Version history

This page explains GKE on-prem versioning.

Versioning schema

The GKE on-prem version has the form X.Y.Z.-gke.N.

Major version (X)
Major versions introduce backward incompatible changes.
Minor versions (X.Y)
Minor versions generally introduce new functionality.
Patch versions (X.Y.Z-gke.N)
Patch versions are generally small, and include fixes and security updates. New features aren't generally introduced. -gke.N is the version's release candidate number.

GKE on-prem versions

The following GKE on-prem versions are fully supported, offering the latest patches and updates for security vulnerabilities, exposures, and issues impacting GKE on-prem. For more details, see the release notes.

VersionRelease dateDownloadsDocumentation
1.16.3-gke.45 November 16, 2023 1.16 Downloads 1.16 docs
1.16.2-gke.28 October 19, 2023 1.16 Downloads 1.16 docs
1.16.1-gke.45 September 29, 2023 1.16 Downloads 1.16 docs
1.16.0-gke.669 August 23, 2023 1.16 Downloads 1.16 docs
1.15.6-gke.25 October 31, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.15.5-gke.41 October 12, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.15.4-gke.37 September 1, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.15.3-gke.47 August 10, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.15.2-gke.44 July 10, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.15.1-gke.40 June 1, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.15.0-gke.581 May 2, 2023 1.15 Downloads 1.15 docs
1.14.10-gke.35 November 20, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.9-gke.21 October 19, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.8-gke.37 September 29, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.7-gke.42 August 17, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.6-gke.23 July 6, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.5-gke.41 June 14, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.4-gke.54 May 1, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.3-gke.25 April 3, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.2-gke.37 March 7, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.1-gke.39 January 31, 2023 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs
1.14.0-gke.430 December 21, 2022 1.14 Downloads 1.14 docs

Kubernetes and node kernel versions

For each GKE on-prem version, the following table shows the Kubernetes version, the Linux kernel version and the latest qualified Windows kernel version for the cluster nodes:

GKE on-prem version Kubernetes version Node kernel version
1.16.3-gke.45 1.27.4-gke.1600 5.15.0.1031.37 (ubuntu), 5.15.133 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (Windows)
1.16.2-gke.28 1.27.4-gke.1600 5.15.0.1028.33 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (Windows)
1.16.1-gke.45 1.27.4-gke.1600 5.15.0.1026.31 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (Windows)
1.16.0-gke.669 1.27.4-gke.1600 5.15.0.1024.29 (ubuntu), 5.15.107 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (Windows)
1.15.6-gke.25 1.26.9-gke.700 5.15.0.1030.35 (ubuntu), 5.15.133 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.15.5-gke.41 1.26.7-gke.2500 5.15.0.1028.33 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.15.4-gke.37 1.26.7-gke.2500 5.15.0.1025.30 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.15.3-gke.47 1.26.5-gke.2100 5.15.0.1024.29 (ubuntu), 5.15.107 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.15.2-gke.44 1.26.2-gke.1001 5.15.0.1021.26 (ubuntu), 5.15.107 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.15.1-gke.40 1.26.2-gke.1001 5.15.0.1019.24 (ubuntu), 5.15.107 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.15.0-gke.581 1.26.2-gke.1001 5.15.0.1017.22 (ubuntu), 5.15.89 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.14.10-gke.35 1.25.13-gke.200 5.15.0.1032.38 (ubuntu), 5.15.133 (cos), 10.0.17763.4974 (windows)
1.14.9-gke.21 1.25.13-gke.200 5.15.0.1030.35 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.14.8-gke.37 1.25.12-gke.2400 5.15.0.1027.32 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.14.7-gke.42 1.25.10-gke.2100 5.15.0.1024.29 (ubuntu), 5.15.120 (cos), 10.0.17763.4645 (windows)
1.14.6-gke.23 1.25.10-gke.1200 5.15.0.1019.24 (ubuntu), 5.15.89 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.14.5-gke.41 1.25.8-gke.1500 5.15.0.1019.24 (ubuntu), 5.15.89 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.14.4-gke.54 1.25.8-gke.1500 5.15.0.1017.22 (ubuntu), 5.15.89 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.14.3-gke.25 1.25.5-gke.100 5.15.0.1016.21 (ubuntu), 5.15.89 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.14.2-gke.37 1.25.5-gke.100 5.15.0.1015.19 (ubuntu), 5.15.65 (cos), 10.0.17763.3887 (windows)
1.14.1-gke.39 1.25.5-gke.100 5.15.0.1012.16 (ubuntu), 5.15.65 (cos), 10.0.17763.3650 (windows)
1.14.0-gke.430 1.25.5-gke.100 5.15.0.1008.12 (ubuntu), 5.15.65 (cos), 10.0.17763.3650 (windows)

