Runtime release briefing — Java 17 establishes new LTS baseline
Java 17 became the next long-term support release on 14 September 2021, adding sealed classes, pattern matching, and strong encapsulation that developers must evaluate before migrating enterprise JVM workloads.
What happened: OpenJDK 17 reached GA, with Oracle and other vendors offering long-term support builds including JVM performance and language enhancements.
- Language adoption: Review use of sealed classes, pattern matching, and enhanced pseudo-random number generators with coding standards.
- Dependency compatibility: Test frameworks and application servers that rely on internal APIs impacted by strong encapsulation (JEP 403).
- Support lifecycle: Plan migrations from Java 11 to maintain vendor support contracts and receive security updates.
Next steps: Pilot Java 17 builds in staging, update container images, and coordinate licensing reviews for the chosen distribution.