs › running into a version `glibc_2.38' not found error
r/linux4noobs on Reddit: Running into a version `GLIBC_2.38' not found error
April 7, 2024 -

What the title says. I'm trying to run a program, and even after installing its dependencies (sdl2, freetype, harfbuzz, onnxruntime, darling) and restarting the system (I know most of the time it doesn't need, but just in case) it keeps saying the same issue.

/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libm.so.6: version `GLIBC_2.38' not found

What I've seen after searching for a bit is that either I have to build the program myself, or use a different version of linux. I MIGHT be ok, since I was planning to make a new installation when Kubuntu 24.04 releases eventually (I mean, it WILL release, right???) but I really want to give this a try beforehand.

Running a Kubuntu 22.04 distro that updated itself from a 20.04 one. Hardware is full amd and decent enough? I don't think it affects this issue in specific.

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Ubuntu
launchpad.net › ubuntu › +source › glibc › 2.38-1ubuntu6.2
glibc 2.38-1ubuntu6.2 source package in Ubuntu - Launchpad
glibc (2.38-1ubuntu6.2) mantic-security; urgency=medium * SECURITY UPDATE: OOB write in iconv plugin ISO-2022-CN-EXT - debian/patches/CVE-2024-2961.patch: fix out-of-bound writes when writing escape sequence in iconvdata/Makefile, iconvdata/iso-2022-cn-ext.c, iconvdata/tst-iconv-iso-2022-cn-ext.c.
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Ubuntu
launchpad.net › ubuntu › +source › glibc › 2.38-1ubuntu6.1
glibc 2.38-1ubuntu6.1 source package in Ubuntu - Launchpad
glibc (2.38-1ubuntu6.1) mantic-security; urgency=medium * SECURITY UPDATE: multiple syslog() security issues - debian/patches/CVE-2023-6246.patch: Fix heap buffer overflow in misc/Makefile, misc/syslog.c, misc/tst-syslog-long-progname.c. - debian/patches/CVE-2023-6779.patch: Fix heap buffer overflow in misc/syslog.c.
Find elsewhere
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Ubuntu
launchpad.net › ubuntu › +source › glibc
glibc package in Ubuntu
GLibC 2.42 is older than the current packaged version. Launchpad may be missing release information for the head series or this package is linked to the wrong GLibC series. ... Other versions of 'glibc' in untrusted archives. The following unsupported and untrusted Personal Archives (PPAs) provide packages of 'glibc': GCC x86-64-v2 owned by PPA for Ubuntu ...
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/debian › how do i get a newer version of glibc? (2.38 or above?)
r/debian on Reddit: How do i get a newer version of glibc? (2.38 or above?)
June 9, 2024 -

Basically im trying to run a game but it requires at least glibc 2.38 but it seems debian only offers 2.36 at the moment. Any way i can get a newer vesion of it?

EDIT: ended up just downloading the windows version of the game and running it with wine, im an idiot and thought i was having a problem with the sound when i first downloaded, that's why i tried the linux binary, but when i ran it with wine again i found out that the game came muted by default and that i had to press + to get the volume up

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Ubuntu
packages.ubuntu.com › glibc
Ubuntu – Package Search Results -- glibc
August 10, 2021 - You have searched for packages that names contain glibc in all suites, all sections, and all architectures. Found 4 matching packages. jammy (22.04LTS) (doc): GNU C Library: Documentation 2.35-0ubuntu3.13 [security]: all
🌐
GitHub
github.com › FlareSolverr › FlareSolverr › issues › 1670
GLIBC_2.38 not found - Ubuntu 22.04 · Issue #1670 · FlareSolverr/FlareSolverr
January 22, 2026 - Ubuntu 22.04 is a current and supported OS that is not EOL · journalctl -xe flaresolverr[633916]: [PYI-633916:ERROR] Failed to load Python shared library '/etc/flaresolverr/_internal/libpython3.13.so.1.0': /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libm.so.6: version `GLIBC_2.38' not found (required by /etc/flaresolverr/_internal/libpython3.13.so.1.0) systemd[1]: flaresolverr.service: Main process exited, code=exited, status=255/EXCEPTION ·
Author   FlareSolverr
🌐
Ubuntu
archive.ubuntu.com › ubuntu › pool › main › g › glibc
Index of /ubuntu/pool/main/g/glibc
Index of /ubuntu/pool/main/g/glibc · Apache/2.4.58 (Ubuntu) Server at archive.ubuntu.com Port 80
🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/ubuntu › how do i update glibc?
r/Ubuntu on Reddit: How do I update GLIBC?
July 24, 2025 -

I’m currently using GLIBC 2.35 on Ubuntu 22.04, and I want to update it (for gaming purposes).

I’m also aware that updating it isn’t as simple as typing:

“sudo apt update GLIBC yada yada”

or whatever, so I’m not entirely sure how to update it properly without bricking my install.

Any ideas on what to do?

🌐
Its Linux FOSS
itslinuxfoss.com › home › ubuntu › how to install glibc on ubuntu 22.04
How to Install glibc on Ubuntu 22.04 – Its Linux FOSS
September 26, 2022 - The package of “glibc” is available in the repository of Ubuntu 22.04 (codenamed Jammy Jellyfish). Follow these steps to get the latest version of the “glibc”:
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LinuxVox
linuxvox.com › blog › ubuntu-installglibc_228
Installing glibc 2.28 on Ubuntu: A Comprehensive Guide — linuxvox.com
Run the following commands: ... You can download the glibc 2.28 source code from the official GNU FTP server. Navigate to the appropriate directory, for example, your home directory, and run the following command: wget https://ftp.gnu.org/g...
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TecMint
tecmint.com › home › linux commands › how to install and run multiple glibc libraries in linux
How to Install and Run Multiple glibc Libraries in Linux
June 13, 2024 - First, download the required versions of glibc from the official glibc repository or a reliable source, or use the following wget command to download the glibc 2.39 and glibc 2.38 versions.
🌐
GitHub
github.com › fabro-sh › fabro › issues › 147
Linux binary requires glibc 2.38/2.39 — fails on Ubuntu 22.04 and Debian 11 · Issue #147 · fabro-sh/fabro
March 25, 2026 - Problem The official installer binary fails on Linux machines with older glibc: /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6: version GLIBC_2.38 not found /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6: version GLIBC_2.39 not found Fallback: building from source al...
Author   fabro-sh