Deprecation overview

IBM Cloud® is announcing the full deprecation of IBM Cloud® Functions. See the deprecation dates, details, and specific implications.

Which services are included in this change?

IBM Cloud® Functions

Why are we making this change?

With the successful release and adoption of IBM Cloud® Code Engine in 2021, IBM created its next generation serverless compute platform. Functions is based on the Apache OpenWhisk project and is limited in its ability to support a varied set of non-transactional, stateless workloads. Code Engine runs the same kind of workloads as Functions and, in addition, supports the following enhanced capabilities.

Support for the latest generation of VPC networking
Choice of public/internet-facing workloads or private ones
Support for serverless, batch, and long running jobs
Build container images via Dockerfiles or Paketo buildpacks
Store source code in public or private git repos
Deploy container images from public or private image registries
Automatically secure apps with TLS
Strategy for regulatory compliance for CaaS/FaaS solutions

What are the implications for current users of Functions?

Clients will need to migrate their Functions actions and triggers over to Code Engine. You can expect a level of source code changes to be necessary with the migration, but for most users and use cases, these changes will be minimal. Code Engine is based on the mature, opensource, Knative serverless containers project that is used by Google Cloud and others. IBM and others created documentation about migrating your workloads to Code Engine and to Knative more broadly. IBM support and lab services are available for customers with large Functions environments that need assistance.

Deprecation schedule

IBM Cloud for Education is withdrawn from marketing effective immediately. The service is deprecated in the IBM Cloud® catalog, and no new orders or renewals are possible. Customers with existing deployments will still be able to use them through November 30th, 2023, or the expiry of their IBM Cloud® order, whichever is first.

Cloud Functions will be withdrawn from marketing effective December 28, 2023. The service will be deprecated in the IBM Cloud® catalog and at this time, no new orders will be taken. Cloud Functions will remains up and running for existing clients, but no new entities can be created.

Formal end of support for IBM Cloud® Functions will be in June, 2024. This is the last date IBM Cloud® will deliver standard support, imaging, or reload services for a specific version or release.

IBM Cloud® Functions will be completely end of life and shut down in all regions by October 2024.

Table 1. Deprecation timeline
Stage	Date	Description
Deprecation announcement	26 October 2023	Announcement of the Cloud Functions deprecation. Existing entities will continue to run.
End of marketing	28 December 2023	No new entities of Cloud Functions can be created or purchased. Existing entities will continue to run.
End of support	June 2024	You can continue to use any existing entities of Cloud Functions, but support is no longer available.
End of life	October 2024	Running entities of Cloud Functions are permanently disabled and deprovisioned.

What if I'm still working with the service?

Clients are encourages to migrate their Functions actions and triggers to IBM Cloud® Code Engine. Alternatively, clients might decide to host their code on VPC virtual instances or in IBM Cloud Kubernetes or OpenShift for IBM Cloud® clusters.

See the following topics for documentation about migrating from IBM Cloud® Functions to Code Engine.

IBM representatives are reaching out to help customers plan for this change and decide on the best course of action. If you are a current IBM Cloud® Functions customer and have not heard from IBM, reach out to your account representative or contact IBM Cloud Support.

Have questions?

If you have questions, comments, or concerns, reach out to your IBM Cloud® representative or IBM Cloud Support.