Lifecycle policy
The following defines the platform's lifecycle policy for releases and maintenance.
The platform aims to release on a regular cadence and follow semantic versioning. We encourage users to run the latest stable release to stay up to date on features and security patches.
Due to the rapid development of the platform, each minor version receives active support for 6 months after its release. Active support ends on the End of Support (EOS) date. For 3 months after the EOS date, the version receives only critical security updates. After the End of Life (EOL) date, the version receives no updates. During active support, updates from the active development branch can be backported upon request.
Long Term Support (LTS) releases have longer support windows. See LTS releases.
Versions not on the following list are no longer in any support window.
Platform supported versions​
| Release | Release Date | End of Support (EOS) End Date | End of Life (EOL) End Date | Default vCluster Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| v4.12 (LTS) | 2026 Sep 08 | 2027 Oct 15 | 2028 Apr 15 | v0.37 |
| v4.11 | 2026 Jul 22 | 2027 Jan 22 | 2027 Apr 22 | v0.36 |
| v4.10 | 2026 Jun 15 | 2026 Dec 15 | 2027 Mar 15 | v0.35 |
| v4.9 | 2026 Apr 29 | 2026 Oct 29 | 2027 Jan 29 | v0.34 |
| v4.8 | 2026 Mar 16 | 2026 Sep 16 | 2026 Dec 16 | v0.33 |
| v4.7 | 2026 Feb 18 | 2026 Aug 18 | 2026 Nov 18 | v0.32 |
| v4.6 | 2026 Jan 29 | 2026 Jul 29 | 2026 Oct 29 | v0.31 |
| Versions below are no longer supported | ||||
| v4.5 | 2025 Oct 29 | 2026 Apr 29 | 2026 Jul 29 | v0.30 |
| v4.4 | 2025 Sep 09 | 2026 Mar 09 | 2026 Jun 09 | v0.28 |
| v4.3 | 2025 Jun 03 | 2025 Dec 03 | 2026 Mar 06 | v0.25 |
| v4.2 | 2024 Dec 17 | 2025 Sep 17 | 2025 Dec 17 | v0.21 |
| v4.1 | 2024 Nov 12 | 2025 Feb 12 | 2025 May 12 | v0.21 |
| v4.0 | 2024 Oct 15 | 2025 Jan 15 | 2025 Apr 15 | v0.20 |
| v3.4 | 2024 Feb 29 | 2025 Apr 01* | 2025 Jul 01 | v0.19 |
* Due to the number of breaking changes from vCluster v0.19 to v0.20 and vCluster Platform v3.4 to v4.0, v3.4 has an extended EOS end date. Review the migration guide to upgrade your platform from v3.4 to v4.0.
LTS releases​
vCluster Platform v4.12 and vCluster v0.37 are designated LTS releases. LTS support covers the two releases as a pair, because the platform and the clusters it manages are built and tested together. To stay on LTS, run vCluster Platform v4.12 with vCluster v0.37 for your clusters. vMetal is part of vCluster Platform, so vMetal in v4.12 has the same LTS dates.
| Phase | Standard release | LTS release |
|---|---|---|
| Active support | 6 months | 12 months |
| End of Support (EOS) period | 3 months | 6 months |
During active support, you can request backports of fixes from the active development branch, including support for newer Kubernetes versions. During the EOS period, LTS releases receive only critical security updates. If you need support for a newer Kubernetes version during this period, contact vCluster Labs support.
Clusters that run a vCluster version other than v0.37 follow the standard lifecycle for that version. Upgrading either product past its LTS release takes you off LTS. See the vCluster lifecycle policy for vCluster dates.
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End of Support (EOS): The period when active support for a version has ended and only critical security updates are provided. This period begins on the EOS date and lasts 3 months, or 6 months for LTS releases.
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End of Life (EOL): The period when all support, including security updates, has ended for a version. This period begins on the EOL date and continues indefinitely.
Feature Versioning​
While most features we release are fully supported, some are introduced at an earlier stage of development. These stages generally align with Kubernetes conventions, with the exception of experimental features which may be removed at any time.
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Alpha: Newly introduced features which may include breaking changes in future releases.
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Beta: Features that are more stable and considered safe, but not recommended for business critical applications.