Support for Kubernetes version 1.34.1

OCI Kubernetes Engine (OKE) now supports Kubernetes version 1.34.1, in addition to versions 1.33.1 and 1.32.1. With the availability of support for Kubernetes version 1.34.1, OKE will cease support for Kubernetes version 1.31.10 on November 25, 2025. Oracle strongly recommends you immediately upgrade clusters to Kubernetes version 1.32.1, 1.33.1, or 1.34.1. For more information about Kubernetes version 1.34.1, see the Kubernetes Changelog.

Note the following:

• Although Kubernetes version 1.31.10 will not be supported after November 25, 2025, it might continue to be available for selection. However, Oracle strongly recommends you upgrade clusters to Kubernetes version 1.32.1, 1.33.1, or 1.34.1.
• Starting with Kubernetes 1.34.1, the container runtime interface (CRI-O) enforces fully qualified image names by default. When you specify container images in deployments, use the full registry path. If you specify a short image name that matches multiple registries (as defined in the node’s /etc/containers/registries.conf file), the image pull fails. If you need to use short image names, disable this enforcement by creating a custom cloud-init script for worker nodes. For more information, see Notes about Kubernetes Engine Support for Kubernetes Version 1.34.1 in the Supported Versions of Kubernetes topic in the OKE documentation.
• Starting with Kubernetes 1.34.1, CoreDNS by default generates more granular metrics for internal network traffic. If you want to enable the generation of more granular metrics in clusters running earlier versions of Kubernetes, use the corednsEnhancedMetrics argument. For more information, see CoreDNS add-on configuration arguments.

To upgrade a cluster to a new Kubernetes minor version:

1. Upgrade the Kubernetes version running on the control plane by following the instructions in Upgrading the Kubernetes Version on Control Plane Nodes in a Cluster.
2. Having upgraded the control plane, upgrade the Kubernetes version running on worker nodes in a node pool by following the instructions in Upgrading the Kubernetes Version on Worker Nodes in a Cluster.

Note:

Always follow the Kubernetes skew policy for Kubernetes minor version support. Note that in Kubernetes version 1.28, the Kubernetes skew policy expanded. Prior to Kubernetes version 1.28, the skew policy required a cluster's control plane nodes to be no more than two versions ahead of worker nodes. From Kubernetes version 1.28, the Kubernetes skew policy allows control plane nodes to be up to three versions ahead of worker nodes.

Example skew policy:

• Kubernetes control plane nodes are at version 1.34.1
• Kubernetes worker nodes must be at version 1.34.1, 1.33.1, 1.32.1, or 1.31.10

Note that although the worker nodes in a node pool must follow the Kubernetes skew policy, you do not have to upgrade them one minor version at a time.

For more information, see Upgrading Clusters to Newer Kubernetes Versions.