Project communication moving to GitHub Discussions and Matrix

[TheRealFalcon]

Cloud-init is migrating the platforms being used for communication. We will be replacing the cloud-init mailing list with GitHub Discussions, and we will be moving chat to Matrix. Both replacements are available immediately.

Mailing list -> GitHub Discussions

On August 29th 2025, the cloud-init mailing list will be shut down. The primary reason for this change is this mailing list is a Launchpad mailing list, and Launchpad's mailing list functionality is being sunsetted:
https://discourse.ubuntu.com/t/sunsetting-launchpad-s-mailing-lists/61492

For any future discussion, we will be utilizing GitHub Discussions at https://github.com/canonical/cloud-init/discussions. While not a mailing list, we believe it provides a simple user experience while being more approachable for new users. If you would like to receive discussion notifications in a similar way to this mailing list, follow these steps:

1. Visit https://github.com/canonical/cloud-init
2. On the Watch button near the top, expand the dropdown and select Custom
3. Check the Discussions checkbox and click Apply.

Please note that [email protected] will continue being maintained and should still be used for any security related discussion.

IRC -> Matrix

The #cloud-init channel on Libera is being migrated to the Ubuntu Matrix server:
https://matrix.to/#/#cloud-init:ubuntu.com

Matrix provides more features such as searchable history while being more approachable for new users. This room will NOT have a bridge to the old #cloud-init IRC channel. While some of the upstream maintainers may stick around for a short time to redirect questions to the new server, the old IRC channel will not be actively monitored.

Links to the new locations can also be found in the upstream cloud-init documentation:
https://docs.cloud-init.io/en/latest/#project-and-community

Please join us on these platforms as we build the future of cloud-init!