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The most direct way to get a traditional desktop layout in Ubuntu is to switch to GNOME Classic. It adds Applications and Places menus to the top bar and a window list along the bottom, while keeping the Activities overview available from the window-list button or the Super key. Ubuntu’s documentation describes GNOME Classic as the choice for people who prefer a more traditional desktop experience.
If you only want a smaller change, stay in the standard Ubuntu session and pin the applications you use most to the dash. That keeps the Ubuntu Dock workflow and avoids logging out. The right choice depends on whether you want a persistent menu-and-window-list layout or simply quicker access to familiar programs.
Choose the change that matches your workflow
Ubuntu does not offer just one way to make GNOME feel familiar. You can replace the current session with GNOME Classic, or retain the standard Ubuntu session and adjust how you launch applications. These options solve different problems.
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|---|---|---|---|
| GNOME Classic | A top bar with Applications and Places menus plus a bottom window list. Activities remains available. | People who want a persistent, traditional menu and a visible list of open windows. | Make sure gnome-shell-extensions is installed, log out, choose GNOME Classic at the login screen, and sign in. |
| Standard Ubuntu session with pinned apps | The Ubuntu Dock and existing Ubuntu desktop remain in place; favorite applications are kept on the dash for one-click access. | People who want less change and do not need a permanent window list. | Use the desktop’s favorite-application controls to pin or remove launchers. |
GNOME Classic is the better fit when your definition of “traditional” means menus that are always visible and a taskbar-like list of open windows. Pinning applications is the better first step when your main annoyance is finding programs and you are comfortable with the current dock.
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Understand the Ubuntu desktop you already have
Ubuntu Desktop ships with a modified GNOME environment rather than an untouched upstream GNOME session. Knowing what Ubuntu has already changed helps you decide whether a full session switch is necessary.
- Ubuntu Dock: a left-side bar for running applications.
- Desktop Icons NG: support for desktop icons.
- Yaru: Ubuntu’s default visual theme.
- Ubuntu: the default font.
- Title-bar controls: minimize and maximize buttons are present on window title bars.
These components are documented in Ubuntu’s About GNOME on Ubuntu guide. They mean that a standard Ubuntu installation already provides several conventions associated with older desktop environments: a persistent launcher area, desktop icons, and visible window controls. If those are enough for you, changing sessions may introduce more difference than benefit.
What GNOME Classic adds
GNOME Classic is not a separate operating system or a replacement for Ubuntu’s applications. It is a GNOME session designed around a more traditional arrangement of controls. The two features that matter most are the menus at the top and the window list at the bottom.
Applications and Places menus
The top bar contains an Applications menu for launching software and a Places menu for reaching common locations. This gives you a menu-driven route to programs and folders without opening the Activities overview first.
Bottom window list
A list along the bottom shows open windows. You can use it to move between windows and to minimize or restore them, which is closer to the taskbar behavior found in many traditional desktop environments.
Activities is still available
Choosing GNOME Classic does not remove the Activities overview. A button at the left of the window list opens it, and pressing the Super key does the same. You can therefore use the classic menus and window list for routine work while retaining the overview when you need it.
Ubuntu documents these behaviors in What is GNOME Classic?. The layout is a preference choice, not a claim that one session is universally faster or more capable; the available documentation does not provide performance or usability measurements.
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Check the prerequisites before you switch
Switching sessions is straightforward, but it is disruptive because you must log out. Do these checks first so that the change does not interrupt unsaved work.
- Save documents, close transactions, and stop any task that depends on the current graphical session.
- Confirm that the package named
gnome-shell-extensionsis installed. Ubuntu’s guide identifies it as the package needed to make GNOME Classic available. - Keep your account password available; you will sign in again after selecting the new session.
- Note which Ubuntu release is installed. The Ubuntu Desktop Guide is identified as Ubuntu 26.04, and session labels or package behavior can differ in another release.
The package name is exact, but Ubuntu’s documentation does not prescribe one universal installation command for every Ubuntu release. Use the package-management method documented for your installed release, and install the package named above before logging out.
Install the GNOME Classic package
If GNOME Classic is already offered in the login screen’s session list, the required extension package is likely present. If it is missing, install gnome-shell-extensions first through the package-management tools appropriate to your Ubuntu release.
