Fedora Linux 38 will reach its end of life on May 21, 2024 and no longer receive updates or support of any kind. This includes security patches, bug fixes, and software upgrades.
After this date, the Fedora Project team will cease pushing updates to the Fedora 38 stable release.
However, the Fedora Linux 39 version will continue getting updates until approximately one month after Fedora Linux 41 becomes available. You can find the full maintenance schedule for Fedora releases on the project's official wiki.
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Upgrade Fedora Linux 38 to Latest Release
If you are currently using Fedora 38, we recommend upgrading to a latest version actively receiving updates to ensure your system remains secure and performs optimally.
We have published a step-by-step guide to help you upgrade from your current Fedora installation to a latest release, which is Fedora Linux 40 at the time of writing this guide.
Fedora Release Cycle
The Fedora Project releases a new version approximately every six months. Each release then receives package updates and maintenance for about 13 months.
This schedule allows users the flexibility to upgrade to every other new release while still running a system that is actively maintained and patched.
For example, if you install Fedora Linux 39 today, you can choose to upgrade to Fedora Linux 41 when it becomes available in about a year, skipping version 40 if desired.
Your Fedora 39 install will continue receiving updates until around a month after version 41's release.
Fedora EOL Releases
When a Fedora Linux version reaches its final maintenance period and no longer receives any updates or patches from the Fedora Project team, it is considered to have reached End of Life (EOL). At this point, the release has completed its full supported life cycle.
Specifically, once a new Fedora version N+2 becomes available (e.g. Fedora 41 when you're on 39), a few key events occur for the N release (Fedora 39):
- No new software package branches are allowed in the source code repositories,
- No new rebuilds of existing packages are permitted,
- All update and security patching comes to a halt,
Essentially, at the EOL stage, a Fedora release exists in a frozen, stagnant state with no further development or updates happening.
The following are unsupported Fedora Linux releases:
Release | EOL since | Maintained for |
---|---|---|
Fedora Linux 37 | 2023-12-05 | 385 days |
Fedora Linux 36 | 2023-05-16 | 371 days |
Fedora Linux 35 | 2022-12-13 | 406 days |
Fedora Linux 34 | 2022-06-07 | 399 days |
Fedora Linux 33 | 2021-11-30 | 399 days |
Fedora Linux 32 | 2021-05-25 | 392 days |
Fedora Linux 31 | 2020-11-24 | 392 days |
Fedora Linux 30 | 2020-05-26 | 393 days |
Fedora Linux 29 | 2019-11-26 | 392 days |
Fedora Linux 28 | 2019-05-28 | 393 days |
Fedora Linux 27 | 2018-11-30 | 381 days |
Fedora Linux 26 | 2018-05-29 | 333 days |
Fedora Linux 25 | 2017-12-12 | 386 days |
Fedora Linux 24 | 2017-08-08 | 413 days |
Fedora Linux 23 | 2016-12-20 | 413 days |
Fedora Linux 22 | 2016-07-19 | 420 days |
Fedora Linux 21 | 2015-12-01 | 357 days |
Fedora Linux 20 | 2015-06-23 | 553 days |
Fedora Linux 19 | 2015-01-06 | 553 days |
Fedora Linux 18 | 2014-01-14 | 364 days |
Fedora Linux 17 | 2013-07-30 | 427 days |
Fedora Linux 16 | 2013-02-12 | 462 days |
Fedora Linux 15 | 2012-06-26 | 399 days |
Fedora Linux 14 | 2011-12-09 | 402 days |
Fedora Linux 13 | 2011-06-24 | 395 days |
Fedora Linux 12 | 2010-12-02 | 380 days |
Fedora Linux 11 | 2010-06-25 | 381 days |
Fedora Linux 10 | 2009-12-17 | 387 days |
Fedora Linux 9 | 2009-07-10 | 423 days |
Fedora Linux 8 | 2009-01-07 | 426 days |
Fedora Linux 7 | 2008-06-13 | 379 days |
Fedora Core 6 | 2007-12-07 | 409 days |
Fedora Core 5 | 2007-07-02 | 469 days |
Fedora Core 4 | 2006-08-07 | 420 days |
Fedora Core 3 | 2006-01-16 | 434 days |
Fedora Core 2 | 2005-04-11 | 328 days |
Fedora Core 1 | 2004-09-20 | 320 days |
Using an EOL Fedora release puts your system at risk, as it will have unfixed vulnerabilities, bugs, and incompatibilities with newer software and services.
To maintain a secure, high-performing system, it's important to upgrade from an EOL Fedora version before reaching that final cut-off window where you miss the opportunity to migrate to a currently supported release.