Support Lifecycle Policies for IBM TRIRIGA Products

3-year standard support lifecycle, with extended support options

Starting with the TRIRIGA Application Suite 11.5, TRIRIGA 11.5, TRIRIGA Application Platform 4.5, and CAD Integrator 13.5 release, a 3-year standard support lifecycle was applied, offering 3 years of standard support. For TRIRIGA application versions, extended support options are also offered, as explained below. These versions also adopt a three-digit release numbering scheme, based on the Semantic Versioning Specification (SemVer).

The version numbering takes the form major.minor.patch with:

• MAJOR: Number changes typically indicate major updates, architectural changes, or incompatible changes between releases
• MINOR: Number changes indicate a release with new functionality and product fixes
• PATCH: Number changes for critical defect and security fixes

Starting with TRIRIGA application version 11.5, extended support options are also offered for an additional fee for up to 4 years of extended support. The first year of extended support (Initial Extended Support) includes usage, existing fix, and new critical issue fix pack support. Years 2-4 of extended support (On-Going Extended Support) include support for usage and existing fixes only. No new security or other critical fixes are offered in years 2-4. For more details on extended support, please see IBM’s Extended Support guide.

Extended support is not offered for TRIRIGA Platform or CAD Integrator (CI) versions, including platform and CI components delivered within TRIRIGA Application Suite.

For information on previous support lifecycle policies and the TRIRIGA versions they apply to, see the Other IBM TRIRIGA Support Lifecycle Policies section.

Support Schedule for IBM TRIRIGA Updates

IBM does not commit to a specific release schedule for IBM TRIRIGA. However, currently, IBM plans to release one primary release of TRIRIGA per year, with that release planned to adopt a Standard Support lifecycle policy, as described above.

The following diagrams show what expected support timelines may look like, given the planned release schedule for TRIRIGA application and platform releases. Note, however, that the illustration, versions, and dates represented are just examples. Refer to announcement letters for actual release numbers and support lifecycle dates.

Expected Support Schedule for TRIRIGA Application Releases

Expected Support Schedule for TRIRIGA Platform Releases

Support is available for all IBM components of a product until the product is withdrawn from support. If you require additional technical support from IBM, including an extension of support beyond the discontinuance date (for application-level versions and updates), contact your IBM representative or IBM Business Partner. This extension might be available for a fee.

Other IBM TRIRIGA Support Lifecycle Policies

Continuous Delivery support lifecycle

For the TRIRIGA 11.3 (application) /4.3 (platform) and 11.4/4.4 releases, IBM TRIRIGA Application Suite, TRIRIGA applications, and TRIRIGA Platform were released with a Continuous-Delivery (CD) support lifecycle. These versions incrementally delivered new capability and defect fixes. This CD software support lifecycle policy for TRIRIGA is closely based on the IBM Continuous Delivery (CD) Software Support Lifecycle Policy and uses the 3-digit semantic versioning scheme explained above.

These versions of TRIRIGA were treated as new IBM Continuous Delivery (CD) streams. With the adoption of the CD support lifecycle, each minor version of TRIRIGA was intended to be released as either a new IBM Continuous Delivery (CD) or Long-Term Support Release (LTSR). New patch versions were equivalent to a fix pack or update to the package and did not start a new set of support dates.

The CD support model was intended to allow IBM to make new TRIRIGA function available more frequently, with both new function and product maintenance to be made available in a CD update package. Clients on a CD version would stay current with the installation of CD updates to obtain the latest product maintenance and new function.

Feedback on this CD support model indicated that frequent CD releases of TRIRIGA might not be suitable for all client application environments. Although LTSR versions were provided, IBM only released two versions of TRIRIGA (11.3 app/4.3 platform, and 11.4 app/4.4 platform) as CD releases. Starting with version 11.5 app/4.5 platform, the intention is to no longer deliver CD releases, and move to longer-term support releases with 3-year standard maintenance.

TRIRIGA Application Continuous-Delivery Support

For TRIRIGA application updates (including application updates delivered for both traditional and TRIRIGA Application Suite deployment models:

• IBM will investigate defects on any supported level.
• Critical defect fixes for a CD update may be requested if it is one of the most recent four updates/releases (that is, n-3, where n is the most recent update/release).
• Lower-severity defects will be targeted for resolution in a future release.
• No extended support is offered for TRIRIGA application CD updates.

TRIRIGA Platform and CAD Integrator Continuous-Delivery Support

For TRIRIGA platform and CAD Integrator updates (including updates delivered for both traditional and TRIRIGA Application Suite deployment models:

• IBM will investigate defects on any supported level.
• Lower-severity defects will be targeted for resolution in a future release.
• No extended support is offered for TRIRIGA Platform or CAD Integrator CD updates or releases.

For additional information about the CD support lifecycle policy for IBM TRIRIGA products, see the Supported Versions for IBM TRIRIGA Products page. Also, for a list of frequently asked questions, see the IBM TRIRIGA Application Suite FAQ for Continuous Delivery and Long-Term Support Releases page.

The software support lifecycle policy for IBM TRIRIGA Application Suite is closely based on the IBM Continuous Delivery (CD) Software Support Lifecycle Policy

3+2 (now 3+1+3) support lifecycle

With TRIRIGA 11.0, 11.1, and 11.2 and TRIRIGA Application Platform 4.0, 4.1, and 4.2 IBM announced a 3-year support lifecycle, offering 3 years of standard support and, for application versions, 2 years of optional extended support. These versions also moved to a three-digit release numbering scheme, based on the Semantic Versioning Specification (SemVer). Note that IBM has since offered up to four years of extended support for these application versions, like is offered for our latest TRIRIGA application versions.

The version numbering takes the form major.minor.patch with:

• MAJOR: Number changes typically indicate major updates, architectural changes, or incompatible changes between releases
• MINOR: Number changes indicate a release with new functionality and product fixes
• PATCH: Number changes for critical defect and security fixes

5+3 (now 4+1+1) support lifecycle

Before TRIRIGA® 11.0 and TRIRIGA Application Platform 4.0, TRIRIGA versions were numbered by using a four-digit VRMF (Version, Release, Modification, Fix Pack) scheme and were originally announced on a "5+3" support lifecycle. This means that for a given version or release level that release would be supported for 5 years from the initial release date, with an option for paid extended support for up to an additional 3 years for application versions. Modification-level updates (i.e., third-digit updates) did not result in a new 5-year timeline.

On September 26, 2023, IBM announced a change in support lifecycle policy and End of Support dates for the 10.7 app/3.7 platform and 10.8 app/3.8 platform versions, effectively changing the support lifecycle for these releases to a 4-year standard support policy, with an option for up to 2 years of extended support for the application versions.

For a list of related support pages for IBM TRIRIGA, see IBM TRIRIGA Release Information.