- Open the package-management utility you normally use for your Ubuntu edition.
- Search for the package with the exact name
gnome-shell-extensions. - Install it and allow the package manager to complete any required dependencies.
- Save all open work. The session selector is used after logging out, so do not begin the switch with unsaved files.
If your release’s documentation uses a different package name or presents GNOME Classic as part of another package, follow that release-specific guidance rather than forcing the instructions for Ubuntu 26.04 onto an older or newer installation. The official starting point for release-specific help is the Ubuntu Desktop Guide.
Switch from Ubuntu to GNOME Classic
Once the package is installed, the session change is made at the login screen rather than from inside the running desktop. Follow this sequence exactly.
- Save your work and log out. Logging out closes the current graphical session. It is different from locking the screen or merely closing the laptop lid.
- Select your user account on the login screen. The session choice is normally made after selecting the account and before entering the password.
- Open the session or options control. Ubuntu’s guide describes a control on the login screen for choosing the desktop session; its icon or label can vary with the release and display manager.
- Choose GNOME Classic. Select that session name from the available choices.
- Enter your password and sign in. Ubuntu starts the selected session for that login.
- Check the layout. You should see Applications and Places in the top bar and a window list along the bottom. The button at the left of that list and the Super key should open Activities.
The first login may feel unfamiliar because the controls are arranged differently from the standard Ubuntu session. Give the session a few minutes of normal work before deciding whether the change solves your problem: open several windows, move between them from the bottom list, launch a program from Applications, and open a common location through Places.
Return to the standard Ubuntu GNOME session
You can switch back without uninstalling GNOME Classic. The reverse flow uses the same login-screen control.
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- Save your work and log out of GNOME Classic.
- Select your user account at the login screen.
- Open the session or options control.
- Choose GNOME, rather than GNOME Classic.
- Enter your password and sign in.
This changes the session used for that login; it does not remove Ubuntu Dock, Desktop Icons NG, Yaru, or the other components of the standard Ubuntu environment. If the login screen remembers the last session, check the selected name each time you switch so that you do not accidentally start the previous layout.
If GNOME Classic is missing from the session list
A missing entry usually means the required package is not installed, the session files have not been recognized yet, or the installed Ubuntu release uses a different arrangement. Work through these checks in order.
Confirm the package
Verify that gnome-shell-extensions is installed rather than merely downloaded or listed as an available package. If your package manager reports an incomplete installation, let it finish and then log out again.
Use the installed release’s documentation
The Ubuntu guide available online is identified as Ubuntu 26.04, but Ubuntu’s documentation does not establish a release-by-release compatibility matrix. If you run another release, consult the documentation matching that release for the current package and session-selector labels.
Restart the login flow
After installing the package, log out fully and return to the account-selection screen. A locked session or a screen that has only been suspended will not reload the available desktop sessions.
Check the selector before entering the password
The session choice is made from the login screen, not from the password field or the desktop’s application menu. Select the account first, open the options control, and look for GNOME Classic there.
Stop if the release uses different packaging
Do not remove unrelated GNOME packages or repeatedly reinstall extensions when the release documentation points to a different package. The supported package and selector can change between Ubuntu releases; use the documentation for the system you actually run.
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Make a smaller change while keeping the Ubuntu session
If a full logout-and-session switch is more disruption than you want, keep the standard Ubuntu session and adjust the dash. Ubuntu’s desktop documentation explains how to pin commonly used applications and remove favorite application icons.
Pin the applications you launch often
- Open the application from the standard Ubuntu desktop.
- Use the application’s entry in the dash to access the favorite or pin control described in Ubuntu’s desktop instructions.
- Leave the application pinned so its icon remains available for one-click launching after the window closes.
Remove launchers you do not use
Use the same favorite-application controls to remove icons that add clutter. This does not uninstall the software; it only changes which launchers stay in the dash.
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The exact click wording can vary with the Ubuntu release and shell version, so use the current Your desktop instructions for the labels shown on your system. Pinning is a useful compromise when your goal is quick access rather than a permanently visible list of every open window.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Use the existing Ubuntu features to create a familiar routine
Even without GNOME Classic, the standard Ubuntu session can support a conventional daily workflow if you make deliberate use of its built-in pieces.
