Question 1

What happens when Memcached reaches end of life?

Accepted Answer

When Memcached reaches end of life, it stops receiving security patches, bug fixes, and new features. Currently, 2 Memcached versions are already EOL. The latest supported version is Memcached 1.6. Running an EOL version exposes your systems to unpatched security vulnerabilities with no official fix available.

Question 2

Is Memcached 1.6 still supported?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Memcached 1.6 is actively supported. It receives security patches and bug fixes. Check the version table above for the full list of supported Memcached releases and their exact end-of-life dates.

Question 3

Is it safe to use Memcached after end of life?

Accepted Answer

No. Running Memcached after EOL is not safe for production systems. Once a version reaches end of life, newly discovered CVEs are published publicly but never patched — leaving your systems permanently exposed. The only safe path is upgrading to an actively supported Memcached release.

Question 4

How to upgrade from Memcached 1.5 to Memcached 1.x?

Accepted Answer

To upgrade Memcached from 1.5 to 1.6: (1) review the official migration guide for breaking changes, (2) test your application against the new version in a staging environment, (3) update dependencies that have version constraints, (4) run your full test suite, (5) deploy with a rollback plan. The earlier you start, the more time you have to resolve compatibility issues before EOL.

Question 5

When is the next Memcached LTS version?

Accepted Answer

Not all Memcached releases have a designated LTS status. Check the version table above — LTS releases are marked with an "LTS" badge. Refer to the official Memcached release policy for information on upcoming long-term support versions.

Question 6

How long does Memcached support each version?

Accepted Answer

On average, Memcached supports each release for approximately 65 months (~5.4 years).  The exact EOL date for each version is listed in the table above.

Version	Released	Active support	EOL date	Until EOL	Latest	CVEs	Status
1.6	Mar 8, 2020	—	No	—	1.6.42	—	Active
1.5	Jul 21, 2017	—	Mar 9, 2020	2283d ago	1.5.22	—	EOL
1.4	Jul 9, 2009	—	Jul 21, 2017	3245d ago	1.4.39	—	EOL

Memcached End of Life Dates

Related technologies

Same category

Frequently Asked Questions