nShield Security World Software Release Policy

All Entrust nShield Software releases follow a software lifecycle starting from initial release to end-of-life (EOL) when the release is no longer supported. All releases have a defined support and update process depending on the release type. Knowing the release type and key dates in this lifecycle helps customers to make informed decisions about when to upgrade and what software release to move to.

Entrust has introduced a new software release lifecycle and release type definition for nShield Security World releases. This document details the policy and transition to its use. Timeframes mentioned in this document are approximate.

Security World software releases consist of several software components:

This policy applies to the above software components for all Security World releases. All other option packs and standalone software do not form part of nShield Security World releases and are not detailed in this release policy.

The purpose of this policy is to define the software lifecycle and expected support for nShield software releases. nShield has defined two different types of software releases:

The quality of all releases is the same, but the sections below define the differences between these release types. Every future software release will clearly show in the release notes what type of release it is.