How to Automatically Stay Updated with the Latest Mainline Kernel

The metapackages that depend on the actual kernel packages got removed when you removed the actual packages. These metapackages are used to signal availability of new kernel versions. For the moment, install old versions:

sudo apt-get install linux-generic=<old-version>

You can find out the old version available using apt-cache policy linux-generic.

A sample output of the policy looks like:

$ apt-cache policy linux-generic
linux-generic:
  Installed: 3.13.0.34.40
  Candidate: 3.13.0.34.40
  Version table:
 *** 3.13.0.34.40 0
        500 http://mirror.cse.iitk.ac.in/ubuntu/ trusty-updates/main amd64 Packages        500 http://mirror.cse.iitk.ac.in/ubuntu/ trusty-security/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
     3.13.0.24.28 0
        500 http://mirror.cse.iitk.ac.in/ubuntu/ trusty/main amd64 Packages

From the version table, I have 3.13.0.34.40 and 3.13.0.24.28 available, and the former is installed. So to get the metapackage for the older version, I can do:

sudo apt-get install linux-generic=3.13.0.24.28

The comments indicate a problem with Nvidia graphics drivers. The driver was installed using a binary downloaded directly from Nvidia and that needs to be reinstalled for any new kernel version. As such. the following procedure is recommended:

• Boot using the old kernel - 4.8.0-36-generic -, the one that currently works;

• Fully update the OS->

  sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade
  

• Reinstall the Nvidia driver using the same procedure as before.
• Reboot

In order to avoid this issues please follow the recommended installation method for Nvidia drivers in Ubuntu, as outlined in "NVIDIA drivers provided by the Ubuntu repositories".