Chocolatey Components Dependencies and Support Lifecycle
Chocolatey Components Dependencies and Support Lifecycle
Product Support Lifecycle
All of the latest released stable versions of Chocolatey products (Chocolatey CLI, Chocolatey GUI, Chocolatey Central Management, etc.) are fully supported and will periodically receive new features, bug fixes, and security fixes as appropriate. We recommend customers update to the latest versions to benefit from new features and fixes as they are released.
Pre-v1.0 Products
For any products that have not yet reached v1.0, only the latest version is supported. We will continue to add features, fix bugs, and address security concerns as normal while we work towards a v1.0 release.
Version 1.0+ Products
Once a product reaches v1.0, we recommend customers move to that version as soon as possible. We will not continue to support v0.x versions once a product reaches v1.0.
Version 2.0+ Products
Once a product reaches the second major release, the following will apply:
- We will support the previous major version with security fixes for Chocolatey For Business customers.
- For example: at v2.0, the latest v1.x version of the product will receive security fixes; at v3.0, only the latest v2.x version of the product will continue to receive security fixes.
- We will support the previous major version with certain bug fixes (excepting bug fixes that require breaking changes) for Chocolatey For Business customers for six months following the release of the next major version.
- No new features will be backported to the previous major version.
Supported Windows Versions
Chocolatey products’ support for Windows Operating Systems follows Microsoft’s Support Lifecycle: if the Windows version is supported by Microsoft, Chocolatey products are supported on that version of Windows.
NOTE
This information is up-to-date as of 17 April 2024.
| Windows Server Operating System | End Of Support |
|---|---|
| Windows Server 2022 | 14 October 2031 |
| Windows Server 2019 | 9 January 2029 |
| Windows Server 2016 | 12 January 2027 |
| Windows Server 2012 R2 | 13 October 2026 |
| Windows Server 2012 | 13 October 2026 |
| Windows Client Operating System | End Of Support |
| Home and Pro Editions | |
| Windows 11 23H2 | 11 November 2025 |
| Windows 11 22H2 | 8 October 2024 |
| Windows 10 22H2 | 14 October 2025 |
| Enterprise and Education Editions | |
| Windows 11 23H2 | 10 November 2026 |
| Windows 11 22H2 | 14 October 2025 |
| Windows 11 21H2 | 8 October 2024 |
| Windows 10 22H2 | 14 October 2025 |
| Windows 10 21H2 | 11 June 2024 |
| LTSC Enterprise Editions | |
| Windows 10 LTSC 2021 | 12 January 2027 |
| Windows 10 LTSC 2019 | 9 January 2029 |
Supported PowerShell Versions
Chocolatey products’ support for PowerShell follows the lifecycle of the operating system where it was first introduced.
NOTE
This information is up-to-date as of 17 April 2024.
| PowerShell Version | End Of Support | First Introduced |
|---|---|---|
| Windows PowerShell 5.1 | TBD | Windows 10 Anniversary Update and Windows Server 2016, WMF 5.1. |
| Windows PowerShell 5.0 | TBD | WMF 5.0 |
| Windows PowerShell 4.0 | 13 October 2026 | Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2, WMF 4.0 |
| Windows PowerShell 3.0 | 13 October 2026 | Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012, WMF 3.0. |
Maintenance and Support Contract Considerations for Perpetual License Customers
Having a Maintenance and Support contract with Chocolatey Software, Inc. consists of two parts:
- Maintenance - allows you to download newer versions of the licensed components of Chocolatey.
- Support - allows you to submit issue tickets to our Helpdesk and also have access to our Support Team.
During the active period of the contract, you have access to both Maintenance and Support.
Once that expires, you would simply need to purchase that contract again to continue access to newer versions of those components.
A Perpetual License means that you have a license which never expires and you are able to use the Chocolatey Licensed Extension with versions of Chocolatey CLI that are compatible. While your Maintenance contract is valid, you are able to download updates to the licensed components.
A Perpetual License customer that does not have an active Maintenance contract will not be in a position to upgrade to the latest version of Chocolatey Licensed Extension. This can cause problems when there is a dependency that exists between a new version of Chocolatey CLI and Chocolatey Licensed Extension.
NOTE
We added the dependency requirement to the release notes of v1.0.0 of Chocolatey CLI but some customers continued to experience the issue. In the v1.0.1 and the v1.1.0 releases of Chocolatey CLI we implemented changes to allow Chocolatey CLI to work with the latest version of Chocolatey Licensed Extension. There are no guarantees that these changes will be applied in the same way to future versions.
If you are in this position, we suggest that you take one of the following actions:
- Request a Maintenance and Support contract renewal, upgrade the Chocolatey Licensed Extension to the latest version and then upgrade Chocolatey CLI.
- Forego the Maintenance and Support contract renewal and stay with the version of Chocolatey CLI and Chocolatey Licensed Extension that you use. To prevent accidental upgrade of Chocolatey CLI we would suggest that you pin to the version you use and ensure you are using an internal repository.
If you have any questions about your Perpetual License or your Maintenance and Support contract, please reach out to the Sales team.
Chocolatey Component Package Dependencies
Some of the Chocolatey component packages have dependencies on other Chocolatey components. The following table aims to illustrate those dependencies, based on the latest shipped version of each component. Please refer to our Support Lifecycle information for details on which versions are supported for licensed and open source customers.
| Package Name / Dependency | chocolatey | chocolatey.extension | chocolateygui |
|---|---|---|---|
| chocolatey v2.3.0 | |||
| chocolatey.extension v6.2.1 | v2.0.0 | ||
| chocolatey-agent v2.1.3 | v6.0.0 | ||
| chocolateygui v2.1.1 | v2.0.0 | ||
| chocolateygui.extension v2.0.0 | v6.0.0 | v2.0.0 | |
| chocolatey v1.4.0 | |||
| chocolatey.extension v5.0.6 | v1.2.0 | ||
| chocolatey-agent v1.1.4 | v4.0.0 | ||
| chocolateygui v1.1.3 | v1.0.0 | ||
| chocolateygui.extension v1.0.3 | v4.0.0 | v1.1.2 |
WARNING
Due to the nature of how Chocolatey package dependencies work, we can ensure that all the required package versions are installed. For example, if you were to install chocolateygui.extension then it would make sure that the following tree of packages, with as a minimum these package versions, are installed:
Package Name Version chocolateygui.extension v2.0.0 chocolateygui v2.0.0 chocolatey.extension v6.0.0 chocolatey v2.0.0
NOTE
Newer package versions may be available at the time of installation, and Chocolatey will pick the highest available that matches the defined dependency range.
However, there is nothing that can be done to ensure that indirect dependencies are satisfied. For example, if you currently have chocolateygui v0.18.1 installed along with chocolateygui.extension v0.2.1 and you first upgrade to chocolateygui v0.19.0, then you will see errors if you attempt to run Chocolatey GUI, since the chocolateygui.extension package also needs to be updated.
Based on the package releases, the recommended installation/upgrade order is the following:
- chocolateygui.extension
- chocolateygui
- chocolatey-agent
- chocolatey.extension
- chocolatey
This will ensure that all dependencies, both direct and indirect, are installed.