Apache Tomcat 6 End of Life
Support dates, vulnerabilities published since end of life, and upgrade guidance — rebuilt from live data.
Apache Tomcat 6 reached end of life on 31 Dec 2016. It no longer receives security fixes.
Support timeline
Official dates from the Apache Tomcat release process.
| Milestone | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Initial release | 21 Oct 2006 | — |
| End of life | 31 Dec 2016 | 9.6 years ago |
| Latest release | 6.0.53 · 2 Apr 2017 | final |
The cost of staying: CVEs since end of life
129 Apache Tomcat vulnerabilities have been published since 31 Dec 2016. All were fixed in supported branches — 6 received none of them. Source: NVD.
Apache Tomcat CVEs published since 6's EOL, by year
21 of the 129 are rated critical · data refreshed 2026-08-09
Published 6 Apr 2017 · rated critical — fixed in supported branches only, never in 6. Details
Published 17 Apr 2017 · rated critical — fixed in supported branches only, never in 6. Details
Published 16 May 2018 · rated critical — fixed in supported branches only, never in 6. Details
Where to go from 6
Recommended target: Apache Tomcat 11.0.
The newest actively supported branch is Apache Tomcat 11.0 (latest release 11.0.24). Review tomcat.apache.org before upgrading.
Frequently asked questions
Is Apache Tomcat 6 still safe to use?
No. Apache Tomcat 6 stopped receiving security fixes on 31 Dec 2016. Since then, 129 Apache Tomcat vulnerabilities have been published and fixed in supported branches — Apache Tomcat 6 received none of those fixes.
Can I still download Apache Tomcat 6?
Yes — the final release (6.0.53) generally remains available from vendor archives and OS package mirrors, but installing it means running software with known, unpatched vulnerabilities.
What should I upgrade Apache Tomcat 6 to?
Upgrade to Apache Tomcat 11.0, the newest actively supported branch.