Lifecycle guide for Red Hat Enterprise Linux from Red Hat

All releases, patches, maintenance and support periods at a glance

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📅 Last update on 2026-02-14

What is Red Hat Enterprise Linux?

Automate product release and end-of-life management

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) is a Linux distribution developed by Red Hat for the commercial market. Red Hat Enterprise Linux is released in server versions for x86-64, Power ISA, ARM64, and IBM Z and a desktop version for x86-64. All of Red Hat"s official support and training, together with the Red Hat Certification Program, focuses on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux platform.

The entire lifecycle of Red Hat Enterprise Linux

The following figure shows you the visualised product life cycle of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. You can see all releases with the latest patch version, the long-term support characteristics (orange flag in the green circle, the periods for version provision, maintenance and support.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (Red Hat) release, version and end-of-life information

Figure: Release, patch and end-of-life cycle of product Red Hat Enterprise Linux (Red Hat)

What is the Red Hat Enterprise Linux release strategy?

**Red Hat Enterprise Linux Version 8** delivers a ten year life cycle in Full Support and Maintenance Support Phases followed by an Extended Life Phase. In addition, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8, customers may purchase annual Add-on subscriptions called Extended Life-cycle Support (ELS) to extend limited subscription services beyond the Maintenance Support Phase. **Red Hat Enterprise Linux versions 6, and 7** each deliver ten years of support (unless otherwise noted below under Exceptions) in Full Support, Maintenance Support 1 and Maintenance Support 2 Phases followed by an Extended Life Phase. In addition, for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, customers may purchase annual Add-on subscriptions called Extended Life-cycle Support (ELS) to extend limited subscription services beyond the Maintenance Support 2 Phase.