GKE on AWS version numbering

This page describes GKE on AWS Kubernetes version numbering.

Cluster versions

When you create a cluster or node pool, you must specify the version of Kubernetes you want it to run. You can only create new clusters or node pools with a supported Kubernetes version.

Version scheme and cadence

GKE on AWS uses Kubernetes semantic versioning to refer to supported Kubernetes versions, but appends a GKE patch version. This results in a version number of the form

  <code>x.y.z-gke.a</code>

For example, the most recently-supported Kubernetes version is 1.29.3-gke.600.

Kubernetes major version (x)
Major versions are incremented when a change is introduced to the public API whose behavior or operation isn't compatible with the previous version. A major version increments the Kubernetes version from x.y to x+1.0.
Kubernetes minor version (y)
Kubernetes releases a new minor version roughly every four months. A minor version increments the Kubernetes version from 1.y to 1.y+1; for example, Kubernetes 1.21 is the minor release that follows Kubernetes 1.20. Minor version upgrades generally involve new functionality and bug fixes but don't introduce breaking changes. Occasionally, a feature or an API component is deprecated in a minor version release.
Kubernetes patch release (z)
New Kubernetes patch releases (such as 1.21.1) for use with GKE on AWS are normally released once a month. Patch releases only include security and bug fixes.
GKE patch release (-gke.a)
A patch release with a higher -gke.a suffix (such as 1.24.1-gke.a) includes security updates and/or bug fixes for GKE on AWS alongside the open source upstream Kubernetes software. These updates or fixes are required for compatibility and interoperability with Google Cloud and AWS.

Support for versions

For the GKE Enterprise-wide versioning policy, see Version Support Policy.

Version skew

Nodes and node pool versions can be up to two minor versions older than the control plane, but, in accordance with Kubernetes OSS version skew policy, cannot be newer than the control plane version. We strongly recommend that your nodes always use a supported version regardless of version skew guidelines.

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