With upcoming changes in EAM, specifically the Maximo Application Suite, IBM has announced a new product release and support lifecycle structure that will match support cycles for all versions of MAS beginning with 9.0.
The current lifecycle policy for Maximo v7 users follows an extended support option set to expire in September 2026 and sustained support set to expire in September 2030.
Traditionally, a change to the version number of Maximo software indicated an impactful or functional difference from the prior release, including updates and security patches (i.e., v7.6 to 7.6.1.3).
This will no longer be the case with MAS 9.0 and above. All MAS subcomponents will now align with the release version.
MAS 9, tentatively set for a June 2024 release, will provide product versioning standardization that simplifies and aligns across the entire MAS portfolio. Moving forward, all MAS products (including Maximo Manage, Monitor, Health, and Predict) will utilize the same version number within each release rather than changing the release number each time. For example, MAS 9.0contains Manage 9.0, Health 9.0, etc.
With the new version structure moving into MAS 9.0, IBM will also introduce a new 3+1+3 lifecycle policy.
This new product lifecycle will follow a 12-month calendar release cadence and will rely on seven years across product support lines ranging from initial release to ongoing extended support. Beginning with MAS 9.0, new versions will be released every 12 months.
Green: Initial full release annually
Blue: Initial extended support for one year
Purple: Ongoing/sustained support for another three years beyond extended support
Grey: quarterly feature channel releases in between full releases
(totaling seven years per release between release date and EOS for sustained support)
IBM will follow this structure for all subsequent releases with the option to explore new beta features as full versions are released.
Essentially, MAS versions will be given a seven-year lifespan, with a new version released each year. The new version will be pre-released quarterly based on “feature channels.” For example, when 9.0 is released, certain features of 9.1 will be available to explore.
These feature channels will allow current Maximo users to pre-download the new version (although all features may not be fully completed until the full release is set to be delivered). Those users will receive the three updates following the initial beta release and ending with the full 12-month release cycle date. Beta releases will occur with no monthly patches or security fixes available (dropping the 9.0.x versioning that currently exists in v7 and v8 releases).
However, these feature channels will only be available in non-production environments and will maintain short-term availability until the full version of the release goes live.
Large features may be delivered and available to explore in the feature channel over several releases. Based on further development and user feedback, these feature releases could be improvements from the previous CD release or a new beta feature altogether.
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