</p>
<p>
Each code point is distinct; for instance, uppercase and lowercase letters
are different characters.
</p>
<p>
Implementation restriction: For compatibility with other tools, a
compiler may disallow the NUL character (U+0000) in the source text.
</p>
<p>
Implementation restriction: For compatibility with other tools, a
compiler may ignore a UTF-8-encoded byte order mark

- Adopted a new implementation of watch caches for **list** verbs, using a btree data structure. The new implementation is active by default; you can opt out by disabling the `BtreeWatchCache` feature gate. ([#128415](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/128415), [@serathius](https://github.com/serathius)) [SIG...

### Azure

SIG Azure worked on improvements in the cloud provider, including significant work on the Azure Load Balancer implementation.

### Cluster Lifecycle

- QueueingHint implementation for NodeAffinity is reverted because we found potential scenarios where events that make Pods schedulable could be missed. ([#122327](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/122327), [@sanposhiho](https://github.com/sanposhiho)) [SIG Scheduling]

- Added a `.status.features.supplementalGroupsPolicy` field to Nodes. The field is true when the feature is implemented in the CRI implementation (KEP-3619). ([#125470](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/125470), [@everpeace](https://github.com/everpeace)) [SIG API Machinery, Apps, Node and Testing]

- QueueingHint implementation for NodeAffinity is reverted because we found potential scenarios where events that make Pods schedulable could be missed. ([#122285](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/122285), [@sanposhiho](https://github.com/sanposhiho)) [SIG Scheduling]

### Bug or Regression

- Adds node event handlers to dual stack kube-proxy implementation to fix Topology Aware Hints. ([#101054](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/101054), [@robscott](https://github.com/robscott)) [SIG Network]

### Failing Test

- Kubelet: the HostPort implementation in dockershim was not taking into consideration the HostIP field, causing that the same HostPort can not be used with different IP addresses.

### Node Components
* **Kubelet with the Docker-CRI implementation**
  * The Docker-CRI implementation is enabled by default.
  * It is not compatible with containers created by older Kubelets. It is
    recommended to drain your node before upgrade. If you choose to perform

  - `service.kubernetes.io/topology-aware-hints` annotation has been deprecated.
  - kube-proxy now accepts any value that is not "disabled" for these annotations, enabling custom implementation-specific and/or future built-in heuristics to be used. ([#116522](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/116522), [@robscott](https://github.com/robscott)) [SIG Apps, Network and Testing]