Upgrade to Go 1.24

[tekenstam]

Upgrade to Go 1.24

Overview

This issue proposes upgrading from the current Go version to Go 1.24 to take advantage of the latest language improvements and security enhancements.

Background

Go 1.24 was released with significant performance improvements, security updates, and new standard library features. Keeping our codebase up-to-date with the latest Go version ensures we benefit from these improvements and maintain compatibility with the broader ecosystem.

Proposed Changes

• Update Go version in go.mod from current version to 1.24
• Update GitHub workflow files to use Go 1.24:
  • Modify lint.yml to use Go 1.24.x
  • Modify unit_test.yml to use Go 1.24.x
  • Modify release.yml to use Go 1.24.x
• Update Dockerfile to use Go 1.24 as the build image
• Update README.md to include Go 1.24 in the version compatibility table
• Verify dependency compatibility with Go 1.24
• Update controller-gen and other tools if needed for compatibility

Benefits

• Performance improvements from Go 1.24's optimized garbage collector and runtime
• Security enhancements from the latest patches and improvements
• Access to new standard library functionality
• Better compatibility with the Go ecosystem

Acceptance Criteria

• All existing tests pass successfully with Go 1.24
• No regressions in functionality
• CI/CD pipelines complete successfully
• Documentation is updated to reflect the new Go version