Dear Qubes Community,

Qubes OS 4.1 is scheduled to reach end-of-life (EOL) on 2024-06-18, 
approximately three months from the date of this announcement.

## Recommended actions

If you're already using Qubes 4.2, then you don't have to do anything. This 
announcement doesn't affect you.

If you're still using Qubes 4.1, then now is the perfect opportunity to 
upgrade, since a brand new [Qubes OS 4.2.1 ISO was just released 
today](https://www.qubes-os.org/news/2024/03/26/qubes-os-4-2-1-has-been-released/)!
 (This is also the best way to get started with Qubes if you don't have it 
installed yet.)

If you'd prefer not to reinstall, you can instead perform an [in-place upgrade 
from Qubes 4.1 to 
4.2](https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/upgrade/4.2/#in-place-upgrade).

Whichever option you choose, we strongly recommend [making a full 
backup](https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/how-to-back-up-restore-and-migrate/) 
beforehand and ensuring you're on Qubes 4.2 by 2024-06-18.

## What does end-of-life (EOL) mean?

When a Qubes OS release reaches end-of-life (EOL), it is no longer supported. 
This means that bugs discovered in that release will no longer be fixed, and 
enhancements will no longer be added. Most importantly, releases that have 
reached EOL no longer receive security updates, which is why it's critically 
important to upgrade to a supported release.

## What about patch releases?

The Qubes OS Project uses the [semantic versioning](https://semver.org/) 
standard. Version numbers are written as `<major>.<minor>.<patch>`. When a 
major or minor release reaches EOL, all of its patch releases also reach EOL. 
For example, in this case, when we say that "Qubes 4.1" (without specifying a 
`<patch>` number) is approaching EOL, we're specifying a particular minor 
release, inclusive of all patch releases within it. This means that Qubes 
4.1.0, 4.1.1, and 4.1.2 will all reach EOL at the same time (on 2024-06-18), 
since they are all just patch releases of the same minor release.

## How are EOL dates determined?

According to our [support 
policy](https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/supported-releases/), stable Qubes OS 
releases are supported for six months after each subsequent [major or minor 
release](https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/version-scheme/). This means that Qubes 
4.1 reaches EOL six months after Qubes 4.2 was released. Since Qubes 4.2.0 was 
[released on 
2023-12-18](https://www.qubes-os.org/news/2023/12/18/qubes-os-4-2-0-has-been-released/),
 Qubes 4.1's EOL date is six months later, on 2024-06-18.


This announcement is also available on the Qubes website:
https://www.qubes-os.org/news/2024/03/26/qubes-os-4-1-reaches-eol-on-2024-06-18/

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