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# Deprecation guidelines
This page includes information about how and when to remove or make breaking
changes to GitLab features.
## Terminology
It's important to understand the difference between **deprecation** and
**removal**:
**Deprecation** is the process of flagging/marking/announcing that a feature
will be removed in a future version of GitLab.
**Removal** is the process of actually removing a feature that was previously
deprecated.
## When can a feature be deprecated?
A feature can be deprecated at any time, provided there is a viable alternative.
## When can a feature be removed/changed?
See our [Release and Maintenance policy ](../../policy/maintenance.md ).
