From f46e608b9ba263dfd809b983f67f377c79d3c063 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Derek McGowan <derek@mcg.dev>
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2026 17:19:17 -0700
Subject: [PATCH] Prepare release notes for v2.4.0-beta.0

Signed-off-by: Derek McGowan <derek@mcg.dev>
---
 .mailmap                  |  2 ++
 releases/v2.4.0-beta.toml | 37 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 version/version.go        |  2 +-
 3 files changed, 40 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)
 create mode 100644 releases/v2.4.0-beta.toml

diff --git a/.mailmap b/.mailmap
index c36b368f95..830ebe5f52 100644
--- a/.mailmap
+++ b/.mailmap
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ Eric Lin <linxiulei@gmail.com> <exlin@google.com>
 Eric Ren <renzhen.rz@linux.alibaba.com> <renzhen@linux.alibaba.com>
 Eric Ren <renzhen.rz@linux.alibaba.com> <renzhen.rz@alibaba-linux.com>
 Eric Ren <renzhen.rz@linux.alibaba.com> <renzhen.rz@alibaba-inc.com>
+Esteban Ginez <esteban.ginez@docker.com> <175813+eginez@users.noreply.github.com>
 Fabian Hoffmann <extern.fabian.hoffmann@cariad.technology>
 Fabian Hoffmann <extern.fabian.hoffmann@cariad.technology> <35104465+FabHof@users.noreply.github.com>
 Fabiano Fidêncio <fidencio@redhat.com> <fabiano.fidencio@intel.com>
@@ -114,6 +115,7 @@ Kohei Tokunaga <ktokunaga.mail@gmail.com>
 Krasi Georgiev <krasi.root@gmail.com> <krasi@vip-consult.solutions>
 Lantao Liu <lantaol@google.com>
 Lantao Liu <lantaol@google.com> <taotaotheripper@gmail.com>
+Laura Lorenz <lauralorenz@google.com>
 lengrongfu <1275177125@qq.com>
 Li Yuxuan <liyuxuan04@baidu.com> <darfux@163.com>
 Lifubang <lifubang@aliyun.com> <lifubang@acmcoder.com>
diff --git a/releases/v2.4.0-beta.toml b/releases/v2.4.0-beta.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..ddfe134838
--- /dev/null
+++ b/releases/v2.4.0-beta.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+# commit to be tagged for new release
+commit = "HEAD"
+
+project_name = "containerd"
+github_repo = "containerd/containerd"
+match_deps = "^github.com/(containerd/[a-zA-Z0-9-]+)$"
+ignore_deps = [ "github.com/containerd/containerd" ]
+
+# previous release
+previous = "v2.3.0"
+
+pre_release = true
+
+preface = """\
+containerd 2.4 is a regular (non-LTS) release with a shorter support window,
+intended for users who want to adopt new features sooner. As the release
+following the 2.3 LTS, it is the point in the release cycle where previously
+deprecated features may be removed, so this release may include breaking
+changes; check the notes below and clear any deprecation warnings from your
+current version before upgrading.
+
+Users prioritizing stability and a longer support lifecycle should stay on the
+2.3 LTS release.
+
+This is a beta release and some functionality is still under development.
+"""
+
+postface = """\
+### Which file should I download?
+* `containerd-<VERSION>-<OS>-<ARCH>.tar.gz`:         ✅Recommended. Dynamically linked with glibc 2.35 (Ubuntu 22.04).
+* `containerd-static-<VERSION>-<OS>-<ARCH>.tar.gz`:  Statically linked. Expected to be used on Linux distributions that do not use glibc >= 2.35. Not position-independent.
+
+In addition to containerd, typically you will have to install [runc](https://github.com/opencontainers/runc/releases)
+and [CNI plugins](https://github.com/containernetworking/plugins/releases) from their official sites too.
+
+See also the [Getting Started](https://github.com/containerd/containerd/blob/main/docs/getting-started.md) documentation.
+"""
diff --git a/version/version.go b/version/version.go
index cd8df657b9..64ca1d73c0 100644
--- a/version/version.go
+++ b/version/version.go
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ var (
 	Package = "github.com/containerd/containerd/v2"
 
 	// Version holds the complete version number. Filled in at linking time.
-	Version = "2.3.0+unknown"
+	Version = "2.4.0-beta+unknown"
 
 	// Revision is filled with the VCS (e.g. git) revision being used to build
 	// the program at linking time.