On 2026/01/30 10:07:36 Rémy Maucherat wrote: > On Fri, Jan 30, 2026 at 10:37 AM Mark Thomas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > On 28/01/2026 21:52, Rémy Maucherat wrote: > > > On Tue, Jan 27, 2026 at 6:40 PM Mark Thomas <[email protected]> wrote: > > >> > > >> Hi, > > >> > > >> I am expecting Tomcat 12 to be released - or get close to release - in > > >> the next 12 months. Following our usual pattern, that means we'd > > >> deprecate 9.0.x around the same time. > > >> > > >> The first 9.0.x release was November 2015 with the first stable release > > >> in January 2018. > > >> > > >> We have previously discussed various forms of extended Tomcat 9 support > > >> because it is the last Tomcat version that supports that Java EE API. > > >> > > >> With the above in mind, I'd like to propose the following: > > >> > > >> - Set EOL for 9.0.x as 31 March 2027 > > >> > > >> - Plan for 9.1.x releases to start in April 2027 > > >> > > >> - 9.1.x to different from 9.0.x in the following ways (all aligned with > > >> 10.1.x): > > >> - No APR support > > > > > > +1 > > > Technically since we're making a new branch, we could also drop NIO2, > > > but I would like to keep it since NIO has some issues on Java < 17. > > > > > >> - Require Tomcat Native 2.x (was 1.3.x) > > > > > > +1 > > > > > >> - Minimum Java version is 11 > > > > > > -1, unfortunately. People are on Tomcat 9 because of Java EE, and they > > > won't be able to upgrade from Java 8. I fear updating Java would mean > > > killing off the branch, and we would put a lot of effort into a dead > > > product basically. > > > The Java 8 EOL is actually at 2030, about the same as the newer Java > > > versions that came after, so supporting it for some time more is > > > reasonable. It is also possible to keep using Java 25 to compile the > > > releases. > > > > OK. Java 8 EOL is a lot later than Java 11 EOL so that is another > > argument for staying on Java 8. > > > > Do we want to say that 9.x will be supported until at least 31 Dec 2030? > > I slept over this, so I am more mixed on this now, and I'm still > thinking about it ... > On one hand supporting Java 8 to its EOL date would be very beneficial > for many users, on the other hand simply rebasing to the 10.1 code > would be very beneficial for us. > If the jump is made to Java 11, then upgrading to newer versions later > if needed is much easier. However, I fear the migration off Java 8 > will be enough to kill off Tomcat 9, making subsequent versions > pointless. In that scenario, having to support 9.1 with very few > actual users could lead to a waste of resources, even if backporting > patches themselves from 10.1 is easy. > > Anyway, I'd like to volunteer to RM and produce this base 9.1 version > if it happens, since I'm so involved with 9.0 already.
For me, moving off Java 8 for Tomcat 9 would instantly kill my applications because I cannot upgrade Java for the time being since nothing else is available. The migration off 8 and Tomcat 9 requires tremendous effort outside of the Java domain. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
