Releases and maintenance
Current status: 0.1.0-dev.0. No stable or public alpha release exists.
OuterSpace uses its own MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH version, independent of the Ubuntu,
Linux kernel and Kubernetes versions. It follows familiar prerelease conventions:
0.1.0-dev.0 → 0.1.0-alpha.1 → 0.1.0-beta.1 → 0.1.0-rc.1 → 0.1.0
A tagged build is not automatically a supported release. Each stage requires
version- and commit-specific evidence. The validator refuses missing gates and
refuses publishing a -dev.N version as a release.
Qualification phases
| Phase | Intended use | Required evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Development | Internal engineering and disposable labs | Unit/contract checks and image build logs |
| Alpha | Explicit experimental preview | Boot, CRI, config contract, checksums, release notes and license/source review |
| Beta | Integration testing | Alpha gates plus Node Ready, Cilium, P2P, GC and state persistence |
| Release candidate | Frozen candidate for qualification | Beta gates plus bare metal, CIS audit, signed boot, upgrade/rollback, SBOM and vulnerability review |
| Stable | Supported operation within a published matrix | RC gates plus soak tests and an explicit support policy |
Release CI prepares draft releases after verification. Maintainer review and complete evidence are required before publication. Stable status is never inferred from a green build or a tag. No automatic promotion between stages occurs.
Maintenance model
- Rebuild images from reviewed Ubuntu security/update packages; deploy whole images.
- Pin runtime binaries and verify SHA256. Review kernel ABI and dependent modules together.
- Run regular integration builds to detect package and upstream drift.
- Review dependency updates in pull requests, including release notes and migration risks.
- Record exact package manifests, runtime versions, architecture and source commit.
- Qualify upgrade, downgrade and persistent-state compatibility before promotion.
Prelaunch work has no production support commitment. A stable branch must state its support dates, architectures, kernel/runtime/Kubernetes matrix and security response ownership before it can pass the support gate. Upstream Ubuntu LTS coverage does not automatically confer support on this distribution.
Launch sequence
- Publish source and clearly marked development documentation.
- Qualify and publish alpha artifacts with known limitations.
- Validate on a dedicated bare-metal worker, then a self-managed cloud VM cluster.
- Complete beta integration and RC security/update gates.
- Publish support policy and stable artifacts with checksums, SBOM and provenance.
- Only then apply to distribution directories with accurate status and licensing.
The authoritative release policy and evidence contract live with the build source. There is no downloadable stable image at this stage.
