Sugestion: LTS (Long-Term Support) model

WHY UNA CMS NEEDS AN LTS VERSION,

A TRANSPARENT SUPPORT LIFECYCLE, AND VERSION-SPECIFIC DOCUMENTATION

As a platform that aims to power professional communities and large-scale projects, UNA CMS must align itself with industry best practices including the adoption of a Long-Term Support (LTS) versioning strategy, a public version support matrix, and a versioned documentation model.

Currently, UNA suffers from a lack of clarity in its release cycles, migration paths, and documentation scope. This creates uncertainty for developers, businesses, and stakeholders who need reliable tools for long-term investments.

WHAT IS AN LTS VERSION AND WHY IT MATTERS

An LTS (Long-Term Support) version ensures that:

It will receive bug fixes and security updates for a defined time frame
It is stable enough for production use
It remains compatible with officially supported modules and extensions

LTS MODEL EXAMPLES FROM THE INDUSTRY

Ubuntu: LTS releases every 2 years, supported for 5 years
Node.js: Active LTS (18 months) + Maintenance LTS (12 months)
Laravel: LTS versions supported for 3 years
Symfony: Bug fixes for 3 years, security updates for 4 years

PROPOSED LONG TERM SUPPORT (LTS) STRATEGY FOR UNA CMS

UNA CMS has great potential to become a robust and reliable platform, but to achieve long-term trust and adoption, it must adopt a software lifecycle strategy that aligns with industry standards. One of the most effective approaches is the implementation of a Long Term Support (LTS) strategy.

By defining clear, version-specific support windows, UNA CMS can provide confidence to developers, agencies, and enterprises that rely on stable and secure versions of the platform.

EXEMPLE VERSION SUPPORT MATRIX

+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA SUPPORT  | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 9        |  🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  🔴  |  🔴  |  ❌  |  ❌  |  ❌  |  ❌  | ❌  |  ❌  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 10 LTS   |      |  🟦  |  ✅ ||  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅ ||  ✅  |  🔴  |  🔴  |  ❌ |  ❌  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 11       |      |      |  🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  🔴  |  🔴  |  ❌  |  ❌  |  ❌  |  ❌  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 12 LTS   |      |      |      || 🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  🔴  |  🔴  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 13       |      |      |      |      |  🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  🔴  |  🔴  |  🔴  |  🔴  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 14 LTS   |      |      |      |      |      |  🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 15       |      |      |      |      |      |      || 🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  🔴  |  🔴  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 16 LTS   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      || 🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |  ✅  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 17       |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      || 🟦  |  ✅  |  ✅  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 18 LTS   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      || 🟦  |  ✅  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+
| UNA 19       |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      || 🟦  |
+--------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+

Legend:

✅ = Active Support Period (Bug Fixes + Security Patches)
❌ = Expired Support Period (No bug fixes or security patches provided)
🟦 = Release Date (The official release date of the version)
🔴 = Security Support (The period when security patches are available)

VERSION-SPECIFIC DOCUMENTATION MODEL

In addition to a clear support policy, UNA CMS should adopt a version-specific documentation model. Each software version—especially LTS releases—should have its own dedicated documentation set, including release notes, migration instructions, and configuration guides.

This eliminates ambiguity and ensures that developers are never left guessing whether a particular instruction applies to the version they are using.

SUGGESTED STRUCTURE

docs.una.io/v14-LTS/
docs.una.io/v14.1/
docs.una.io/v15.0.1/

Each version folder should be version-locked and archived for future reference.

WHY IT MATTERS

The current generalized documentation often lacks version identifiers. As a result:

Developers follow outdated or incompatible instructions
Installations break due to version mismatches
Valuable time is lost debugging undocumented changes

Adopting a versioned documentation model—similar to Django, Laravel, or Vue.js—would immediately improve clarity and reliability for all users.

Each version’s documentation must:

Reflect the exact database schema, APIs, and UI
Mark deprecated features
Include migration guides to newer versions

Even minimal documentation is effective—if it's clearly tied to a specific version.

RELEASE CADENCE RECOMMENDATION

Minor updates: every 3–6 months

Major versions: yearly

LTS versions: every 2 years

Each release should come with:

Clearly defined EOL dates
A detailed migration plan
Version-compatible documentation

BENEFITS OF THESE PRACTICES

Professionalism and trust
Stability for developers and partners
Predictability for enterprise clients
Clearer roadmaps for migration and development
Increased community contributions

CALL TO ACTION

The UNA development team should take the following steps:

Publish a VERSION SUPPORT MATRIX
Announce which versions are LTS
Maintain VERSION-SPECIFIC DOCUMENTATION
Provide OFFICIAL MIGRATION GUIDES
Define a SECURITY UPDATE POLICY

These steps are not “nice-to-have”—they are expected of any platform positioned for serious, long-term use.

A COMPANY WITHOUT A PLAN DOES NOT EXIST

UNA CMS has potential. But to realize it, the project must transition from an experimental approach to a structured, professional-grade development lifecycle.

Features alone aren’t enough. Developers and stakeholders need predictability, clarity, and long-term stability. Without those, they will look elsewhere.

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