Use the Dock as your application strip
The Ubuntu Dock already occupies the left side of the screen and shows running applications. Pin only the programs you launch repeatedly, ordering them so the first few positions match your normal work sequence. This gives you a stable launch area while preserving the standard session.
Keep desktop icons for active work
Desktop Icons NG provides desktop icons in Ubuntu’s modified GNOME environment. Use the desktop for files or folders that are actively in progress, and keep long-term storage organized in normal folders so the icon area does not become a second, unstructured file manager.
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Ubuntu’s default setup includes minimize and maximize buttons on title bars. If you prefer taskbar-style window management, minimize windows you are pausing and restore them from the running-application entry in the Dock. If you want several windows visible at once, maximize or restore each window according to the task at hand.
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Keep the visual language stable
Yaru and the Ubuntu font are the standard visual choices. Leaving them in place avoids introducing a second set of theme variables while you decide whether the layout itself is the problem. A traditional-feeling workflow does not require changing the theme when menus, launchers, or window access are the real issue.
Decide by the kind of friction you are trying to remove
| Your main complaint | Most suitable approach | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| You want a visible menu of applications at all times. | GNOME Classic | Its top bar provides the Applications menu. |
| You browse common folders through a menu. | GNOME Classic | Its top bar provides the Places menu. |
| You lose track of several open windows. | GNOME Classic | The bottom window list provides direct access to open windows and supports minimizing or restoring them. |
| You mainly need faster access to a handful of programs. | Pin applications in the standard Ubuntu session. | The dash keeps favorite launchers available without changing sessions. |
| You want to avoid logging out. | Keep the standard Ubuntu session. | Pinning and removing favorites can be done within the existing desktop. |
| You like Activities and the Ubuntu Dock but want classic menus too. | Try GNOME Classic, then compare. | GNOME Classic retains access to Activities, but it changes the surrounding layout and requires a new login. |
This decision is about interaction style, not a documented performance difference. Ubuntu’s official material identifies the interface components and switching steps, but it does not publish numeric speed, resource-use, adoption, or usability results for the alternatives.
What changes during a session switch
Logging out ends the current graphical session, so applications that keep state only in memory will close. Save files before every switch. After signing in, the desktop session determines which shell layout and launch surfaces you see; your choice of session does not create a new user account.
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GNOME Classic and the standard GNOME choice appear as alternatives in the login-screen session selector when the required components are available. Because the selector is outside the running desktop, changing a panel preference inside one session does not substitute for selecting the other session at login.
If you regularly alternate between layouts, make the session name part of your sign-in checklist. Confirm the selected option before entering the password, especially on a computer used by more than one person.
Version and support boundaries
The Ubuntu Desktop Guide is identified as Ubuntu 26.04. The instructions for GNOME Classic and the package requirement come from Ubuntu’s documentation, but no release-by-release matrix is established for older or newer versions. Therefore, treat the labels in this article as the documented flow and verify package names, selector icons, and menu wording against the guide for your installed release when they differ.
Ubuntu’s documentation is the authoritative place to check those differences. The relevant pages are What is GNOME Classic?, About GNOME on Ubuntu, Your desktop, and the Ubuntu Desktop Guide index.
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- Write down the specific behavior you want: persistent menus, a visible window list, quicker application launching, or simply familiar window controls.
- If menus and an open-window list are essential, install
gnome-shell-extensionsand test GNOME Classic. - Save all work before logging out; session changes happen at the login screen.
- After signing in, verify Applications, Places, the bottom window list, and the Activities button or Super shortcut.
- If the layout is too disruptive, return through the same selector and choose GNOME.
- If you only needed faster launching, remain in the standard Ubuntu session and pin the applications you use most.
- When a menu or package is different, consult documentation for the Ubuntu release installed on the computer.
Bottom line
Use GNOME Classic when “traditional desktop” means permanent Applications and Places menus plus a bottom list of open windows. It is Ubuntu’s documented option for that layout, requires the gnome-shell-extensions package, and is selected after logging out at the sign-in screen. If you want to preserve the Ubuntu Dock and avoid a session change, pin your favorite applications in the existing Ubuntu desktop instead.
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