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CloudHub Runtime Continuous Updates

Because CloudHub is an integration platform as a service (iPaaS), it manages operating system and Mule runtime engine patching, enabling you to focus on developing and updating your applications.

CloudHub applies security patches as needed to ensure that your application is secure and, once per month, it updates Mule to maintain the stability of your application.

Patch updates use blue-green deployment, which ensures zero downtime.

CloudHub applies continuous updates to all three MuleSoft-managed deployment platforms:

  • US cloud

  • EU cloud

  • MuleSoft Government Cloud

Security Updates

MuleSoft regularly runs scans to identify security vulnerabilities in Mule runtime engine, JVM, and the underlying operating system, and then automatically applies security patches based on the following SLA:

Severity Level Severity Definition Patch Applied Within

P0

Critical

7 days

P1

High

30 days

Monthly Date-Patch Updates

Once per month, MuleSoft releases a date-patch update, which includes backward-compatible bug fixes to address any issues discovered in Mule runtime engine. The monthly date-patch update might include security patches if the scheduled date is within the security SLA.

The format of the version number for these updates is:

Major.Minor.Patch - Date

Here’s an example version number, including the patch date:

4.2.2 - 05-04-2020

The monthly patches update applications only to the latest date patch for the patch version. They do not change the patch version number.

Starting with Mule 4.5, MuleSoft introduces two new release channels, Edge and Long-term Support (LTS). The Mule runtime versioning schema for the new release channels is:

Major[numeric] . Minor[numeric] . Patch[numeric] : Build[numeric] Channel[e for edge, nothing for LTS]

Some examples of these values are: 4.5.0:1e for Edge, and 4.6.0:1 for LTS.

Update Schedule

The schedule for date-patch updates is:

  • In the first full week of the month, MuleSoft releases the date patch.

  • In the third full week of the month, MuleSoft automatically applies the date patch that was released in the first week of the month.

    Applications in environments other than production are updated during the week. Production applications are updated on the weekend.

    All releases occur in GMT-3 time. All automatic updates occur in the local time zone of the app’s deployment region. For example, CloudHub applies updates to apps deployed in the Asia-Pacific (Sydney) region in the AEST time zone and to apps deployed in the US West region in the PST time zone.

For the upcoming May 2024 Government Cloud Auto Update schedule, check these Knowledge Base Articles:

If your application does not support zero-downtime updates or requires a manual update, you can apply the date patch released in the first full week of the month in week 1 or week 2. See Update the Runtime Version Manually.

To update multiple applications, use the CloudHub API. See Update Multiple Apps to the Latest Runtime Release.

Live Patching

CloudHub uses kernel live patching in the underlying VMs to apply the latest security and critical bug patches to the OS. You do not have to restart the CloudHub application between the monthly patching cycles.

CloudHub applications must be running 90-day-old or newer releases to be live-patched.

The CloudHub live patching process checks the application to ensure that it has enough memory and CPU available to live patch. If there is not enough capacity, it skips the patching and retries at a later time.

Determine if an Application Has Been Live-patched

You can check your application logs to determine if an application has been live patched.

Application live patching log

Edge and LTS Releases for Mule

Starting with Mule 4.5, MuleSoft introduces two new release channels, Edge and Long-term Support (LTS), available in all our deployment models: Anypoint Runtime Fabric, CloudHub, CloudHub 2.0, and standalone (on-premises). You can choose one release channel or the other ahead of the Mule 4.4 End of Standard Support.

Channel Type Release Cadence Recommended Customer Profile Differentiators Support Coverage

Edge

Three times per year:

  • February

  • June

  • October

  • CloudHub and CloudHub 2.0

  • Includes new features on a frequent release cadence with shorter maintenance coverage.

  • Versions are not FedRAMP approved.

  • 4 months of Standard Support

  • 4 months of Extended Support

LTS

Annual:

  • February

On-premises:

  • Standalone

  • Runtime Fabric

  • Includes new features introduced in prior Edge releases, along with new features introduced in the February Edge release. This release is maintained for an extended period over being the first to adopt new capabilities.

  • Versions are FedRAMP approved.

  • 12 months of Standard Support

  • 12 months of Extended Support

In February, both Edge and LTS release with the same underlying version, including a minor Mule runtime version and new features.

To review the new support policy that aligns with the new release periods and types of releases, see MuleSoft Support Policy.

The monthly patching process remains unchanged. See Update Patches to Mule.

Edge Channel

Starting with Mule 4.5, MuleSoft releases Edge versions in February, June, and October. Use the Edge channel if you want to stay on top of the latest features and feel comfortable with a more frequent release cycle and auto-app upgrade cycle. The Edge channel includes the latest features and innovations available on the MuleSoft platform.

