There are a bunch of dates on the end of life milestone datasheets, and I'm looking for some clarification on what some of them signify:
1. End-of-SW Maintenance - This is the last date Cisco will release new code, or fix non-security related bugs.
2. End-of-Failure Analysis - I'm not sure what this date actually means? Can someone expand on it?
3. End-of-Security Support - The last date a software fix will be released to fix a security issue.
The other dates make sense to me (End-of-Sale, Last Ship, End-of-Contract Renewal, Last Date of Support, etc).
I'm going to focus on the 3560G; the End-of-Life milestone dates are seen here:
End-of-Sale and End-of-Life Announcement for the Cisco Catalyst 3750G, 3560G, 3750-E, and 3560-E Series Switches - Cisco
The last date of maintenance releases is listed as Jan 2014.
If I go to the download page for that product, I see multiple software images released after that date, with the latest being February 2015 (12.2(55)SE10). A year after the listed end-of-SW date.
The release notes show multiple caveats resolved in versions released after Jan2014 which don't appear to be security related.
Release Notes for the Catalyst 3750, 3560, 2975, 2960-S, and 2960 Switches, Cisco IOS Release 12.2(55)SE and Later - Cis…
Is it true to say that Cisco still releases some non-security bug fixes after the End-of-SW date? If so, what does this date actually signify? That Cisco isn't obligated to fix it, but they usually do?
I need to explain what these dates mean to a customer to help them determine which milestone date to focus on when refreshing switches. I dont want to tell them to go by the End-of-SW date because bug's wont be fixed after that....then have them look into it and see that isn't true.
