Categories: RELEASE

Release Cycle

Overview

This page provides an overview of the release cycles and cadences for Step and its ecosystem components. Each component follows its own independent release strategy to provide flexibility and stability.

Step Platform

For detailed information about Step’s versioning scheme, release cadence, and support policy:

Component-Specific Release Cycles

Different Step components follow independent release cycles:

Helm Chart

  • Released as needed for Kubernetes compatibility and configuration improvements
  • Major versions typically aligned with significant Step releases

See: Helm Chart Release Strategy

Automation Package

  • Versioning follows the Step platform release cycle
  • Single version across all programming language implementations (Java, .NET, Node.js)
  • Released with each Step version

See: Automation Package Overview

Keyword API

  • Independent versioning allows updates without Step platform changes
  • Major versions introduce new capabilities

See: Keyword API Release Strategy

Docker Images

  • Released with each Step version
  • Updated for security patches and base image updates
  • Follow Step platform versioning

See: Docker Image Release Strategy

Release Process

Communication

Release information is communicated through:

Roadmap

Step maintains a public roadmap outlining planned features and improvements:

Compatibility

Backward Compatibility

Step maintains backward compatibility where possible:

  • Keyword API: Older API versions typically work with newer Step versions
  • Automation Packages: Older schema versions can be deployed on newer Step instances by explicitly setting the schema version in the YAML descriptor
  • Plans: Plans manually created in Step are automatically upgraded when the Step version is
  • Data: Database migrations handled automatically where possible

Forward Compatibility

Forward compatibility is not guaranteed:

  • Plans or configurations from newer versions may not work on older versions
  • Always backup before upgrading

Support Channels

For questions about releases or support:

See Also