- The Pod API field `.spec.schedulingGates[*].name` now requires qualified names (like `example.com/mygate`), matching validation for names of `.spec.readinessGates[*].name`. Any uses of the alpha scheduling gate feature prior to 1.27 that do not match that validation must be renamed or deleted before upgrading to 1.27. ([#115821](https://github.com/kuber...

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  name of controllers that can be turned on/off that are passed to the `--controllers`
  flag (e.g., `pod-garbage-collector-controller`). The old names (eg `podgc`) are
  also accepted and aliased to the new names. ([#115813](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/115813), [@atiratree](https://github.com/atiratree))
- `kubeadm`: Introduced a new feature gate `UpgradeAddonsBeforeControlPlane` to

- Added a alpha feature, behind the `RelaxedEnvironmentVariableValidation` feature gate.
  When that gate is enabled, Kubernetes allows almost all printable ASCII characters to be used in the names
  of environment variables for containers in Pods. ([#123385](https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/pull/123385), [@HirazawaUi](https://github.com/HirazawaUi))

- Fixed an issue where the `vsphere` cloud provider would not trust a certificate if:
  - The issuer of the certificate was unknown (`x509.UnknownAuthorityError`)
  - The requested name did not match the set of authorized names (`x509.HostnameError`)