Versioned entities

Each GKE on-prem release includes the following versioned entities:

Entity Description
gkeadm The command-line tool for creating and managing admin workstations. To check the version, run gkeadm version.
Admin workstation OVA

Open virtual appliance (OVA) for the admin workstation. Contains the OS image for the admin workstation along with the cluster bundle and the gkectl command-line tool.

The version number is part of the filename—for example:

gke-on-prem-admin-appliance-vsphere-1.6.1-gke.1.ova

For more information, see the Open Virtualization Format Specification PDF.

gkectl The command-line interface to GKE on-prem. Create and manage clusters, create configuration files, and run preflight checks. Included in the admin workstation OVA. To check the version, run gkectl version.
Cluster bundle

An archive that contains cluster components and the operating system image for cluster nodes. Included in the admin workstation OVA.

The version number is part of the filename—for example:

gke-onprem-vsphere-1.6.1-gke.1.tgz

Security updates

To determine whether an upgrade contains security updates, see the release notes and the Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) security bulletins.

Version compatibility

Virtualization layer

1.16 1.15 1.14 1.13 1.12
Version

vSphere 8.0

vSphere 7.0 Update 2+

vSphere 8.0 (Preview)

vSphere 7.0 Update 2+

vSphere 7.0 Update 1+

vSphere 7.0 Update 1+

vSphere 6.7 Update 3+

vSphere 7.0 Update 1+
Edition vSphere Standard * or higher vSphere Standard * or higher vSphere Standard * or higher vSphere Standard * or higher vSphere Standard * or higher

Networking options

1.16 1.15 1.14 1.13 1.12
vSphere standard switch Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
vSphere distributed switch Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
vSphere NSX-T † Yes ‡ Yes ‡ Yes ‡ Yes ‡ Yes ‡

Load balancing options

1.16 1.15 1.14 1.13 1.12
F5 BIG-IP #

F5 Big-IP Controller v1.14.0

Compatible with BIG-IP v12.x-v15.x

F5 Big-IP Controller v1.14.0

Compatible with BIG-IP v12.x-v15.x

F5 Big-IP Controller v1.14.0

Compatible with BIG-IP v12.x-v15.x

F5 Big-IP Controller v1.14.0

Compatible with BIG-IP v12.x-v15.x

F5 Big-IP Controller v1.14.0

Compatible with BIG-IP v12.x-v15.x
Manual load balancing mode Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Bundled load balancer (Google provided) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Storage options

1.16 1.15 1.14 1.13 1.12
vSAN (optional)

vSAN 8.0

vSAN 8.0

vSAN 7.0 Update 1+

vSAN 7.0 Update 1+

vSAN 6.7 Update 3+

vSAN 7.0 Update 1+
vSphere-compatible storage (SAN/DAS/SDS) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Storage DRS No No No No No
CSI storage providers See Anthos Ready storage partners.

Notes

* vSphere Enterprise is the recommended edition.

† NSX-V is not supported.

‡ The minimum supported version of NSX-T is 2.4.2. Support includes node networking for inter-node communication. Pod networking, ingress, and NSX-T CNI integration are not supported. NSX-V is not supported.

# For an up-to-date compatibility matrix for F5, see Releases and versioning.