A couple of Linux distros have their EOL (End of Life) support lining up as per their community announcement sometime back.
• CentOS 7 & CloudLinux 7 - EOL June 30, 2024
• Debian 10 - EOL June 30, 2024
• Ubuntu 18.04 – EOL May , 2023
This means that after these dates, these operating systems will no longer receive security updates from upstream vendors, making your server more vulnerable to potential security issues.
How do you check if you are affected:
For Plesk server
On the Home page, after logging in to your Plesk server GUI, you will see the "OS" lines at the top under the System Overview. If it is listed in any matching OS versions as indicated above, you must take further action (continue reading).
For cPanel server
Log on to your WHM server, and the OS version will be listed at the top of the page.
To ensure both your cPanel and Plesk server adhere to both providers' Support Life Cycle Policy to entitle you to access to:
- Latest release - including features and security patches.
- Technical Support
Migrating to the latest supported Operating System is essential to ensure your cPanel & Plesk server continues to receive ongoing security updates and patches to secure your environment.
- Plesk https://docs.plesk.com/release-notes/obsidian/software-requirements/#s2
- cPanel https://docs.cpanel.net/installation-guide/system-requirements/
There are several migration tools available for this transition
Plesk
- Plesk Migrator (All OSes) https://docs.plesk.com/en-US/obsidian/migration-guide/introduction.75496/
- Dist-Upgrade for Ubuntu/Debian https://support.plesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/12377714344983-How-to-perform-dist-upgrade-procedure-on-Linux-server-with-Plesk
- ELevate for CentOS 7 to AlmaLinux 8 https://github.com/plesk/centos2alma (Plesk) and https://cpanel.github.io/elevate/ (cPanel)
cPanel
- cPanel Transfer Tool https://docs.cpanel.net/whm/transfers/transfer-tool/
- Elevate is designed to facilitate in-place upgrades between RHEL 7 to RHEL 8-based installations. https://cpanel.github.io/elevate/
We recommend going with the "Plesk Migration" and cPanel Transfer Tool option by setting up a new Operating System on a new VM/Hardware and migrating all your hosting domains over. While both Elevate and Dist-Upgrade would avoid the hassle of data migration, they come with certain risks, such as upgrade fails and hours of downtime required, plus they require certain sysadmin experience.
Extended Lifecycle Support (ELS) Program
To ensure your cPanel and Plesk servers continue receiving essential security updates and ongoing releases, cPanel and Plesk are pleased to offer the Extended Lifecycle Support (ELS) program in partnership with TuxCare to deliver critical security updates for CentOS 7, CloudLinux 7, and Ubuntu 18.04 servers. Please note that servers running Debian 10 are not eligible for TuxCare (This means for Debian 10x, there will only receive Plesk support and updates; for OS security patches, it will not be included by Tuxcare - the option is to migrate to the new OS using the available migration option explain below). Plesk will also continue to deliver full-scope product updates and technical support.
The Extended Lifecycle Support (ELS) program aims to provide the following benefits:
- Continued Access to Support: Your servers will receive uninterrupted product updates and fixes from cPanel and Plesk, ensuring ongoing security and functionality.
- Smoother Transition: ELS grants you valuable time to plan your migration to a supported operating system or explore alternative options, while still receiving critical security patches and OS updates.
The ELS program will commence on July 1, 2024. Both cPanel and Plesk have graciously arranged for one month of free protection for July 2024. Starting August 2024 October 2024, each of your cPanel and Plesk licenses under our partner account will be automatically billed for ELS if they are running any of the EOL operating systems mentioned. As per the updates from Plesk and cPanel, all licenses managed by our partners will be defaulted to opt-in for the ELS program.
The ELS charges, effective July 1, 2025 Oct 1, 2024, are outlined below and subject to be further adjusted by Jan 1, 2025.
Plesk ELS Program Monthly Charges (Oct 1, 2024 to Dec 31 2024)
Plesk Web Admin (both VPS and Dedicated Server) - $1.6/mo
Plesk Web Pro (both VPS and Dedicated Server) - $2.4/mo
Plesk Web Host VPS - $4.3/mo
Plesk Web Host Dedicated Server - $7/mo
Plesk ELS Program Monthly Charges (Jan 1, 2025 to June 30 2025)
Plesk Web Admin (both VPS and Dedicated Server) - $3.3/mo
Plesk Web Pro (both VPS and Dedicated Server) - $5.7/mo
Plesk Web Host VPS - $10.6/mo
Plesk Web Host Dedicated Server - $14.2/mo
Plesk ELS Program Monthly Charges (July 1, 2025 to Dec 31 2025)
Plesk Web Admin (both VPS and Dedicated Server) - $4.9/mo
Plesk Web Pro (both VPS and Dedicated Server) - $8.6/mo
Plesk Web Host VPS - $15.9/mo
Plesk Web Host Dedicated Server - $21.4/mo
cPanel ELS Program Monthly Charges (Oct 1, 2024 to Dec 31 2024)
cPanel Web Admin - $3.3/mo
cPanel Web Pro - $4.9/mo
cPanel Premier Cloud - $7.3/mo
cPanel Premier Metal - $7.3/mo
cPanel ELS Program Monthly Charges (Jan 1, 2025 to June 30 2025)
cPanel Web Admin - $7.2/mo
cPanel Web Pro - $10.50/mo
cPanel Premier Cloud - $15.7/mo
cPanel Premier Metal - $15.7/mo
cPanel ELS Program Monthly Charges (July 1, 2025 to Dec 31 2025)
cPanel Web Admin - $10.7/mo
cPanel Web Pro - $15.8/mo
cPanel Premier Cloud - $23.5/mo
cPanel Premier Metal - $23.5/mo
* For cPanel, even if you have more than 100 accounts under cPanel Premier Cloud / Premier Metal, you will be billed max at $7.3/mo.
We will run a monthly check on your licenses at the end of every month; if your license no longer qualifies for the ELS (as you move to the new supported OS), we will remove the ELS add-on from your license key, and you will not be billed for the following months. You can also reach out to us via our support portal if you have switched to the new OS, and we will verify if ELS billing is no longer applicable to your licenses.
We highly recommend planning your migrations to new operating systems for the servers under your management as soon as possible. If migration is not immediately feasible due to application compatibility, ELS will protect these servers, providing you with additional time to plan the migration effectively.
We advise using supported operating systems for new deployments to minimize future migration efforts and avoid additional ELS costs.
We are committed to helping you through this transition and ensuring your systems remain secure and up-to-date. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or require further assistance.
Reference:
cPanel Official ELS Announcement: https://cpanel.net/blog/announcements/extended-lifecycle-support-oses-update/
Plesk Official ELS Annoumcement: https://www.plesk.com/blog/various/extended-lifecycle-support-oses-update/