LTS Channel

Starting with Mule 4.6, MuleSoft releases Long-Term Support (LTS) versions annually in February. If you are on Mule 4.4, you are not required to upgrade to Mule 4.6. However, because Mule 4.5 releases in October 2023, Standard Support for Mule 4.4 ends in October 2024, followed by the End of Extended Support in October 2025.

For CloudHub and CloudHub 2.0 customers, once Standard Support for Mule 4.4 ends, if you want to deploy new apps, you must do so on Mule 4.6 LTS or Mule 4.8 Edge.

Use the LTS channel if you want to avoid maintaining new versions frequently. The LTS channel adopts new capabilities after they have been introduced via Edge releases.

Switch from an Edge Version to an LTS Version

You can switch from an Edge version to an LTS version and vice versa. However, when moving from Edge to LTS, you must choose a later LTS version. For example, if you choose Mule 4.6 LTS and you want to implement a specific new feature released on Mule 4.7 Edge, you can opt into that Edge release, then merge into Mule 4.9 LTS once it is available. MuleSoft does not support apps that are switched from Edge to an older LTS version. For example, switching an app from Mule 4.7 Edge to Mule 4.6 LTS might result in losing some of the new features in the older LTS version.

Mule Runtime Release Cadence Support

The following table shows the Mule runtime release cadence support:

Mule Version Release Date Java Version End of Standard Support End of Extended Support

4.5 Edge

October 2023

8 and 11

February 2024

June 2024

4.6 LTS

February 2024

8, 11, and 17

February 2025

February 2026

4.6 Edge

February 2024

8, 11, and 17

June 2024

October 2024

4.7 Edge

June 2024

8, 11, and 17

October 2024

February 2025

4.8 Edge

October 2024

8, 11, and 17

February 2025

June 2025

4.9 LTS

February 2025

17

February 2026

February 2027

4.9 Edge

February 2025

17

June 2025

October 2025

If you are a CloudHub or a CloudHub 2.0 customer and you want to create or test Mule 4.6 applications in Anypoint Studio, the Studio version required is the next upcoming release in March. Meanwhile, MuleSoft enables you to deploy new apps in Mule runtime 4.5e version via API, Mule Maven plugin, and Anypoint Platform CLI starting February 14 until April 19. Auto-upgrade from Mule 4.5 Edge to Mule 4.6 Edge for CloudHub and CloudHub 2.0 applications will be performed in April instead of February. See Temporary changes to auto-upgrade and new app deployment for Mule 4.5 Edge.

Deployment Models and Application Lifecycle Management

Application lifecycle management depends on the deployment model.

Action CloudHub

Deploy net new apps

Deploy to the latest minor-patch version available under Standard Support of each channel.

Auto-upgrade

  • Monthly upgrade when a new patch version is available.

  • Edge channel apps are auto-upgraded within two weeks.

  • LTS channel apps are auto-upgraded after two months when a new minor version is available.

Self-upgrade

The auto-upgrade occurs during a fixed period after MuleSoft releases the version and enforces the force-upgrade. During that period, you can do a manual upgrade.

  • Edge: two weeks

  • LTS: two months

Rollback

Available to the previously used version

Restart apps

Always

Keep running applications

Until End of Extended Support

End of Extended Support

Shutdown running apps

Retirement

Mule apps do not reach End of Life because they are always auto-upgraded.

Supportability

All Mule apps are under Standard Support.

Mule Runtime Version Naming Changes

The version naming convention depends on the deployment model you are using. A version increments:

  • MAJOR when a release includes features that introduce breaking changes and backward incompatibility.

  • MINOR when a release includes all new features keeping backward compatibility with previous minors.

  • PATCH when a release includes bug fixes and security updates that include upgrades to libraries with reported vulnerabilities. We build a new runtime and do a full validation test.

  • BUILD when a release includes changes related to Image/AMI, including OS changes, OS security updates, and changes in products outside the runtime. It doesn’t include any runtime changes.

CloudHub

The Mule runtime versioning schema for the new release channels is:

Major[numeric] . Minor[numeric] . Patch[numeric] : Build[numeric] Channel[e for edge, nothing for LTS]

Each February, MuleSoft releases both an Edge and an LTS release with the same Major.Minor version. To distinguish the versions, they are represented as:

  • Edge: 4.6.0:1e

  • LTS: 4.6.0:1

CloudHub requires regular OS updates, hence the addition of the build enumeration in the full runtime version schema.

Here are examples of the version numbers:

  • Edge: 4.5.0:1e

  • Edge: 4.6.0:1e

  • LTS: 4.6.0:1

Mule runtime does not introduce a semVer increment if there is a month with no fixes.

