Q1: Does TIBCO support old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA)?
Yes, TIBCO does support old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA). However, TIBCO encourages customers to plan TRA upgrade whenever a new release is announced. There is a good reason for upgrading TRA when a new release is announced. If, for instance, a defect is identified in an old TRA version, our ability to fix the defect in the old version might be limited and hence we might only consider fixing it in a newer TRA release. So, if your environment is using TRA 5.10.0 or 5.10.1 and a defect is identified in either one, TIBCO product engineering might only fix the defect in TRA 5.10.2 and hence you will be forced to upgrade then, especially if the defect is of high impact.

Q2: When (or under what condition) would TIBCO end support of an old version of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA)?
TIBCO does not publish end-of-support dates for TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) (which includes TIBCO Designer) and TIBCO Administrator, because they are TIBCO Software infrastructure products are required by (and hence foundation of) dependent products like TIBCO BusinessWorks (BW) and its adapters/plugins, TIBCO BusinessConnect (BC), etc. You may refer to TIBCO knowledgebase (KB) article 000020394 ‘End of support information for TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA), TIBCO Designer, and TIBCO Administrator’ for details: https://supportapps.tibco.com/ka/article/394/000020394.htm.

Q3: How does the newly announced TRA support policy impact old TRA versions?
The old TRA version policy has an immediate impact on old TRA releases that are listed in KB article 000041315 ‘Support Policy for TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) and TIBCO Products dependent on TRA’ at https://support.tibco.com/s/article/Support-Policy-for-TIBCO-Runtime-Agent-and-TRA-dependent-Products. According to KB article 000041315, the following versions of TRA  will be removed from the regular TIBCO Software distribution channels as of November 30, 2020, i.e. they will not be available for download past Nov 30, 2020. Those versions will not be distributed under any circumstances after March 31, 2021, and they include the following:
    - TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) 5.11.0
    - TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) 5.10.1 and 5.10.0
    - TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) 5.9.x and earlier
Only TIBCO Runtime Agent 5.11.1 and 5.10.2 (and future releases) shall remain available for download after March 31, 2021.

Q4: What prompted TIBCO to announce a policy to end support for old releases of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA)?
The new policy is driven by our termination of bundling the Entrust security vendor and replacing it with Bouncy Castle security vendor from TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) releases 5.11.1 and 5.10.2 onward.

NOTE: TIBCO Employees you may refer to the following FAQ for the impact of changing the security vendor to Bouncy Castle click here

Q5: Will TIBCO provide old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA), like TRA 5.7 and/or TRA 5.8, if requested?
TIBCO will not provide old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) once they are removed from the download site. Based on KB article 000041315, https://support.tibco.com/s/article/Support-Policy-for-TIBCO-Runtime-Agent-and-TRA-dependent-Products, old versions of TRA will not be distributed under any circumstances after March 31, 2021.

Q6: What is required from a customer to gain access to old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) after March 31, 2021?
Access won’t be possible regardless of the justification. Old versions of TRA will no longer be distributed under any circumstances after March 31, 2021. Please refer to KB article 000041315 at https://support.tibco.com/s/article/Support-Policy-for-TIBCO-Runtime-Agent-and-TRA-dependent-Products.

Q7: Will TIBCO support old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) after March 31, 2021?
 Yes, TIBCO will continue supporting old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA), but we will emphasize the need to upgrade because the support of such versions might be limited. For example, if a defect is identified in an old version, TIBCO product engineering might only fix it in TRA 5.10.2, TRA 5.11.1, or later releases and hence you will be forced to upgrade, especially if the impact caused by the defect is a showstopper.

Q8: Will TIBCO continue to support TRA releases 5.11.0, 5.10.1, 5.10.0, 5.9.x, and earlier versions once they are removed from the download site after Nov 30, 2020?
Yes, TIBCO will continue supporting old versions of TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA), but we will emphasize the need to upgrade the old TRA because support might be limited. If a defect is identified in an old version, TIBCO product engineering might only fix it in TRA 5.10.2, TRA 5.11.1, or later releases and hence you will be forced to upgrade, especially if the defect is impactful.

Q9: Will TIBCO provide hotfixes for old TIBCO Runtime Agent (TRA) distributions after March 31, 2021? In other words, after March 31, 2021, will hotfixes be available for 5.11.0, 5.10.1, 5.10.0, 5.9.x, 5.8.x, and 5.7.x or none at all?
Existing hotfixes for old TRA releases will remain available for download. However, after March 31, 2021, new hotfixes will not be issued for old TRA releases, including TRA 5.11.0, 5.10.1, 5.10.0, 5.9.x, 5.8.x, and 5.7.x.