GitLab Runner support policy
The support policy by GitLab Runner is determined by the lifecycle policy of the operating system.
Container images support
We follow the support lifecycle of the base distributions (Ubuntu, Alpine, Red Hat Universal Base Image) used for creating the GitLab Runner container images.
The end-of-publishing dates for the base distributions will not necessarily align with the GitLab major release cycle. This means we will stop publishing a version of the GitLab Runner container image in a minor release. This ensures that we do not publish images that the upstream distribution no longer updates.
Container images and end of publishing date
| Base container | Base container version | Vendor EOL date | GitLab EOL date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu | 20.04 | 2030-04-09 | 2030-04-22 |
| Alpine | 3.12 | 2022-05-01 | 2023-05-22 |
| Alpine | 3.13 | 2022-11-01 | 2023-05-22 |
| Alpine | 3.14 | 2023-05-01 | 2023-05-22 |
| Alpine | 3.15 | 2023-11-01 | 2024-01-18 |
| Alpine | 3.16 | 2024-05-23 | 2024-06-22 |
| Alpine | 3.17 | 2024‑11‑22 | 2024-12-22 |
| Alpine | 3.18 | 2025‑05‑09 | 2025-05-22 |
| Alpine | 3.19 | 2025‑11‑01 | 2025-11-22 |
| Alpine | latest | ||
| Red Hat Universal Base Image 9 | 9.5 | 2025-04-31 | 2025-05-22 |
GitLab Runner versions 17.7 and later support only a single Alpine version (latest) instead of specific versions.
Alpine versions 3.18 and 3.19 will be supported to the stated EOL date. In contrast, Ubuntu 20.04, as an LTS release,
will be supported to its EOL date, at which point we will move to the most recent LTS release.
Windows version support
GitLab officially supports LTS versions of Microsoft Windows operating systems and so we follow the Microsoft Servicing Channels lifecycle policy.
This means that we support:
-
Long-Term Servicing Channel versions for five years after their release date.
After five years, Microsoft offers extended support for an additional five years. During this extended period, we offer support for as long as is practical. We can end this support, with announcement, on a GitLab major release.
-
Semi-Annual Channel versions for 18 months after their release date. We don’t support these versions after mainstream support ends.
This support policy applies to the Windows binaries that we distribute and the Docker executor.
As a single source of truth, we use https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/lifecycle/products/, which specifies the release, mainstream, and extended support dates.
Below is a list of versions that are commonly used and their end of life date:
| Operating system | Mainstream support end date | Extended support end date |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Server 2019 (1809) | January 2024 | January 2029 |
| Windows Server 2022 (21H2) | October 2026 | October 2031 |
| Windows Server 2025 (24H2) | October 2029 | October 2034 |
Future releases
Microsoft releases new Windows Server products in the Semi-Annual Channel twice a year, and every 2 - 3 years a new major version of Windows Sever is released in the Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC).
GitLab aims to test and release new GitLab Runner helper images that include the latest Windows Server version (Semi-Annual Channel) within 1 month of the official Microsoft release date on the Google Cloud Platform. Refer to the Windows Server current versions by servicing option list for availability dates.