Red Hat certifications last up to 12 months, aligning with OpenShift’s extended support lifecycles. Long-term releases feature extended certification windows, while intermediate versions ensure smooth, step-by-step customer upgrades without security or stability gaps.

Red Hat certifications and validations remain valid for 12 months or until the corresponding Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform (RHOCP) v.4.x release exits the Extended Update Support Term 2 of the RHOCP lifecycle, whichever time period is shorter. To maintain the certification or partner validation status, you must recertify or revalidate on newer versions of your software or Red Hat OpenStack Platform (RHOSP). Certifications, validations and associated products remain published until they are no longer valid or the Red Hat product version is retired from the catalog.

OpenShift now includes Extended Update Support (EUS) and Extended Update Support Term 2 (EUS-T2) options, which require changes to product build and release practices and ISV certification.

The window for certifications or validations opens with the GA release of the minor version through the OpenShift Extended Update Support based on the even and odd schedules.

• Even-numbered minor releases: The window closes at the end of either Extended Update Support or Extended Update Support Term 2, whichever is later.
• Odd-numbered minor releases: The window closes simultaneously with the preceding even-numbered release (for example, 4.15 closes with 4.14 at the end of Extended Update Support Term 2).

This is because even-numbered releases have a longer support lifecycle. Although an odd-numbered release reaches its end-of-life sooner, it becomes relevant during updates between even-numbered releases in the extended update support phase, serving as intermediate steps. Certifying software for these end-of-life releases ensures that critical bug fixes and security updates are available, preventing regressions during customer updates.

Note

ISV certification tools and product build or release engineering supports odd-numbered minor releases for longer than indicated on the lifecycle page.

Supporting EUS-to-EUS updates is crucial for a seamless customer experience. For example, if you certify an ISV software version 1 on RHOCP 4.14 and version 3 is on RHOCP 4.16, dual certification on 4.14 can be beneficial. This is particularly relevant if the software supports direct upgrades from version 1 to version 3 and version 3 is compatible with RHOCP 4.14. In such cases, certifying version 3 on RHOCP 4.14 allows customers to upgrade their software while remaining on RHOCP 4.14 before transitioning to 4.16, ensuring a smoother process and minimizing disruptions.

Refer to the Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform Life Cycle Policy for more details.

Red Hat encourages you to plan even-to-even updates for OpenShift releases reaching “Maintenance Support Ends”. However, this extended product support offers flexibility for any necessary update paths, such as progressing from OpenShift 4.14 through 4.15 to 4.16, ensuring uninterrupted support for our joint customers.