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Announce the deprecation of the Coverage-guided fuzz testing feature
<!-- Use this template as a starting point for deprecations. --> <!-- For guidance on the overall deprecations, removals and breaking changes workflow, please visit [Breaking changes, deprecations, and removing features](https://handbook.gitlab.com/handbook/marketing/blog/release-posts/#deprecations-removals-and-breaking-changes). --> ### Deprecation Summary Coverage-guided fuzz testing sends random inputs to an instrumented version of your application in an effort to cause unexpected behavior. Such behavior indicates a bug that you should address. GitLab allows you to add coverage-guided fuzz testing to your pipelines. This helps you discover bugs and potential security issues that other QA processes may miss. Customers will no longer have access to this functionality in GitLab. Instead the customers can make use of our other security tools such as SAST and DAST. #### Documentation - Deprecation notice: [add link](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/181186) - Migration guidelines: N/A - etc. #### Product Usage This feature hasn't been maintained for 3+ years and has a low adoption rate. [add links to the documentation](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/user/application_security/coverage_fuzzing/) Usage data for 2025-01-06 to 2025-02-02 period: - Coverage fuzzing had 973 jobs - DAST had 36,340 jobs <!-- The description of the deprecation should state what actions the user should take to rectify the behavior. If the deprecation is scheduled for an upcoming release, the content should remain in the deprecations documentation page until it has been completed. For example, if a deprecation is announced in 14.9 and scheduled to be completed in 15.0, the same content would be included in the documentation for 14.9, 14.10, and 15.0. **If this issue proposes a breaking change outside a major release XX.0, you need to get approval from your manager and request collaboration from Product Operations on communication. Be sure to follow the guidance**: - https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/deprecation_guidelines/#requesting-a-breaking-change-in-a-minor-release --> ### Breaking Change? <!-- If the change includes removing functionality, which nearly all deprecations do, then it needs to be tracked as a breaking change. If user workflows rely on it to function, then removing it will break them. --> Does this deprecation contain a breaking change? ```Yes / No``` <!-- If yes: - Add the ~"breaking change" label to this issue. - Add instructions for how users can update their workflow. - After creating this issue, add an Internal Note in the comments below to document the pros and cons of this change and why we are choosing to make a breaking change. Answer the following: - What migration paths are available? - Describe tradeoffs between the migration paths taking into account customer, financial, technical or operational impact? - Are there different migration path options for different users? (ex. available for ultimate users, but not free users?) - Are there external requirements that we need to meet that restrict our available options? - Consider the information you will also be adding in the "Affected Customers" section - this will impact how you plan for migration alternatives. --> <!-- /label ~"breaking change" --> ### Affected Customers Who is affected by this deprecation: GitLab.com users, Self-managed users, or Dedicated users? (choose all that apply) - [x] GitLab.com - [x] Self-managed - [x] Dedicated <!-- This is especially important when nearing the annual major release where breaking changes and removals are typically introduced. These changes might be seen on GitLab.com before the official release date. --> What pricing tiers are impacted? - [ ] GitLab Free - [ ] GitLab Premium - [x] GitLab Ultimate <!-- Choose the Pricing Tier(s) /label ~"GitLab Free" ~"GitLab Premium" ~"GitLab Ultimate" --> [ ] Internal note outlining details of customer impact has been created <!-- After creating the issue, add an Internal Note to discuss customer impact, using this template: | Tier | Number of Customers Impacted | | -------- | ---------------------------- | | Free | (number) | | Premium | (number) | | Ultimate | (number) | | Notable Customers | Document how many notable / critical customers are on the impacted customer list. If this is not known, please document that. | Do your homework on the data - if you don’t have access to the right customer data, find someone who does. Your counterpart from the product data analytics team can likely help you; reach out to your manager if you are unable to answer this question. A notable customer is one that may have a large revenue or reputational impact for GitLab - there aren't firm guidelines about what would make a customer notable or not. Consult with your manager if you need input on this. Get customer feedback, if possible, and document the insights from customer conversations. --> ### Deprecation Milestone This deprecation will be announced in milestone: ```17.9``` _If this deprecation has already been announced, include information about when the initial announcement went out and what follow-up announcements are scheduled._ ### Planned Removal Milestone The feature / functionality will be removed in milestone: ```18.00``` ### Links <!-- Add links to any relevant documentation or code that will provide additional details or clarity regarding the planned change. This issue is the main SSOT for the deprecations and removals process. Be sure to link all issues and MRs related to this deprecation/removal to this issue. This can include removal issues that were created ahead of time, and the MRs doing the actual deprecation/removal work. --> ### Checklists #### Timeline #### Rollout Plan - DRI Engineers: `@mikeeddington` - DRI Engineering Manager: `@tkopel` - [ ] Describe rollout plans on GitLab.com - [ ] _Link to [a feature flag rollout issue](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/blob/master/.gitlab/issue_templates/Feature%20Flag%20Roll%20Out.md )_ that covers: - [ ] Expected release date on GitLab.com and GitLab version - [ ] Rollout timelines, such as a percentage rollout on GitLab.com - [ ] Creation of any clean-up issues, such as code removal - [ ] Determine how to migrate users still using the existing functionality - [ ] Document ways to migrate with the tooling available - [ ] Automate any users who have not yet migrated, but ensure it's a two-way door decision #### Communication Plan - DRI Product Manager: `@PM` An internal slack post and a release post are not sufficient notification for our customers or internal stakeholders. Plan to communicate proactively and directly with affected customers and the internal stakeholders supporting them. Internal Communication Plan - [ ] Create an internal note in the comment thread of this issue with a