Linux kernel version history

This article documents the version history of the Linux kernel.

Each major version identified by the first two numbers of a release version  is designated one of the following levels of support:


 * Supported till next stable version
 * Long-term support (LTS); maintained for a few years
 * Super-long-term support (SLTS); maintained for many more years by the Civil Infrastructure Platform (CIP)

Overview


Releases 3.x.y
The jump from 2.6.x to 3.x wasn't because of a breaking update, but rather the first release of a new versioning scheme introduced as a more convenient system.

Releases 2.6.x.y
Versions 2.6.16 and 2.6.27 of the Linux kernel were unofficially given long-term support (LTS), before a 2011 working group in the Linux Foundation started a formal long-term support initiative.