CircleCI Linux VM images support policy
Overview
This document outlines the CircleCI Linux VM (machine) image release, update, and deprecation policy. This policy applies to all CircleCI Linux VM (machine) images built for the machine executor. Note that there is a separate CUDA Image Support Policy.
Release policy
The CircleCI Linux VM images are all based on Ubuntu. We support both ARM64 and AMD64 architectures.
We aim to maintain, support, and release the two most recent LTS versions of Ubuntu.
Tagging
Tags are configured when specifying the image you want to use in your CircleCI configuration file. Tags we support for this image are as follows:
-
default: You will receive this version if you do not specify an image tag. -
current: Receives updates approximately every three months. -
edge: Reserved for previews of new releases, which will initially point to this tag. The edge tags may include incremental updates to the current quarterly (every 3 months) image release, which may change without notice, and are not recommended to be used for production CI workloads.currentwill be updated with these changes after a period of stability.
We always aim to release a version of this image every three months. Tags will be supported on all versions we support.
Critical CVE patches
When critical CVEs are disclosed around the operating system or software stack of this image, we will investigate the impact this has on the image within the CircleCI execution environment. If customers are impacted by these CVEs we will push a patch fix to the released image(s). This image will supersede the original image.
Bug reports, issues, and PRs
You can file a support ticket with CircleCI Support for any issues or bugs found with the Linux VM images. Our support team will be able to escalate issues internally to the correct engineering team and provide updates on the issue.
Image lifespan / EOL
Image Lifespan will generally follow the support status of Ubuntu by Canonical. Once a new Ubuntu LTS is released, we will begin the deprecation process of the oldest version that we support and schedule it to be removed. This allows us to maintain our aim of two LTS Ubuntu versions effectively.
Current Deprecation (Jan 2024):
| Version | Support |
|---|---|
Ubuntu 20.04 LTS |
Ubuntu 22.04 LTS |
Example: When Ubuntu 24.04 LTS is released
| Version | Support |
|---|---|
Ubuntu 20.04 LTS |
Deprecated and removed entirely |
Ubuntu 22.04 LTS |
|
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS |
|
When an image is selected for deprecation and removal, we will create an announcement on our Discuss forum, along with additional outreach where possible.
We will also plan brownouts to ensure users are aware of the approaching removal of deprecated images. Generally, we will aim to start an EOL process within 3 months of a new version release.
Exceptions
At any time, we reserve the right to work outside of the information in this document if the circumstances require. In the event that we are required to make an exception to the policy, we will aim to provide as much notice and clarity as possible. In these cases, an announcement will be posted on our Discuss Forum, along with additional outreach, such as an email notice, where possible.