Built from Ivanti's own pages and documentation, named Ivanti partners and consultancies, vendor pricing pages and G2 data, checked on 29 September 2026. No vendor reviewed or paid for this article. We did not run hands-on tests.
Cherwell end of life means Ivanti stops supporting Cherwell Service Management (CSM) on December 31, 2026. Consultancy StrataCom reports that Ivanti announced that date on October 31, 2023 (StrataCom, as of 29 Sep 2026). Ivanti's public site does not show the date. Ivanti, which acquired Cherwell in 2021, lists Cherwell products as discontinued and names Ivanti Neurons for ITSM as the successor to Cherwell ITSM (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026).
If you own a Cherwell service desk, you have about one quarter left. Below: the dates, what changes for each license type, your options, what moves and what gets rebuilt, and a backwards plan.
Key takeaways
- Cherwell Service Management reaches end of life on December 31, 2026, according to StrataCom's report of Ivanti's October 2023 announcement (StrataCom, as of 29 Sep 2026).
- Ivanti lists Cherwell products as "now discontinued" and maps Cherwell ITSM to Ivanti Neurons for ITSM (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026).
- Ivanti partner Service Quality says cloud tenants become inaccessible 30 days after the end of life date, while on-premises perpetual installs keep running without Ivanti support (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026).
- Whichever platform you choose, workflows, automations, business rules, SLA definitions and running SLA timers are rebuilt on the target, not migrated.
Cherwell end of life: the key dates
Ivanti's lifecycle notices sit behind a customer hub login, so the dates below come from Ivanti's public pages where possible and named partners where not.
| Date | What happens | Source (as of 29 Sep 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| March 25, 2021 | Ivanti acquires Cherwell | Ivanti |
| October 31, 2023 | Ivanti announces the CSM end of life date, as reported by StrataCom | StrataCom |
| December 31, 2026 | Cherwell Service Management end of life and end of support | StrataCom; also reported by ServiceNow partner Beyond20 |
| 30 days after December 31, 2026 | Cloud tenants are discontinued and no longer accessible (partner FAQ) | Service Quality |
In short: December 31, 2026 is the last day of supported Cherwell (StrataCom, as of 29 Sep 2026), and cloud access ends 30 days later (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026). Confirm both dates against your own Ivanti contract.
What changes at Cherwell Service Management end of life
Cherwell end of life affects each license type differently, according to the published FAQ of Service Quality, an Ivanti Premier Partner and Cherwell Preferred Partner (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026). Cloud tenants close, on-premises perpetual installs keep running without support, and subscription customers get a 30-day window to request a database export (same source).
| How you run Cherwell | Until December 31, 2026 | After December 31, 2026 | Source (as of 29 Sep 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| On-premises, perpetual license | Supported by Ivanti | The software keeps running, but Ivanti no longer provides support | Service Quality |
| Cloud tenant hosted by Ivanti | Normal access | Tenant is discontinued and inaccessible 30 days after the end of life date | Service Quality |
| Subscription license | Access to your data while your instance is supported | After the upgrade grace period ends, 30 days to request your data, delivered as a standard database export | Service Quality |
| Buying more licenses | Allowed if the term ends by December 31, 2026 | Not applicable | Service Quality |
The length of the "upgrade grace period" is not public, so ask Ivanti for it in writing. A database export keeps your records, but it is not a working service desk: relationships, SLA results and knowledge still need mapping.
Your options: stay with Ivanti or choose a Cherwell replacement
You have three paths: move to Ivanti Neurons for ITSM, move to another ITSM platform, or run on-premises Cherwell unsupported as a short bridge. None avoids migration work.
Option 1: stay with Ivanti on Neurons for ITSM
Ivanti says a clean install of Neurons for ITSM keeps many core CSM tools, including stored expressions, values and prompts, and incoming webhooks. It adds that REST APIs let current integrations keep working (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026). Ivanti also tells CSM customers, "You're not going to lose any data" (same source).
