Arc uses Release Phases to indicate the level of maturity of a given Product, Feature, API endpoint, or even individual API data field. The intent of the Release Phase is to concisely articulate the current level of reliability and customer support available for a particular piece of platform functionality. All Arc functionality is considered to be in the General Availability Release Phase unless indicated otherwise in the docs.
The five Release Phases are:
Preview
The intent of the Preview Release Phase is to collaborate with select customers on our newest product capabilities and solicit early feedback. Documentation for Preview functionality will only be available via private documentation, not on the public documentation site. These features and APIs will almost certainly change and we may introduce breaking changes without formalizing it in a new API version. Support for Preview functionality typically rests with the team building the feature rather than our dedicated support team.
Beta
Functionality in the Beta Release Phase gives early adopters a chance to start integrating new product capabilities as early as possible. The product is approaching its final state. Arcadia strives to only introduce breaking changes with new API versions but reserves the right to introduce ad hoc breaking changes if necessary, which we will communicate as best we can. Customers should use the product in their production environment at their own risk. APIs will be documented and accurate but code samples and other guides may be incomplete. These features have access to the full Arcadia support team.
General Availability
All functionality is considered General Availability unless indicated otherwise in documentation. The features are fully operational, in their final state, and available to any API consumers. We will not introduce breaking changes without introducing a new API version. Additional features may be added but they will be backwards compatible. API docs, Getting Started guides, code samples, and other guides will be published and accurate. These features have access to the full Arcadia support team.
Deprecated
Deprecated is a transition Release Phase for products or features we intend to EOL. The product will stop working at a future published date and no new enhancements are expected. Customers should engage in a migration to move away from the deprecated feature or behavior. Deprecated features have the same support as General Availability.
End of Life (EOL)
This product is no longer backed by engineering or support teams. Continued use of any features in this Release Phase will likely result in errors.