The next release of Red Hat Satellite: Same great features, new version number

Red Hat will release the next version of Red Hat Satellite as Satellite 6.11, rather than 7.0 as previously announced. Our next release is still full of enhancements, but as we got closer to completing the release we determined this release did not warrant a major version increment.

Red Hat Satellite versions are used mainly to distinguish releases. Generally speaking, Satellite follows a scheme of Major.Minor.Patch version numbers.

• Major: indicates a significant change to operation, function or architecture

• Minor: indicates new features and enhancements, also typically includes some bug fixes

• Patch: bug fixes (aka errata) only, no new features

As we got closer to the release, talked with customers, and reflected on the changes in this release, we determined that 6.11 is a more appropriate version.  The next release does not include the types of changes that would typically warrant a major version change.

• No major deprecations or backward incompatibility: no longer removing Puppet support, moving instead to a plug-in model (Learn more about the plugin.)

• Minimal upgrade overhead:  Satellite infrastructure (Servers and Capsule Servers) will run on RHEL 7 or RHEL 8. Upgrading is optional and can be done in place with the LEAPP tool.

Some organizations tend to pause on the last release before a major version change because of an assumption that a major version (7.0) signals incompatibility with the previous version (6.10). That is not the case with the next release of Satellite, and to make that point very clear, it makes sense to release it as version 6.11.

We have not changed any of the enhancements or features planned for this release.  Only the version number has changed, and customers can feel comfortable about upgrading because functionally it is a minor release.

Helpful information to plan your Satellite upgrade

• Red Hat Satellite Life Cycle Information: Our life cycle information to help customers effectively plan, deploy, and support management of Red hat infrastructure.
• Red Hat Satellite Upgrade Helper: An app to help upgrade Red Hat Satellite 6 installs to a newer version.