Citrix Release Classifications – LTSR vs CR

Aug 29, 2023

 What is a Citrix Long Term Service Release?

Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops Long Term Service Release (LTSR) is delivered approximately every two to three years and offers an extended lifecycle, predictable maintenance, and meets high compliance standards.

The LTSR offers customers up to 5 years of mainstream support and 5 years of extended support. By electing to implement a LTSR version, customers will receive fixes known as Cumulative Updates. A Cumulative Update typically includes only fixes for the LTSR components without introducing new features and functionality that might impact the environment. Cumulative Updates are not considered version upgrades; rather, Cumulative Updates are maintenance updates to an existing product version. By opting to deploy a LTSR version of a Citrix product, customers can take comfort in knowing that they have longer cycles between version upgrades with minimal environment changes, which lowers the long term IT management costs associated with their deployments. 

What is a Current Release of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops or Citrix Hypervisor?

Any new release of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops or Citrix Hypervisor will be labeled a Current Release (CR). Citrix is simply identifying the standard release process as a Current Release to help differentiate those releases from a Long Term Service Release. Typically, Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops features are bundled into Current Releases up to two to four times a year. Current Release functionality is then bundled into a LTSR package on a slower cycle – typically once every few years.

What is the difference between a Current Release and a Long Term Service Release?

 Citrix Long Term Service Releases (LTSR) typically come out once every two or three years and are targeted for use in industries that tend to require a long test or certification process before deploying. While this slows the pace at which you can take advantage of new features, it offers a predictable maintenance cadence for ongoing fixes in the form of Cumulative Updates.


Our Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops Current Release (CR) typically have up to four releases per year and gives our on-premises customers access to new functionality and feature updates on a regular basis. CR customers can access new features quickly and adopt new releases as they see fit.


Current Releases will occur more frequently. Citrix thoroughly tests all new technology before releasing any feature to market; however, Current Releases signify new technology and fixes in one combined release.  Long Term Service Releases will contain components and features that have been proven and well established.

Fixes for Current Releases will likely be released in the next Current Release; therefore, it is less likely that an individual fix would be released for a Current Release version. Therefore, customers may be asked to upgrade to the next version of a Current Release that includes the requested fix and new functionality. The cadence of Current Releases may vary throughout the product lifecycle and due to legal and financial restrictions, only general timing can be made available.

Long Term Service Releases will have a regular cadence of Cumulative
Updates that will typically contain only fixes, not new features or functionality. Customers can plan for Cumulative Updates based on a cadence of 3-9 months. Customers with Long Term Service Release environments would not be asked to upgrade to a newer version of the product, for example, customers running 1912 LTSR components will receive Cumulative Updates for 1912 LTSR – they will not be asked to upgrade to 2203 LTSR until they have reached end of support for 1912.

Below is a table comparing the different servicing options:

Long Term Service Release (LTSR) Current Release (CR)
Product Lifecycle Timelines 5 years of mainstream support + 5 years of extended support Standard product lifecycle milestones
Access to Releases Citrix.com/Downloads Citrix.com/Downloads
Cumulative Updates Yes No
Includes Fixes Yes Yes
Cumulative Update Schedule 4-6 months N/A
Release Schedule 2-3 years 3-9 months
Enhancement Requests No enhancements until next LTSR Rapid release cycles, more opportunities for enhancements
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