Here is an example of the versioning schema using different patch and builds:

Standalone (on-premises) CloudHub - AMI / CloudHub 2.0 / Runtime Fabric - Docker image

Case

Release Date

Description

Patch/Build

Mule Runtime

Runtime Manager/Maven/API Tag for New Deployment

1

Oct 3, 2023

First release of 4.5.0

0th patch and 1st build

4.5.0

4.5.0:1e

2

Nov 7, 2023

Second release of 4.5

1st patch and 1st build

4.5.1

4.5.1:1e

3

Nov 7, 2023

Another build on same day for CloudHub, CloudHub 2.0, and Runtime Fabric

1st patch and 2nd build

N/A

4.5.1:2e

4

Nov 7, 2023

OS updates only for CloudHub, CloudHub 2.0, and Runtime Fabric

1st patch and 3rd build

N/A

4.5.1:3e

5

Dec 5, 2023

Second patch version of 4.5

2nd patch and 1st build

4.5.2

4.5.2:1e

6

Jan 2, 2024

Hot fix for a Mule runtime regression

3rd patch & 1st build

4.5.3

4.5.3:1e

7

Feb 6, 2024

Release of new minor

0th patch and 1st build

4.6.0

4.6.0:1e (Edge) / 4.6.0:1 (LTS)

The Mule runtime versioning schema uses the following conventions:

  • Patch number in schema

    • In the schema 4.5.X:2e, the patch number is the X.

    • The patch number starts from 0, introducing a new minor version.

    • The patch number increments when the release introduces new code changes, including hotfixes to regressions or other bug fixes.

  • Build number in schema

    • In the schema 4.5.1:Ye, the build number is Y.

    • The build number starts from 1, introducing the first AMI or Docker image build of the patch.

    • The build number increments whenever the release introduces a new build of the AMI or Docker image for the same Mule runtime version. This increment does not indicate code changes to Mule runtime.

Update the Runtime Version Manually

The Update Available column indicates which apps require a runtime version update. You can schedule the update to occur at your convenience.

Before updating apps in the production environment, update them in the sandbox environment and run the required tests.

Update a Single App to the Latest Runtime Release

To update an app to the latest date patch:

  1. In the Runtime Manager navigation menu, click Applications.

  2. Click the name of the application you want to update to display the details pane.

  3. Access the Settings page for the application.

  4. Click the Runtime tab.

    If the app requires an update, Update available appears in the Runtime version menu:

    Update available and the Runtime version menu on the application Settings page
  5. Select the latest version from the Runtime version drop-down menu.

  6. If you want to see details about the version, click the Read release notes link.

  7. Click the Apply Changes button to update the app.

CloudHub updates the app with the version you selected and displays a message indicating success or failure.

If the app update is unsuccessful, the app remains in the Update Available tab. In this case, the app continues to run correctly on the previous runtime version and no action is required.

If you select the Edge release channel, a banner appears indicating the date of the next automatic update.

Banner indicating the date of automatic update for Edge release channel.

Update Multiple Apps to the Latest Runtime Release

Although the Runtime Manager UI doesn’t support updating multiple apps to the latest runtime version, you can use the CloudHub API to perform a bulk update. See How to Perform a Bulk CloudHub Application Update to the Latest Runtime Releases.

Applications updated using the Bulk Update API are processed with a lower priority and may take slightly longer to update.

Update Notification

When a new runtime version is available:

  • The Applications page displays an Update Available column that indicates if there is an update available for the application:

    Applications page with banner and Update Available tab
  • Update available and the new available updates appear in the Runtime version tab of the Settings page for the application:

    Runtime update version and Update available in the Runtime version menu.

MuleSoft applies the updates automatically, based on the published schedules. If you want, you can update them manually at your convenience.

Zero-Downtime Restart Limitations

Zero-downtime restarts don’t work in the following cases:

  • The CloudHub application is a durable subscriber.

    In this case, only one unique subscriber can be active at a time. For these applications, you must manually stop and start the application to apply the latest update.

  • The CloudHub application connects to an external dependency that is unavailable, unresponsive, or requires warmup.

    In this case, CloudHub waits up to three minutes for the application to connect to any dependencies before assigning the application domain and related static IP addresses (if used) to the new version of the application.

If either case applies to your application, contact Support and your CSM account representative for information about updating the application to be cloud-ready.

Check Your Application Status After an Update

After a new update occurs, you can check your applications status state in the Status column in Runtime Manager’s Applications tab.

You can also check your application logs to verify if your application was deployed correctly and take any remediation actions in the event of some auto-minor update-related issue. For more information, visit View Logs.

To be notified by e-mail when an error occurs after an automated update, you can create an alert.

Failed Automated Updates

With blue-green deployments, when an automated update fails to be deployed to a new worker, the application continues to run the non-latest patch version on the currently running worker.

Possible failure reasons include but are not limited to:

  • Removing one of the application properties from the Anypoint Runtime Manager UI after deployment.

  • Incompatibility of a custom module with the latest patch version release.

If an application fails to be automatically updated after two monthly patching cycles, the application is stopped and force updated to the latest patch version. Applications that fail to start require your action to address patches.