Debian 5 · Version Status
Debian 5 End of Life Date
Debian 5 end-of-life date, support status, and CVE risk. Data reconciled from official vendor documentation and endoflife.date at every build; the source of each date is on the product page.
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Debian 5 is past end of life. This version no longer receives security patches. 5388 days past EOL — migrate to a supported version immediately.
EOL Date
Feb 6, 2012
5388 days past EOL
Latest Release
5.0.10
Standard release
Release Date
Feb 14, 2009
Debian 5 series
Where these dates come from
End of lifeFeb 6, 2012endoflife.date (open dataset) · endoflife.datemedium · 1 source agrees End of active supportFeb 6, 2012endoflife.date (open dataset) · endoflife.datemedium · 1 source agrees ReleaseFeb 14, 2009endoflife.date (open dataset) · endoflife.datemedium · 1 source agrees Confidence: high = two or more independent sources agree (the vendor's page read by our adapter, a person's check against the vendor, the dataset the date came from); medium = one; low = the vendor page disagrees or our last read is stale.
How we source dates.
Lifecycle detail
Debian 5 was released on February 14, 2009 and support ended on February 6, 2012 — a supported lifespan of 3 years, shorter than the 4 years median for Debian releases. Its latest release on record is 5.0.10, published March 10, 2012 — 33 days after the published end-of-life date. It has been past its end-of-life date for 14 years and 9 months. 7 newer Debian releases have shipped since.
Attack Surface
30/30 Critical tier
CISA KEV Exposure
20/20 Named in CISA KEV
Extended Support
0/10 Available
EOL Risk Score™ — proprietary methodology by endoflife.ai. Factors: EOL recency, attack surface breadth, CISA KEV catalog presence, extended support availability. Updated at every build.
Methodology → ·
View score card →
Extended Support
Extended Debian 5 support options
Some vendors and third parties sell security patches beyond end of life; whether one covers this version varies. Compare your options.
Compare Options →
| Version | Latest | EOL Date | Status |
|---|
| 1.1 |
1.1 |
Dec 12, 1996 |
EOL |
| 1.2 |
1.2 |
Oct 23, 1997 |
EOL |
| 1.3 |
1.3.1 r.6 |
Dec 8, 1998 |
EOL |
| 2.0 |
2.0r5 |
Feb 15, 1999 |
EOL |
| 2.1 |
2.1r5 |
Oct 30, 2000 |
EOL |
| 2.2 |
2.2r7 |
Jun 30, 2003 |
EOL |
| 3.0 |
3.0r6 |
Jun 30, 2006 |
EOL |
| 3.1 |
3.1r8 |
Mar 31, 2008 |
EOL |
What does Debian 5 end of life mean?
When Debian 5 reaches end of life, the maintainers stop issuing security patches for this version. CVEs discovered after the EOL date are publicly disclosed on the National Vulnerability Database with no patch available. Exploit code frequently appears on GitHub within days of disclosure.
The CVE blind spot: A CVE-based scan does not show the ongoing accumulation of unpatched vulnerabilities in EOL software versions. Some scanners flag unsupported versions of common products, but coverage varies, and none of them give you the date in advance. Running Debian 5 past its EOL date creates a growing attack surface that a clean scan result does not rule out.
Migrate to Debian 13 or implement compensating controls — network segmentation, enhanced monitoring, restricted access — while migration is underway.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Debian 5 reach end of life?
Debian 5 reached end of life on February 6, 2012. This version is no longer receiving security patches.
Is Debian 5 still supported?
No. Debian 5 reached end of life on February 6, 2012 and is no longer receiving security patches.
What should I upgrade to from Debian 5?
The recommended upgrade from Debian 5 is
Debian 13 — the latest actively supported version. Check the
Debian full timeline for all supported versions.
What are the security risks of running Debian 5 past EOL?
Since Debian 5 reached end of life, the maintainers no longer issue security patches. Any CVEs disclosed after the EOL date accumulate with no vendor fix. A CVE-based scan does not show this — it is the CVE blind spot; some scanners flag unsupported versions of common products, but coverage varies and none give the date in advance. Organizations running EOL Debian should migrate immediately or implement compensating controls.
Does Debian track end-of-life by point release (e.g. Debian 13.1, Debian 13.2)?
No — Debian end-of-life dates apply to the entire 13.x release series, not individual point releases. A point release like Debian 13.1 or Debian 13.2 shares the same EOL date as Debian 13. Security patches stop for the entire 13.x line on that date, regardless of which patch version you are running. Check the table above for EOL dates by major version series.