Service policy

IBM's service policy is to provide maintenance (service) for each release of z/OS for five years after the general availability (GA) date. However, service on the last release of a version might be extended beyond the intended five-year period. Before it withdraws service for any version or release of z/OS®, IBM® intends to provide at least 12 months notice.

For the end-of-service (EOS) dates for each release of z/OS, see IBM Lifecycle Support for z/OS. You can search the list of products, based on product titles, version numbers, and product identifiers (PIDs). For z/OS 3.1, for example, you can search for z/OS 3.1 and scroll through the results to locate the lifecycle information for z/OS 3.1.

Program temporary fix (PTF) distributions, including Recommended Service Upgrades (RSUs), are available monthly while a release is current. Service testing for a release is performed for five quarters after the general availability date for that release.