[yocto] RFC: Yocto LTS?

[Chris Simmonds]

On 14/10/15 17:27, Mark Hatle wrote:
> On 10/14/15 8:28 AM, Chris Simmonds wrote:
>> Hi,
>>
>> Is there a statement about the period of support for a Yocto release?
>> Looking through the updates, it seems that 12 months is typical, a was
>> the case for 1.4, 1.5 and 1.6 for example, but I cannot see a
>> declaration anywhere that this is the expected norm.
>>
>> Leading on from that, is 12 months enough? Most projects have a
>> lifecycle that is much longer. Is there an argument for an LTS Yocto
>> release, maybe once a year? If not, what is the recommended way for a
>> project developer to keep a distribution up to date in the light of the
>> several well-publicised security flaws that have been discovered over
>> the last year or so and the new ones that will no doubt be discovered in
>> the future?
> 
> https://wiki.yoctoproject.org/wiki/FAQ#What_is_the_overall_support_plan_for_the_Yocto_Project.3F
> 
> =What is the release cycle of the Yocto Project?=
> Each release of the Yocto Project is subject to its own release schedule
> according to the community-maintained Project Planning Guide. It is generally
> expected that a new version of the Yocto Project will be released every six months.
> 
> =What is the overall support plan for the Yocto Project?=
> Security patches and critical bug fixes are supplied one release back. No
> toolchain or kernel changes are allowed for these updates. Support for longer
> periods of time can be supplied by commercial OSVs.
> 
> 
> 
> Effectively this means that support is on the last two releases.  Releases are
> typically released every 6 months.  After that point it is usually supported by
> OSVs, or others that offer commercial services.  In the past we have done a few
> very late security fixes past the 'last two releases' point, however that has
> been for unique situations.
> 
> You should consider keeping current with the Yocto Project releases or consider
> commercial support if you need more then an approx 12 - 18 month support cycle.
> 
> --Mark
> 

Thanks, that is all clear now.

Chris