ROS kinetic · Version Status
ROS kinetic End of Life Date
ROS kinetic end-of-life date, support status, and CVE risk. Data reconciled from official vendor documentation and endoflife.date at every build; the source of each date is on the product page.
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ROS kinetic is past end of life. This version no longer receives security patches. 2016 days past EOL — migrate to a supported version immediately.
EOL Date
May 1, 2021
2016 days past EOL
Latest Release
—
Standard release
Release Date
May 23, 2016
ROS kinetic series
Where these dates come from
End of lifeMay 1, 2021endoflife.date (open dataset) · endoflife.datemedium · 1 source agrees ReleaseMay 23, 2016endoflife.date (open dataset) · endoflife.datemedium · 1 source agrees Confidence: high = two or more independent sources agree (the vendor's page read by our adapter, a person's check against the vendor, the dataset the date came from); medium = one; low = the vendor page disagrees or our last read is stale.
How we source dates.
Lifecycle detail
ROS kinetic was released on May 23, 2016 and support ended on May 1, 2021 — a supported lifespan of 4 years and 11 months, in line with the 4 years and 11 months median for ROS releases. It has been past its end-of-life date for 5 years and 6 months.
Attack Surface
10/30 Medium tier
CISA KEV Exposure
0/20 Not in KEV
Extended Support
0/10 Available
EOL Risk Score™ — proprietary methodology by endoflife.ai. Factors: EOL recency, attack surface breadth, CISA KEV catalog presence, extended support availability. Updated at every build.
Methodology → ·
View score card →
Extended Support
Extended ROS kinetic support options
Some vendors and third parties sell security patches beyond end of life; whether one covers this version varies. Compare your options.
Compare Options →
| Version | Latest | EOL Date | Status |
|---|
| → kinetic |
— |
May 1, 2021 |
EOL |
| lunar |
— |
May 1, 2019 |
EOL |
| melodic |
— |
Apr 1, 2023 |
EOL |
| noetic |
— |
May 1, 2025 |
EOL |
What does ROS kinetic end of life mean?
When ROS kinetic reaches end of life, the maintainers stop issuing security patches for this version. CVEs discovered after the EOL date are publicly disclosed on the National Vulnerability Database with no patch available. Exploit code frequently appears on GitHub within days of disclosure.
The CVE blind spot: A CVE-based scan does not show the ongoing accumulation of unpatched vulnerabilities in EOL software versions. Some scanners flag unsupported versions of common products, but coverage varies, and none of them give you the date in advance. Running ROS kinetic past its EOL date creates a growing attack surface that a clean scan result does not rule out.
Migrate to a supported version or implement compensating controls — network segmentation, enhanced monitoring, restricted access — while migration is underway.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does ROS kinetic reach end of life?
ROS kinetic reached end of life on May 1, 2021. This version is no longer receiving security patches.
Is ROS kinetic still supported?
No. ROS kinetic reached end of life on May 1, 2021 and is no longer receiving security patches.
What should I upgrade to from ROS kinetic?
What are the security risks of running ROS kinetic past EOL?
Since ROS kinetic reached end of life, the maintainers no longer issue security patches. Any CVEs disclosed after the EOL date accumulate with no vendor fix. A CVE-based scan does not show this — it is the CVE blind spot; some scanners flag unsupported versions of common products, but coverage varies and none give the date in advance. Organizations running EOL ROS should migrate immediately or implement compensating controls.