From 1d5fec4ac2296f59707de253d0bbec2c4b5045aa Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Elsa Zacharia Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2026 20:19:07 +0530 Subject: [PATCH] Project Plan 4.41 This commit adds the detailed plan for Eclipse SDK 4.41 release schedule. --- .../plans/eclipse_project_plan_4_41.xml | 398 ++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 398 insertions(+) create mode 100644 development/plans/eclipse_project_plan_4_41.xml diff --git a/development/plans/eclipse_project_plan_4_41.xml b/development/plans/eclipse_project_plan_4_41.xml new file mode 100644 index 00000000..818e97de --- /dev/null +++ b/development/plans/eclipse_project_plan_4_41.xml @@ -0,0 +1,398 @@ + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
+

+Last revised July 15, 2026. + + +

+

Please send comments about this plan to the eclipse-dev@eclipse.org developer + mailing list. +

+

This document lays out the feature and API set for the next feature release + of the Eclipse SDK after 4.40, designated release 4.41 and code-named 2026-09. +

+ +

The first part of the plan deals with the important matters of release deliverables, + release milestones, target operating environments, and release-to-release compatibility. + These are all things that need to be clear for any release, even if no features + were to change.

+

Not all plan items represent the same amount of work; some may be quite large, + others, quite small. Some plan items may involve work that is localized to + a single component; others may involve coordinated changes to several components; + other may pervade the entire SDK. Although some plan items are for work that + is more pressing than others, the plan items appear in no particular order.

+

With the previous release as the starting point, this is the plan for how + we will enhance and improve it. Fixing bugs, improving test coverage, documentation, + examples, performance tuning, usability, etc. are considered routine ongoing + maintenance activities and are not included in this plan unless they would + also involve a significant change to the API or feature set, or involve a significant + amount of work. The intent of the plan is to account for all interesting feature + work.

+ +
+ + + + + +
+ +

The release deliverables have the same form as previous releases, namely:

+
    +
  • Source code release for all Eclipse Project deliverables, available as + versions tagged "R4_41" in the Eclipse Project Git + repositories Equinox, JDT, + PDE and Platform.
    • +
  • Eclipse SDK (runtime binary and SDK for Equinox, Platform, JDT, and PDE) (downloadable).
    • +
  • Eclipse Equinox (runtime and source repositories) (downloadable).
    • +
  • Eclipse Platform (runtime and source repositories) (downloadable).
    • +
  • Eclipse ECJ (runtime and source for the Eclipse Compiler for Java) (downloadable).
    • +
  • Eclipse PDE (Installable from repository for the Plug-in Development Environment).
    • +
  • Eclipse SDK Examples (Installable from repository).
    • +
  • SWT distribution (downloadable).
    • +
+ + +
+ + + + + + +

+ Release milestones will be occurring at roughly 6 week intervals, and will be aligned with the + + 2026-09 Simultaneous Release train.

+ +
4.41 M1
 +
4.41 M2 (only submit I-build)
 +
4.41 M3 - Release Record Deadline
 + +
4.41 RC1 - API and feature freeze
 + +
4.41 RC2 - New and Noteworthy Material Deadline
 +
4.41 GA
 + + +
+

Our target is to complete 4.41 in September 2026. + All release deliverables will be available for download as soon as the release has been + tested and validated in the target operating configurations listed below.

+

PMC approval is required for API changes and additions after M3.

+
+ + + + + + + + +
+

In order to remain current, each Eclipse Project release targets reasonably current + operating environments.

+

Most of the Eclipse SDK is "pure" Java code and has no direct dependence + on the underlying operating system. The chief dependence is therefore on the + Java Platform itself. Portions are targeted to specific classes of operating + environments, requiring their source code to only reference facilities available + in particular class libraries (e.g. Java 22, Java 23, etc).

+

+ In general, the 4.41 release of the Eclipse Project is developed on Java SE 21 VMs. + As such, the Eclipse SDK as a whole + is targeted at all modern, desktop Java VMs. Most functionality is available for + Java SE 21 level development everywhere, and extended development capabilities are made + available on the VMs that support them.

+

There are many different implementations of the Java Platform running atop + a variety of operating systems. We focus our testing on a handful of + popular combinations of operating system and Java Platform; these are our reference + platforms. Eclipse undoubtedly runs fine in many operating environments + beyond the reference platforms we test. However, since we do not systematically test + them we cannot vouch for them. Problems encountered when running Eclipse on a + non-reference platform that cannot be recreated on any reference platform will + be given lower priority than problems with running Eclipse on a reference platform.

