--- title: "Product Lifecycle" slug: "product-lifecycle" updated: 2026-07-29T22:53:54Z published: 2026-07-29T22:53:54Z canonical: "help.nucleussec.com/product-lifecycle" --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.nucleussec.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Product Lifecycle Nucleus has a defined product lifecycle. This article provides an overview of those stages, and describes an early validation program for connectors specifically. ## Lifecycle Stages ### Early Access New enhancements are sometimes released as an Early Access product. Early Access products are an early preview of a potential new capability and typically have a limited set of functionalities. In the case of connectors, an Early Access connector has been predominantly tested on sample data or NFR environments. In this stage we anticipate that there will be a higher rate of scenarios where the errors may occur, or products may otherwise function in an unexpected way. This could be due to unknown or unexpected vendor API behavior, data returning in unexpected formats, API or normalization inefficiencies because of scale, unanticipated use cases, or other reasons. Feedback gathered during this phase helps us to rapidly iterate and advance products to Beta and subsequent lifecycle stages. In the case of connectors, customer participation in the *Opt-In Connector Early Validation Program* (described below) greatly assists in expediting progression of the connector or enhancement to become a Beta product. We recommend that Early Access products are used in pre-production and sandbox projects only due to their limited exposure to testing. ### Beta Beta products are a late preview or a new product or capability and have a wider set of functionalities. They have typically been tested on a range of real-world data and environments. In this stage we anticipate that there will be a lower rate of scenarios where the errors or unexpected functionality may occur. In the case of connectors, these scenarios are likely to stem from edge cases in source tools, such as where there is a lack of documentation about functionality that is also infrequently exhibited, or where source data returns in an unexpected and previously non-exhibited way. Beta products allow us to test out enhancements with the participation of a limited number of customers, so that we can closely monitor them and make any necessary adjustments before rolling them out more broadly. Beta products are available on an opt-in basis by customers. We recommend that beta products are evaluated in pre-production and sandbox projects. Proceed with caution if considering using beta products in production projects. ### Generally Available Products and features that are Generally Available (GA) are available for everyone’s use. They are considered stable and reliable to run within customers' production Nucleus projects. We monitor the operations of GA products across production environments for continued efficiency and stability, and do not make breaking changes without sufficient advance notification. ### Deprecated (Connectors) Connectors or specific import methods may be deprecated for a variety of reasons, such as when the source tool or utilized API's are no longer supported by the vendor, or if there is a newer connector available that replaces part or all of its functionality. When connectors are deprecated, they will no longer be available to new customers but will continue to be supported for a period of time for existing customers prior to retirement. Affected customers will receive notice when connectors or import methods are deprecated and be provided communication with respect to migrating to alternative functionality where applicable. Further notice will be provided when deprecated connectors are retired. ## Opt-In Connector Early Validation Program Nucleus recognizes that the rapid deployment of new connectors and enhancements, as well as the continued smooth operation of existing connectors is of paramount importance to customers vulnerability management programs and broader business operations. Although we endeavor to design and build new connectors and enhancements as quickly as possible, we are frequently presented with real-world scenarios where due to a customer’s unique environment, the vendor source tool API’s and retrieved data does not reflect documented or otherwise expected behavior. This can result in the connector not working as intended. To improve the accuracy and stability of connectors for your unique environment, customers can opt-in to the Nucleus Connector Early Validation Program. By participating in this program, you agree to Nucleus using your connector configuration within a dedicated Nucleus environment used for connector validation. In this environment, we will ensure that new connectors and enhancements as well as changes to existing connectors are validated for accuracy before being released to your production instance. To opt-in to this program, please reach out to our support team or your dedicated customer success manager.