How are Container solutions deployed with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 or Red Hat Enterprise Linux Atomic Host supported?
Resolution
Container solutions are comprised of a host designed to run application containers, and the container itself that delivers the application and its dependencies. These dependencies can be as simple as libraries or as comprehensive as a container image, cloud image, or virtual machine of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 or 7.
The life cycle and support policy for a solution built using containers follows the same philosophy as any solution built with Red Hat provided software. The life cycle is determined by that of the software that will go into retirement first. In order to ensure the supportability and maximize the life cycle of a solution, customers are encouraged to update all of the components of their deployments to the latest versions and be current with all errata. Please review the Red Hat Life Cycle page, which lists all of the offerings and their respective life cycles.
Hosts
Red Hat Enterprise Linux offers two hosts for containers: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Atomic Host. Each host has its own life cycle: RHEL 7 is supported for 10 years and RHEL Atomic Host is supported for 3 years. Please look here for the RHEL family life cycle. If a customer wants the longest possible life cycle for a deployment, then they should take the host life cycle into consideration along with keeping the other components current and using the latest versions available.
Containers
Containers makes it possible to create solutions comprised of many Red Hat products and, possibly, 3rd party software[1]. As with physical, virtual and cloud deployments, there are many possible combinations of Red Hat products to create innovative container-based solutions. Each product has its own unique life cycle, so customers should reference the Red Hat Product Life Cycle page with is located here when designing their containers. In order to ensure the supportability and maximize the life cycle of a solution, customers are encouraged to update all of the components of their deployments to the latest versions and be current with all errata.
For example, if a customer builds an application container with a RHEL 6 image[2] that has a 10 year support life cycle, and a Red Hat Software Collection that has a considerably shorter life cycle, the support period is determined by the Software Collection. If a customer wants to extend the support period of this container, then they should consider using the latest available Red Hat Software Collection. Alternatively, if they can rely on the components delivered with RHEL 6, then they should as this extends the support life cycle of this solution through the End of Life of RHEL 6, which is longer than any Red Hat provided Software Collection of this writing.
References
[1] This policy does not cover 3rd party software. Customers should contact their ISVs for clarification of their support policies.
[2] Image is defined as any format in which Red Hat or a Certified Cloud Provider delivers including, but not limited to Docker format and AMIs.
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