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AWX is not declared deprecated, but its releases are paused. The AWX README says the last release was on 2 July 2024 and that releases are paused during a large-scale refactoring. An install you already run keeps running as it is. What stops is new upstream versions, so the question for a production team is when and where to move. AceMQ covers that work on its Ansible and AWX upgrades and support page.
This post reads the primary sources, checked on 4 November 2026, and sets out three supported paths: stay on AWX with a dated plan, move to Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, or run ansible-core without a controller.
What AWX is, and where Ansible Tower and Ansible Automation Platform fit
AWX provides a web user interface, a REST API and a task engine on top of Ansible, under the Apache 2.0 license. Its README calls it "one of the upstream projects" for Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform. Red Hat's own announcement describes Automation Controller, the commercial controller, as built downstream from AWX. Searches for Ansible Tower often land on pages about that controller; Red Hat's current documentation calls it automation controller.
The practical difference is the support relationship. AWX is community software. Ansible Automation Platform is a subscription product from Red Hat.
What the pause tells you, and what it does not
The README links five upstream discussions: the Red Hat post on upcoming changes to the AWX project, "Streamlining AWX Releases", the refactoring into a pluggable, service-oriented architecture, upcoming changes to AWX Operator installation methods, and the move of the AWX user interface and credential types to that new architecture. Read them against your own install method before you plan anything.
- Red Hat's announcement calls the work a refactoring and restructuring, not a rewrite, says the open source license structure is not being adjusted, and gives no dates or milestones.
- It gives no guidance for current users.
- Neither source states when the next release arrives or what the upgrade path from a current install will be. Treat both as unknown.
Operationally, a paused project means fixes merged upstream do not reach a released version, while everything around your install keeps moving: Kubernetes versions, the database, execution environment images and ansible-core.
The supported paths compared
| Path | What you get | What you carry | Fits when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stay on AWX with a dated plan | A working install and no license fee. | No new upstream release. You, or a support partner, own fixes, capacity and the platform around it. | A stable estate, a team or partner to support it and a decision date already set. |
| Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform | Per Red Hat's comparison page: 24x7 support, SLA support for compatibility, upgrades and security vulnerabilities, and at least 18 months of enterprise support per release. | A Red Hat subscription, on terms between you and Red Hat, and a migration. | You want a vendor on the hook for the controller. |
| ansible-core from CI/CD or another runner | No controller to operate. | You lose the web interface, role-based access control, schedules and credential store unless something replaces them. | A small estate that already runs from CI/CD pipelines. |
AceMQ sells none of these. It supports the first, plans and runs the move to the second, and rehearses the third.
ansible-core keeps its own calendar
Whatever the controller does, ansible-core is on a fixed schedule. The project maintains three versions at a time. As of 4 November 2026 the maintained versions are 2.22 (released 2 November 2026, end of life May 2028), 2.21 (November 2027) and 2.20 (May 2027); 2.19 reaches end of life this month, November 2026, and 2.18 reached end of life in May 2026. Execution environment images carry ansible-core, so this calendar applies to an AWX estate exactly as it does to a command-line one.
Version 2.19 matters more than a normal minor release. Its porting guide describes an overhaul of the templating system, and conditionals that relied on a non-boolean value being treated as true or false now raise an error by default. The same guide recommends testing playbooks and roles in a staging environment. Supported Python versions also change: the control node needs 3.12 to 3.14 for 2.20 and 2.21 and 3.13 to 3.15 for 2.22, and managed hosts need 3.9 to 3.14 for 2.20 and 2.21 and 3.9 to 3.15 for 2.22 (2.19 needed 3.11 to 3.13 and 3.8 to 3.13).
A five-step check before you decide
- Record the AWX version, the install method and the ansible-core version inside every execution environment (the container images your jobs run in).
- Restore the controller database and credentials onto a spare environment, and time it.
- Run every job template against ansible-core 2.21 or 2.22 in staging and list what fails, starting with conditionals that relied on truthy values.
- Pin collections and execution environments so two runs of one template match.
- Choose a path and write a date next to it, including the date the platform around AWX will force the issue.
Where AceMQ fits
AceMQ engineers run steps one to four as a review, with partner automation specialists, and then run whichever path you choose, with 24/7 cover and a 15-minute emergency response. The scope and process are on the Ansible and AWX support and upgrades page. AceMQ does not write playbooks, gives no Red Hat licensing advice and supplies no Red Hat support. For the platform underneath, see Kubernetes support and open-source support windows compared.
Sources
Frequently Asked Questions
Is AWX deprecated?
Neither the AWX README nor Red Hat's announcement calls AWX deprecated. The README says releases are paused during a large-scale refactoring, and the last release was on 2 July 2024.
Is AWX free?
Yes. AWX is released under the Apache 2.0 license, so there is no license fee. You pay for the infrastructure and the people who run it, and the AWX project, as community software, offers no support subscription.
What is the difference between AWX and Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform?
AWX is the upstream community controller. Ansible Automation Platform is Red Hat's subscription product, which Red Hat's page describes as including 24x7 support, SLA support for upgrades and security vulnerabilities, at least 18 months of enterprise support per release and certified content.
Which ansible-core version should I run?
ansible-core maintains three versions. As of 4 November 2026 the maintained versions are 2.22 (released 2 November 2026, end of life May 2028), 2.21 (November 2027) and 2.20 (May 2027); 2.19 reaches end of life this month, November 2026. Test your job templates on the target in staging first, because 2.19 changed templating behavior.
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