Neurons for ITSM runs in the cloud, on-premises or hybrid, and pricing is by quote only (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026). Service Quality says there are several ways to move Cherwell data to Neurons for ITSM, but most of its customers chose a fresh start with limited data (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026).
Option 2: move to another ITSM platform (Cherwell alternatives)
This guide covers three Cherwell alternatives: ServiceNow, Jira Service Management and Freshservice. For a wider shortlist, see our roundup of the top ITSM tools in 2026. Check which plan includes problem and change management if you run both in Cherwell today.
| Platform | Pricing (vendor page) | Problem and change management from | Deployment notes | G2 rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ivanti Neurons for ITSM | Quote only (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026) | Not stated on the product page | Cloud, on-premises or hybrid (same source) | 4.0/5, 294 reviews (G2, as of 29 Sep 2026) |
| ServiceNow ITSM | Foundation, Advanced, Prime; custom quote (ServiceNow, as of 29 Sep 2026) | ITSM Advanced (same source) | Not covered here | 4.5/5, 1,986 reviews (G2, as of 29 Sep 2026) |
| Jira Service Management (Service Collection) | Free $0 for up to 3 agents; Standard $20 and Premium $51.42 per agent/month; Enterprise by quote (Atlassian, as of 29 Sep 2026) | Premium and Enterprise (Atlassian, as of 29 Sep 2026) | Cloud only; Data Center closed to new customers since March 30, 2026 (Atlassian, as of 29 Sep 2026) | 4.3/5, 986 reviews (G2, as of 29 Sep 2026) |
| Freshservice | Starter $19, Growth $49, Pro $99 per agent/month billed annually; Enterprise custom (Freshworks, as of 29 Sep 2026) | Pro (same source) | Not covered here | 4.6/5, 1,356 reviews (G2, as of 29 Sep 2026) |
If you must stay on-premises, Ivanti still lists an on-premises option for Neurons for ITSM. Jira Service Management Data Center is closed to new customers (sources in the table).
Plan-level detail for each alternative is in our guides to ServiceNow pricing, Jira Service Management pricing and Freshservice pricing.
Option 3: run on-premises Cherwell unsupported as a bridge
On-premises perpetual installs keep running after December 31, 2026 without Ivanti support (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026). Some partners, such as StrataCom, advertise extended support for unsupported Cherwell versions (StrataCom, as of 29 Sep 2026). Treat it as a bridge to a planned cutover, agreed with security and audit. Cloud customers do not have this option.
Which option fits: choose this if
| Option | Choose this if | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Ivanti Neurons for ITSM | You want the CSM tools Ivanti says carry over, or need on-premises or hybrid | Still a clean install; G2 reviewers cite a learning curve and dated interface (G2, as of 29 Sep 2026) |
| ServiceNow ITSM | You want CMDB and ITSM on one enterprise platform and accept quote-based pricing | Problem and change need ITSM Advanced |
| Jira Service Management | Your engineering teams use Jira and cloud-only is fine | Problem and change need Premium or Enterprise |
| Freshservice | You want published per-agent prices | Problem and change start at Pro |
| Unsupported on-premises Cherwell | You hold perpetual licenses and need a bridge to cutover | No Ivanti support; not for cloud tenants |
If ServiceNow and Freshservice both make your shortlist, our ServiceNow vs Freshservice comparison sets them side by side.
The verdict: no option avoids a migration, so pick the destination on fit and total cost, then plan the history move as its own project.
What Cherwell data moves, and what gets rebuilt
Every Cherwell exit is a migration, including the move to Ivanti Neurons for ITSM, because Ivanti describes that path as a clean install (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026). Data moves. Logic is rebuilt.
On the Ivanti side, Neurons for ITSM imports CSV, XLS and XLSX files, maps them to business objects, and can schedule imports. Ivanti's documentation for the 2022 release lists file limits of 250 MB for manual upload and 500 MB over FTP, secure FTP or a shared folder (Ivanti, as of 29 Sep 2026). Confirm the current limits with Ivanti before you size your import batches.
