There are two different Release Cycles for Axon.ivy:
- Major Release Cycle (Long Term Support Release)
- Minor Release Cycle (Leading Edge Release)
![alt text][1]
**Long Term Support Release**
=========================
The Long Term Support Release version (aka LTS) will change each year on a full number level (e.g. in
2017, the version 7 was released). The release date will be announced by the product management team
after August of the corresponding year. All customers with a valid maintenance contract have free access
to this Major Release version.
*Examples:* Version 6.0, Version 7.0, etc.
In addition, there will be official Update Releases during the year, which contain mainly bug fixes and
smallest improvements. It is planned to have several Update Releases for each Major Release.
*Examples:* Version 6.0.1, Version 6.0.2, Version 7.0.1, etc.
A Long Term Support Release and its Update Releases are fully supported during the whole year. Update
Releases furthermore are triggered to guarantee a stable LTS Release version and replaces previous Up-
date Releases. Therefore, only the most recent Update Release is supported.
**Leading Edge Release**
========================
A so called Leading Edge (LE) Release is a feature enhanced version based on the latest stable LTS Re-
lease. A LE typically contains the introduction of a new bigger feature. The release cycle depends on the
development time of a new feature.
*Examples:*
- Version 6.1, which contains Maven Support and the Signal Event concept
- Version 6.2, which contains an integrated Business Rule Engine (BRE)
- etc.
A LE Release is released in parallel to its LTS Release and can officially be used by any customer with a
valid maintenance contract.
In addition, there will be official Update Releases during the year, which contain only heavy bug fixes in
new features.
*Examples:* Version 6.1.1, Version 6.1.2, etc.
There is only the latest official LE Release (to be clear: the latest official Update Release of a LE Release)
supported within the valid maintenance contract. Previous versions will not be further developed and
won’t be covered within the support.
*Examples:*
- Version 6.1.1 is released, Version 6.1.0 is not supported anymore
- Version 6.2 is released, Version 6.1.x is not supported anymore
- Version 6.3 is released, Version 6.2.x and therefore 6.1.x is not supported anymore
**Important notices:**
- A current LE Release includes the new feature introduced by its previous version (e.g. Version 6.2
contains the features of version 6.1)
- The version 6.0 is not a LE Release and represents the Long Term Support Release
[1]: https://answers.axonivy.com/upfiles/2017-10-31_15h56_00.png