Extended Support Release (ESR) process
This feature is only available on Production and Enterprise plans.
The balenaOS Extended Support Release (ESR) process allows fleet owners to update to a new ESR version on their devices at most twice a year to ensure they are on a supported version. New ESR versions are released quarterly, which allows fleet owners to plan their update schedule.
Each ESR release is supported for nine months from the time of release. Support includes backports for high-risk security vulnerabilities and critical bug fixes, and are guaranteed not to break the interface. Backports of any functional enhancements are not in scope.
ESR versions and schedule
ESR versions are named by year and month like yyyy.m and contain a patch version number starting at zero. So 2026.1.0 is the first release of the 2026.1 ESR version, and the first backport or fix during its supported lifetime is 2026.1.1.
At any one time there are three supported lines of ESR versions, which we tag as next, current, and sunset based on their age, as shown in the diagram below. Every three months a new ESR version is released, which advances the ESR version tagged for each line, for example 2026.1 to 2026.4 below. At the same time, the tag for a particular ESR version transitions downward toward eventual end of life (EOL).
Let's walk through an example. In January 2026, at the beginning of Q1, the master branch of balenaOS is released as ESR version 2026.1 and tagged as next since it is the next ESR release. In three months a new ESR version, 2026.4, is tagged as next, while the tag for 2026.1 transitions to current. Similarly, three months after that a new ESR version is released and 2026.1 is tagged as sunset. Finally in October, nine months after release, the 2026.1 ESR version is untagged, having reached its end of life. It will not receive further fixes. A user should perform a self-service update to a newer supported ESR version by now for the ongoing benefits.
Using an ESR host OS version
Adding a new device
For new devices, if you are on a Production or Enterprise plan with a supported device type, when you add a new device, you will be given the option to Select OS type which defaults to balenaOS ESR. If you would like a non-ESR version, expand this dropdown and select balenaOS for the host OS type.
Next, select the ESR version as either next, current, or sunset if available. The next version is selected by default and offers at least six months (and up to nine months) of critical backports and fixes.
Host OS update
For those users on a Production or Enterprise plan with an existing supported device, you can update to an ESR version via a self-serve update. You should select the balenaOS ESR host OS type and your chosen ESR version.
Once updated to an ESR version, it is not possible to update from an ESR host OS version to a non-ESR one.
Supported devices
All device types are eligible for ESR, however they require a dedicated build and release pipeline so support needs to be requested via our support channels.
ESR host OS versions are currently available for the following devices:
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