End of life of several versions of the IBM Sterling Data Exchange family of products
As of the following dates, the following IBM Sterling products will no longer be officially supported:
30 April 2025:
- Sterling Secure Proxy 6.0.x
- Sterling Connect:Direct 6.1.x
- Sterling Control Center 6.2.x
- Sterling Partner Engagement Manager 6.1.x
30 September 2025:
- Sterling B2B Integrator 6.1.x
- Sterling Connect:Direct 6.2.X
- Sterling File Gateway 6.1.x
- Sterling Transformation Extender Advanced 10.1.x
To benefit from new enhancements, vulnerability fixes, security updates and continued support from IBM, we encourage you to migrate to the latest product versions.
Why do I have to upgrade my version?
End of support means:
- Not being able to access help from IBM experts in case of problems: If you need to avail of IBM support through a PMR, you will be directed in the first instance to upgrade to a supported product version.
- Products without upgrades: Your Data Exchange infrastructure will not pick up new security patches, vulnerability fixes or new features and enhancements designed to maintain your competitive advantage.
B2B Solutions is the perfect partner to accompany you throughout the migration process, guaranteeing the lowest service impact and the lowest cost.
In addition, we offer you our Migration Assessment Study, free of charge.
In this study, carried out by certified professionals, we analyse the infrastructure, architecture, applications and critical services to propose improvement actions and draw up the migration roadmap, with an initial estimate of times and costs, and the best way to approach the project.
What risks am I running if I don't migrate my products?
- In the worst-case scenario, an incident can occur in a high-criticality production environment. Fixing the problem can mean serious disruption and high costs.
- In addition, working with outdated versions entails a number of risks:
Legal and financial risks due to non-compliance with rules or regulations related to data exchange, such as GDPR, HIPAA or ISO 27001, which only current versions keep up to date.
Risk of outages: Lack of support can severely impact your operations.
- Reputational damage in case of security incidents. Migrating to the latest versions ensures that your infrastructure is aligned with current regulations.
- Unforeseen expenses: repairing obsolete systems can be costly.
Do my IBM Sterling solutions have vulnerabilities?
Over time, security holes and weaknesses appear in all software products, and manufacturers fix them in the new versions they release. Known vulnerabilities in systems are published, numbered and classified according to their criticality. Some of them only affect certain versions of the product, while others have been around for several versions.
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What do I get with new product releases?
The current releases of IBM Sterling Data Exchange offer:
- New functionality for more efficient operations.
- Modernised interfaces for a more intuitive user experience.
- Performance enhancements to optimise processes.
- Expanded compatibility with other platforms and systems. These innovations will enable you to streamline B2B operations, improve efficiency and adapt more quickly to market changes.
What does migration involve?
The migration, from a licensing point of view, does not involve any cost, although it is necessary to dedicate time and have specialised staff.
At B2B Solutions we have years of experience in Data Exchange ecosystem migrations. This experience has allowed us to design an Action Plan to carry out the migration in the shortest possible time, guaranteeing the lowest cost and the least impact on the service, so that none of your customers are affected during the migration process.
How do we tackle a migration project?
The migration of IBM Sterling Data Exchange solutions requires structured planning to minimise risk and ensure business continuity.
We structure the migration project of Sterling products, based on the following phases that make up our method, backed by numerous successful projects in major companies around the world:
- Initial analysis. We identify the versions of IBM Sterling products in use, evaluate critical dependencies, integrations and customisations to ensure that they are maintained or even improved after migration, document potential risks and areas for improvement. This phase, also called Migration Assessment, will be at no cost to your organisation.
- Design of the Migration Strategy. We define the detailed migration roadmap, aligning timelines and strategies with business needs. We design the target architecture and plan the deployment, create the operational continuity plan and establish the detailed testing plan.
- Installation and configuration of the new environment. We implement and parameterise the infrastructure with test and production environments. We migrate data, configurations and workflows, and implement security and performance improvements.
- Testing and Validation. We perform Integration and Connectivity tests, Functionality tests, Performance and Load tests, Security and Compliance tests and resolve any incident before Go-Live.
- Go-Live and Production start-up. We perform the final migration based on a detailed roadmap, monitor system performance in real time and make the necessary adjustments to configurations, permissions or workflows, as well as tuning adjustments to the infrastructure to ensure maximum efficiency.
- Post-Production Support and Optimisation. We supervise the start-up of the system in production to guarantee a smooth start-up and offer continuous support during an agreed period to resolve any incident or doubt. We also train the client’s team to operate the new infrastructure.
Why should expert and certified technicians perform the Migration?
1
Expert Knowledge and Official Certification
IBM Sterling products have an advanced architecture that requires detailed understanding for proper configuration and optimisation.
An IBM certified team ensures that the migration is performed following IBM recommended best practices, avoiding critical errors.
2
Risk Reduction and Impact Minimisation
A poorly executed migration can lead to service interruptions, data loss or failures in integration with other systems.
A specialised team plans and executes the migration with proven methodologies, ensuring zero impact on operations.
3
Post-Migration Performance Optimisation
Migrating without optimising the new version is a common mistake that can lead to performance problems and higher operational costs.
IBM Sterling Data Exchange experts configure the new release to maximise efficiency and reduce resource consumption.
4
Integration with Existing Systems
IBM Sterling solutions are often integrated with multiple enterprise systems such as ERPs, CRMs, EDI platforms, WMS or payment gateways. A poorly executed migration can weaken these connections and lead to errors in data transmission.
An expert migration ensures compatibility and continuity of integrations. In addition to optimising the configuration so that communication between systems is more efficient and secure.
5
Support and Incident Resolution
Unforeseen events are common in any migration, and a slow or erroneous response can cause major losses.
An experienced team offers immediate support, with agile incident resolution and contingency plans.
6
Long-term Cost Reduction
A migration performed by inexperienced technicians often leads to failures that increase the costs of maintenance and bug fixes.
A well-executed migration avoids additional costs, guaranteeing stability and efficiency from day one.
Contact B2B Solutions if you have questions or need more information about our migration services.