+

Eclipse 4.41 is tested and validated on the following reference platforms + (this list is updated over the course of the release cycle):

+ +
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
Operating SystemVersionHardwareJREWindowing System
Windows + 11
+ 		x86 64-bit + OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ Oracle Java 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ Oracle Java 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ 		Win32
Red Hat Enterprise Linux10.2 + + x86 64-bit
+ aarch64
+ 		+ OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ Oracle Java 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ Oracle Java 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ 		GTK 3
Power 64-bit LE + OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server + 16.0 + x86 64-bit + OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ 		GTK 3
Power 64-bit LE + OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+
Ubuntu Long Term Support24.04.04 + x86 64-bit
+ aarch64
+ 		+ OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ 		GTK 3
Apple macOS + 14
+ 15
+ 26 + 		x86 64-bit + OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ Oracle Java 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ Oracle Java 25.0.3 (LTS)
+ 		Cocoa
+ 14
+ 15
+ 26 + 		+ M1 (arm64) + + OpenJDK 21.0.11 (LTS)
+ OpenJDK 25.0.3 (LTS)
+
+
+ +

As stated above, we expect that Eclipse works fine on other current + Java VM and OS versions but we cannot flag these as reference platforms without + significant community support for testing them.

+

With respect to GTK 3 versions: the required version of GTK 3 which Eclipse SDK 4.41 +will run on is 3.22 or newer. +

+ +

With respect to GTK 3 themes: Adwaita theme is guaranteed to work. Eclipse SDK will run with other GTK 3 themes, +however we cannot flag these as reference versions without significant community support for testing and/or development +of fixes. Bugs that are reproducible only with themes other than Adwaita will be given a lower priority (or may not be fixed at all), +compared to bugs which are reproducible on the target environments listed above. +

+
+ + +

The Eclipse SDK is designed as the basis for internationalized products. The + user interface elements provided by the Eclipse SDK components, including dialogs + and error messages, are externalized. The English strings are provided as the + default resource bundles.

+

Latin-1, DBCS, and BiDi locales are supported by the Eclipse SDK on all reference platforms.

+

The Eclipse SDK supports GB 18030 (level 1), the Chinese code page standard, + on Windows, Linux and the Macintosh.

+ + + + + + + +
+ +

Compatibility of Release 4.41 with 4.40

+

Eclipse 4.41 will be compatible with Eclipse 4.40

+ +

API Contract Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.41 will be upwards + contract-compatible with Eclipse SDK 4.40 except in those areas noted in the + + Eclipse 4.41 Plug-in Migration Guide + . Programs that use affected APIs and extension points will need to be ported + to Eclipse SDK 4.41 APIs. Downward contract compatibility + is not supported. There is no guarantee that compliance with Eclipse SDK 4.41 + APIs would ensure compliance with Eclipse SDK 4.40 APIs. Refer to + + Evolving Java-based APIs + for a discussion of the kinds of API changes that maintain contract compatibility.

+ +

Binary (plug-in) Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.41 will be upwards + binary-compatible with Eclipse SDK 4.40 except in those areas noted in the + + Eclipse 4.41 Plug-in Migration Guide + . Downward plug-in compatibility is not supported. Plug-ins for Eclipse SDK + 4.41 will not be usable in Eclipse SDK 4.40. Refer to + + Evolving Java-based APIs + for a discussion of the kinds of API changes that maintain binary compatibility.

+ +

Source Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.41 will be upwards source-compatible + with Eclipse SDK 4.40 except in the areas noted in the + + Eclipse 4.41 Plug-in Migration Guide + . This means that source files written + to use Eclipse SDK 4.41 APIs might successfully compile and run against Eclipse + SDK 4.40 APIs, although this is not guaranteed. Downward source compatibility + is not supported. If source files use new Eclipse SDK APIs, they will not be + usable with an earlier version of the Eclipse SDK.

+ +

Workspace Compatibility: Eclipse SDK 4.41 will be upwards + workspace-compatible with earlier 3.x and 4.40 versions of the Eclipse SDK unless noted. + This means that workspaces and projects created with Eclipse SDK 4.40, 4.39, 4.38, 4.37....4.33,.. 4.26, .. 3.0 can be successfully + opened by Eclipse SDK 4.41 and upgraded to a 4.41 workspace. This includes both + hidden metadata, which is localized to a particular workspace, as well as metadata + files found within a workspace project (e.g., the .project file ), which may + propagate between workspaces via file copying or team repositories. Individual + plug-ins developed for Eclipse SDK 4.41 should provide similar upwards compatibility + for their hidden and visible workspace metadata created by earlier versions; + 4.41 plug-in developers are responsible for ensuring that their plug-ins recognize + metadata from earlier versions and process it appropriately. User + interface session state may be discarded when a workspace is upgraded. Downward + workspace compatibility is not supported. A workspace created (or opened) by + a product based on Eclipse 4.41 will be unusable with a product based on an earlier + version of Eclipse. Visible metadata files created (or overwritten) by Eclipse + 4.41 will generally be unusable with earlier versions of Eclipse.

+ +

Non-compliant usage of API's: All non-API methods and classes, + and certainly everything in a package with "internal" in its name or + x-internal in the bundle manifest entry, + are considered implementation details which may vary between operating environment + and are subject to change without notice. Client plug-ins that directly depend + on anything other than what is specified in the Eclipse SDK API are inherently + unsupportable and receive no guarantees about compatibility within a single + release much less with earlier releases. Refer to + + How to Use the Eclipse API + for information about how to write compliant plug-ins.

+ +
+ + + + + + + +We no longer group the plan items into separate themes as this does not provide real value to our users. +
+
+ + + + + + + \ No newline at end of file