comprehensive narrative of customer impacts, with the intended audience of internal stakeholders who directly interact with customers. - Consider: what will the CSM / AE / SA teams need to tell their customers? What will they want to know about customer sentiment and impact? - If customers must take an action, include in this internal note the following information: what action is needed, the steps they can take to complete it, the due date for that action, and the consequences of not completing the action in time. - [ ] Internal announcement plan (timeline for notifications, audience, channels, etc) - [ ] Support and enablement plan - Support readiness: Document how the support team should handle tickets related to this deprecation / breaking change. - Customer Success readiness: Ensure the CS team knows how to bring questions or concerns from clients to the right internal team members. External Communication Plan - [ ] Customer announcement plan (timeline for notifications, audience, channels, etc) - [ ] Ensure you have approvals from legal and corp comms for any communication being sent directly to customers. - [ ] As soon as possible, but no later than the third milestone preceding the major release, ensure that the following are complete (for example, given the following release schedule: `17.8, 17.9, 17.10, 17.11, 18.0` – `17.9` is the third milestone preceding the major release). - [ ] A [deprecation announcement entry](https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/marketing/blog/release-posts/#creating-the-announcement) has been created so the deprecation will appear in release posts and on the [general deprecation page](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/update/deprecations). _Add link to the relevant merge request._ - [ ] Documentation has been updated to mark the feature as [deprecated](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/documentation/versions.html#deprecations-and-removals). _Add link to the relevant merge request._ - [ ] On the major milestone: - [ ] The deprecated item has been removed. _Add link to the relevant merge request._ - [ ] If the removal of the deprecated item is a [breaking change](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/update/terminology.html#breaking-change), the merge request is labeled ~"breaking change". - [ ] Document the migration plan for users, clearly outlining the actions they need to take to mitigate the impact of the breaking change. - [ ] [Add link](here) #### Development - DRI Engineers: `@engineer(s)` - DRI Engineering Manager: `@EM` - [ ] Measure usage of the impacted product feature - [ ] Evaluate metrics across **GitLab.com, Self-Managed, Dedicated** - [ ] _add issue link_ - [ ] _list any metrics and/or dashboards_ - [ ] Create tooling for customers to manually migrate their data or workflows - [ ] _add issue link_ - [ ] Build mechanism for users to manually enable the breaking change ahead of time - [ ] _add issue link_ - [ ] Automate the migration for those who do not take any manual steps (ensure the automation can be reverted) - [ ] _add issue link_ - [ ] Develop rollout plan of breaking change on GitLab.com - [ ] _add feature flag rollout issue_ - [ ] Dogfood the changes on GitLab.com or a Self-Managed test instance - [ ] _add issue link_ - [ ] (Optional) Create UI controls for instance admins to disable the breaking change, providing flexibility to Self-Managed / Dedicated customers. Optional as this depends on the breaking change. - [ ] _add issue link_ #### Approvals * [ ] Product Manager `@johncrowley` * [ ] Engineering Manager `@Kopel` * [ ] Senior Engineering Manager `@twoodham` * [ ] Group / Director of Product Management `@sarahwaldner` * [ ] Product / Eng Leaders in the `CPO` or `CTO` organizations, as applicable (optional - depends on scope of change) Keep in mind that approval check boxes and deprecations notices alone are not sufficient communication about breaking changes. Despite having approvals documented here, the PM/EM will still need to take active steps to partner with internal stakeholders and customers to ensure a positive user experience. #### Stakeholder Mentions - [ ] Product Designer `@ProductDesigner` - [ ] Tech Writer `@TW` - [ ] Software Engineering in Test `@SET` - [ ] Any other stable counterparts based on the [product categories](https://handbook.gitlab.com/handbook/product/categories/): - [ ] Add Sales/CS counterpart or mention `@timtams` - [ ] Add Support counterpart or mention `@gitlab-com/support/managers` - [ ] Add Marketing counterpart or mention `@martin_klaus` - [ ] Add Corp comms if direct customer comms are needed `@jmalleo` - [ ] Add Product Security counterpart, if relevant to your deprecation - [ ] Mention (in internal note) Customer Success Managers / Acount Managers / Solutions Architects for impacted customers #### Labels <!-- Populate the Section, Group, and Category --> - [x] This issue is labeled ~deprecation, and with the relevant `~devops::`, `~group::`, and `~Category:` labels. - [ ] This issue is labeled ~"breaking change" if the removal of the deprecated item will be a [breaking change](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/update/terminology.html#breaking-change). <!-- Label reminders - you should have one of each of the following labels. Use the following resources to find the appropriate labels: - https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/labels - https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/product/categories/features/ --> <!-- Identifies that this Issue is related to deprecating a feature --> ### References - [Deprecations, removals, and breaking changes](https://handbook.gitlab.com/handbook/marketing/blog/release-posts/#deprecations-removals-and-breaking-changes) - [Deprecation guidelines](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/deprecation_guidelines/) - [Deprecations and removals doc styleguide](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/documentation/styleguide/deprecations_and_removals) - [REST API Deprecations](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/documentation/restful_api_styleguide.html#deprecations) and [REST API breaking changes](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/api_styleguide.html#breaking-changes). - [GraphQL Deprecations](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/api_graphql_styleguide.html#deprecating-schema-items) and [GraphQL API breaking changes](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/development/api_graphql_styleguide.html#breaking-changes). - [GitLab release and maintenance policy](https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/policy/maintenance.html) - Videos 📺 - [How to deprecate and remove features in GitLab releases](https://youtu.be/9gy7tg94j7s) - [Review of GitLab deprecations and removals policy & Runner team deprecations and removals process](https://youtu.be/ehT1xBajCRI)
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