The table below applies to any target platform.
| Moves as data | Rebuilt on the target | At risk if not planned |
|---|---|---|
| Incidents, service requests, problems and changes | Workflows and automations | Links between incidents, problems, changes and CIs |
| Knowledge articles | Business rules and form logic | Public vs internal journal notes |
| CIs and their attributes | SLA definitions and the priority matrix | Historical SLA results and breach flags |
| Attachments | Running SLA timers on open tickets | Original created and closed timestamps |
| Users, teams and assignment groups | Approvals, dashboards and reports | Records owned by deactivated users or retired groups |
| Journal and audit history | Integrations (Ivanti says REST APIs help on its own platform) | Knowledge article versions and links to tickets |
Treat the right-hand column as your reconciliation list. A relationship or timestamp that is not mapped on purpose can arrive empty or stamped with the import date. Attachments need their own check too: see how to prevent a lost attachment flood during an ITSM cutover.
If ServiceNow is your destination, our ServiceNow migration guide covers field mapping and test migrations in more depth.
A backwards plan from December 31, 2026
As of late September 2026, one calendar quarter remains before the December 31, 2026 deadline (StrataCom, as of 29 Sep 2026). Plan from the deadline back. The phase order is the same as in any ITSM migration plan: discover, map, test migration, cutover with delta sync, reconcile, hypercare.
| When | What to finish | Decision gate |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2026, first | Confirm your license type and dates with Ivanti in writing. Take a full backup or database export now, whatever you decide. Inventory record types, volumes, CIs, integrations and custom business objects | Destination platform chosen |
| Q4 2026, next | Map states, priorities, categories, users and groups. Decide what history moves live, what goes to a read-only archive, and what is retired. Rebuild workflows, SLA definitions and automations on the target | Mapping signed off by process owners |
| Q4 2026, before your freeze window | Run at least one full test migration. Reconcile record counts, relationships and attachments. Rehearse cutover | Go/no-go for cutover |
| Q4 2026, cutover | Freeze changes, run final load with delta sync, reconcile, switch intake channels | Sign-off by service owner |
| Q1 2027 | Hypercare. Cloud customers: tenant access ends 30 days after December 31 (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026). Request any final data export inside that window | Cherwell decommissioned |
If the cutover cannot land by December 31, protect the history first. Secure a complete export while you still have supported access, then decide between a short unsupported bridge (on-premises perpetual only) and a later cutover from the export.
Cherwell end of life checklist
- Confirm with Ivanti, in writing, your end of life date, license type and the length of any upgrade grace period.
- Take a full backup or database export of Cherwell now.
- Inventory every record type (incidents, requests, problems, changes, knowledge, CIs, custom business objects) and every integration, then audit your legacy help desk data before mapping.
- Choose the destination: Ivanti Neurons for ITSM or another ITSM platform.
- Decide what history moves live, what goes to an archive, and what your retention policy lets you retire.
- Map states, priority matrix, categories, users and assignment groups.
- Rebuild workflows, automations, business rules and SLA definitions on the target.
- Plan how open tickets with running SLA timers will be handled at cutover.
- Run at least one full test migration and reconcile counts, relationships and attachments.
- Agree a freeze window and a go/no-go owner.
- Cut over with delta sync, then reconcile again.
- Staff hypercare and keep a read-only path to the old data until sign-off.
- Cloud customers: request any final export within 30 days of December 31, 2026 (Service Quality, as of 29 Sep 2026).
Cherwell end of life FAQ
Methodology
We built this guide from Ivanti's public pages, documentation and announcements, checked on 29 September 2026. Ivanti's customer hub requires a login, so the end of life date is attributed to consultancy StrataCom and corroborated by Beyond20. Consequences by license type come from the FAQ of Ivanti Premier Partner Service Quality, and migration time estimates are quoted only as the named firm's own claims. Pricing comes from each vendor's pricing page and ratings from G2. We did not run hands-on tests.
Disclosure: MigrateX, the publisher of this article, runs ITSM data migrations, including between platforms named here. No vendor reviewed or paid for this article.