Release Designations

General Availability (GA)
Definition: A Cisco software release where Cisco makes a product or feature available for deployment by all customers through all sales and distribution channels.
Characteristics: The software is considered stable, feature-complete, and ready for production use. GA releases are backed by standard technical support practices, complete documentation, and Cisco's General Terms.

Controlled Availability (CA)
Definition: A Cisco software release where Cisco makes a product or feature available to a select, restricted set of customers.
Characteristics: While CA software is functional and supports production use, Cisco limits deployment to specific use cases, system configurations, or geographic regions.

Early Deployment (ED)
Definition: Software releases that provide new features and new platform support in addition to bug fixes.

Maintenance Deployment (MD)
Definition: A Cisco software release that provides bug fix support and ongoing software maintenance.

F
Definition: A Cisco NX-OS software release that provides new features and new platform support in addition to bug fixes.

M
Definition: A Cisco NX-OS software release that provides bug fix support or Product Security Incident Response Team (PSIRT) fixes as part of ongoing software maintenance.


Note: MD and ED will not be applied to any future Cisco IOS XE Software maintenance releases or rebuilds starting from Cisco IOS XE Software Release 26.1.