Maintenance Policy
Each major version of the Yii Framework follows a structured maintenance lifecycle to ensure long-term stability and security. During its active phase, the framework receives new features and improvements. Once a new major version is under development, the current one transitions into maintenance mode.
After the release of a new major version, the previous version continues to receive updates under the following policy:
- 2 years of regular bug fixes and minor improvements
- 3 years of critical security patches and PHP compatibility fixes
These timeframes may be extended for selected releases if the Yii team considers it beneficial for the community or enterprise users.
Maintenance Phases Explained
| Phase | Description |
|---|---|
| Feature Freeze | At this stage, no new features are introduced. The focus shifts to stabilizing the release by fixing bugs, improving documentation, and ensuring consistent behavior across environments. |
| Security & PHP Compatibility Fixes Only | Only critical updates related to security vulnerabilities or PHP version compatibility are applied. No general bug fixes or new functionality will be added. |
| End of Life (EOL) | The version no longer receives updates or support. Developers are strongly encouraged to migrate to a newer, actively maintained version. |
Maintenance Timeline Overview
The lifecycle phases ensure Yii remains reliable, secure, and compatible with new PHP versions while providing developers time to upgrade smoothly.