Choosing a version of FreeBSD – operating system branches, code quality, lifespans, and support

Each release of FreeBSD is the end result of periodic special attention – release engineering – to a releng branch of the code for the OS.

With the five-year support model, two or more major versions may be supported at any one time.

Major versions 13 and 14 are supported.

13 has:

• a long lifespan – the stable/13 branch
• two supported releases – 13.2-RELEASE and 13.3-RELEASE on the releng/13.2 and releng/13.3 branches.

14 has:

• a longer lifespan – the stable/14 branch
• a supported release – 14.0-RELEASE on the releng/14.0 branch.

FreeBSD 14.0-RELEASE is recommended for new installations.

Adapted from the timelines at https://codeberg.org/FreeBSD/freebsd-src/src/commit/96c567f972e05c47cd239b6c9226354e808f039b/share/misc/bsd-family-tree#L417-L462:

   |   |      |
   |   |   FreeBSD
   |   |    11.4
   |   |
   |  FreeBSD
   |   12.2
   |   |
   |    `------.
   |           |
   *--FreeBSD  |
   |   13.0    |
   |   |       |
   |   |    FreeBSD
   |   |     12.3
   |   |       |
   |  FreeBSD  |
   |   13.1    |
   |   |       |
   |   |    FreeBSD
   |   |     12.4
   |   |
   |  FreeBSD
   |   13.2
   |   |
   |    `------.
   |           |
   *--FreeBSD  |
   |   14.0    |
   |           |
   |        FreeBSD
   |         13.3
   |
FreeBSD 15.0-CURRENT

• FreeBSD 11.4-RELEASE and 12.4-RELEASE are dead (no longer supported)
• FreeBSD 13.2-RELEASE will die on 30th June 2024
• FreeBSD 13.3-RELEASE is alive
• FreeBSD 14.0-RELEASE is alive
• FreeBSD 15.0-CURRENT is latest.

freebsd-update(8):

• simplifies updates and upgrades with prerelease (ALPHA, BETA, RC (release candidate)) and with RELEASE
• can not be used with STABLE or CURRENT
• pkgbase is an alternative to freebsd-update (see below).

Errata notices and security advisories:

• cover releases and associated stable branches
• do not cover CURRENT.

• stable/13
• releng/13.3
• stable/14
• releng/14.0
• releng/14.1
• main – FreeBSD-CURRENT

• PkgBase – the FreeBSD base operating system (OS), packaged
• FreeBSD Update in the FreeBSD Handbook
• FreeBSD Snapshot Releases
• Charter for the Release Engineering Team