.NET and .NET Core Support Policy

Last updated: November 18, 2024

What's covered

.NET and .NET Core refer to several technologies including the runtime, the SDK, ASP.NET Core, and Entity Framework Core.

Looking for the support policy for another part of the .NET platform? See the .NET Support Policy page.

Every Microsoft product has a lifecycle. The lifecycle begins when a product is released and ends when it's no longer supported. Knowing key dates in this lifecycle helps you make informed decisions about when to upgrade or make other changes to your software. This product is governed by Microsoft's Modern Lifecycle Policy.

The .NET and .NET Core support lifecycle offers support for each release. The length of time and degree of support vary based on a few qualifications.

.NET and .NET Core are supported across several operating systems and versions. The .NET Supported OS Policy provides current details on operating systems support policies and versions.

What releases qualify for servicing and how do updates affect servicing qualifications?

Customers can choose Long Term Support (LTS) releases or Standard Term Support (STS) releases. The quality of all releases is the same. The only difference is the length of support. LTS releases get free support and patches for 3 years. STS releases get free support and patches for 18 months.

Within a release's support lifecycle, systems must remain current on released patch updates.

.NET and .NET Core release lifecycle

Supported versions

The following table tracks release and end of support dates for .NET and .NET Core versions.

Go-live releases

The support lifecycle for applicable pre-releases is as follows.

Out of support versions

The following table lists .NET Core versions no longer supported.

.NET release cadence

A new major release of .NET is published every year in November, enabling developers, the community, and businesses to plan their roadmaps. Even numbered releases are LTS releases that get free support and patches for three years.

Odd numbered releases are STS releases that get free support and patches for 18 months.

Release types

• Long Term Support (LTS)

  LTS releases are supported for three years after the initial release.

• Standard Term Support (STS)

  STS releases are supported for six months after a subsequent STS or LTS release. Releases happen every 12 months so the support period for STS is 18 months.

  STS releases were previously known as Current releases.

How do the different support tracks work?

Customers choosing LTS need the latest patch update installed to qualify for support. If a system is running 8.0 and 8.0.x has been released, 8.0.x needs to be installed as a first step. Once a patch update has been installed, applications begin using the update by default. LTS releases are supported for three years after general availability.

Customers choosing STS need the latest patch update installed to qualify for support. If a system is running 9.0 and 9.0.x has been released, 9.0.x needs to be installed as a first step. Once a patch update has been installed, applications begin using the update by default. STS releases are supported for 18 months after general availability.

Servicing

.NET releases are supported — during the servicing period — according to the following policies. Servicing policies are the same for LTS and STS releases.

Updates are cumulative and released as patches, with each update built upon all of the updates that preceded it. A device needs to install the latest update to remain supported. Updates may include new features, fixes (security and/or non-security), or a combination of both.

Updates are released on the Microsoft "Patch Tuesday" (second Tuesday of each month), however there is no guarantee that there will be a .NET release on any given Patch Tuesday. Patches are announced on the .NET blog. A digest of monthly releases is published to dotnet/announcements. For more details about .NET servicing and patching, see the .NET releases, patches, and support article.

• Preview

  Preview releases aren't supported by Microsoft but they are offered for public testing ahead of the final release.

• Go-live

  Go-live releases are supported by Microsoft in production. These are typically our release candidate builds, just before the generally available (GA) release.

• Active support

  During the active support period, .NET releases are updated to improve functional capabilities and mitigate security vulnerabilities.

  Functional improvements are typically very targeted, and may address the following:

  • Resolve reported crashes.
  • Resolve severe performance issues.
  • Resolve functional bugs in mainline scenarios.
  • Add support for a new operating system version or new hardware platform.

• Maintenance support

  During the maintenance support period, .NET releases are updated to mitigate security vulnerabilities, only.

  The maintenance support period is the final 6 months of support for any release (STS or LTS). After the maintenance period ends, the release is out of support.

• End of life (EOL)

  End of life refers to the date when Microsoft no longer provides fixes, updates, or online technical assistance. End of life may also be referred to as 'end of support' (EOS).

  As the end of life nears for a given .NET version, we recommend that you move to a newer .NET version, and reduce/remove your use of the given .NET version. After support ends, we recommend that you uninstall a given .NET version if you are no longer using it, or install the latest patch, and accelerate your plans to remove your use of that .NET version.

  Your use of out-of-support .NET versions may put your applications, application data, and computing environment at risk. You are strongly recommended to not use out-of-support software.

  Starting with .NET Core 3.1, end of life dates align with Microsoft Patch Tuesday (second Tuesday of each month). For example, .NET 6 was originally released on November 8, 2021 and is supported for three years. But the actual end of support day is the closest Patch Tuesday starting that date, which is November 12, 2024.

ASP.NET Core 2.1 on .NET Framework

Support for ASP.NET Core 2.1 on .NET Framework matches the ASP.NET Support policy for other package-based ASP.NET frameworks. The complete list of packages covered by this policy can be seen in ASP.NET Core 2.1 Supported Packages.

What operating system versions are supported to run .NET and .NET Core applications?

.NET and .NET Core are supported across several operating systems and versions. The .NET Supported OS Policy provides current details on operating systems support policies and versions.

Automatic patching on Windows operating system

All versions of .NET that are supported can be automatically patched via Microsoft Update. This enables organizations to manage all .NET updates in the same way.

Applications using the Framework Dependent Deployment model benefit from .NET updates delivered by Microsoft update. There is no change to apps that use the Self-Contained Deployment model, so these apps are still responsible for keeping the runtime updated.

Accessing support

For assisted support with .NET technologies, contact a Microsoft Support Professional.

Community support is a great way to get help and even contribute to the projects. For more information, see the Community page.