Camunda 7 End-of-Life: What’s Next? Discover Alternatives to Camunda 8

End of support for the Community Edition of Camunda 7. What next?

Camunda has announced that the latest version of the Community Edition (hereafter: CE) of Camunda 7, designated as 7.24, will be released on 14 October 2025. After this date, the GitHub repository for Camunda 7 will be archived, meaning no further updates, patches, or support from the Camunda team.

Users using Camunda 7 CE should be aware that after October 2025 they will face challenges such as:

• Lack of security updates: gaps or security issues that arise will not be fixed, which can expose systems to potential threats;
• No technical support: official support channels will not be available for their version;
• Lack of compatibility with new technologies: newer versions of dependencies, such as databases or application servers, may no longer be supported, making integration into modern environments difficult.

What does this mean for business?

The end of support for Camunda CE 7 is a serious threat to companies that base their business processes on this version. Without regular security updates, the risk of hacking attacks and data leaks will increase, which can lead to a loss of customer trust and severe legal and financial consequences, especially in light of regulations such as GDPR.

Maintaining an outdated infrastructure will become costly and make it difficult to integrate with modern technologies, effectively hindering business growth. Operational downtime, resulting from failures and lack of rapid technical support, will expose organisations to financial losses. Furthermore, unsupported and undeveloped systems will not be able to cope with the dynamic demands of the market, resulting in slower processes, lower customer satisfaction, loss of competitiveness and business partners.

The longer a company puts off migrating to Camunda 8 or moving to another solution, the more complicated and expensive the task becomes. Making a last-minute decision can be a serious blow to business, involving high costs, the risk of downtime and breakdowns, and the need to train staff under time pressure.

Upgrade to Camunda 8

With the end of support for Camunda 7, upgrading the platform to Camunda 8 seems the simplest and most obvious solution. In practice, however, this is not a simple upgrade – it is essentially a migration to a completely different product, and the whole process is more complex than it may seem.

The biggest challenges are the architectural differences between the two versions of the platform. Camunda 7 is based on a traditional monolithic or hybrid architecture, while Camunda 8 is designed for modern microservices and cloud-based systems. In addition, in Camunda 8 the traditional BPMN engine has been replaced by the Zeebe engine, which means dramatic changes in the way business processes are operated and managed.

In practice, BPMN processes running in Camunda 7 will not always be fully compatible with Camunda 8. Some functionalities, such as process history management or advanced scripting, may require models to be rebuilt or written from scratch. Migration requires reviewing and adapting existing workflows, especially if they are strongly linked to Camunda 7 logic. This means time-consuming tests, adjustments, and corrections. It is also important to note that the new version also brings changes in areas such as data, reporting, integration or infrastructure cost management.

You can read more about the differences between the two versions of the platform in the article: Camunda 8 vs Camunda 7. Challenges of migration and implementation of the new version.

Alternatives to Camunda 8. What to look out for?

Since upgrading to Camunda 8 involves a complex migration, what other strategies can Camunda 7 CE users take to avoid problems? At this point, it is worth presenting three alternative approaches:

Extension of support for Camunda 7 Enterprise Edition

Organisations have the opportunity to benefit from a paid extension of support for Camunda 7 Enterprise Edition. Camunda assures users that this version will receive security patches and technical support until April 2030. However, this is a temporary solution that ultimately leads to the need to migrate anyway and comes at an additional cost due to the high price of the licence.

Migration to other BPMN tools

Several alternative BPMN tools are available on the market for managing and automating business processes. It will be interesting to see how migrating to applications like JBPM, Flowable or Activity will perform compared to migrating to Camunda 8. It may be that one solution will be more attractively priced or more suited to business needs. However, this is still a strategy related to the implementation of a new engine and therefore the need to adapt existing processes and integration.

Transition to Altkom Software BPMN engine

In response to the challenges of migration and licensing restrictions, Altkom Software has created a modern BPMN engine that eliminates the risks arising from the end of support for Camunda 7 CE and allows a smooth transition to a stable solution, without the need for costly process modifications.

Altkom Software BPMN engine – a solution for companies that want to avoid migration

Altkom Software BPMN Engine is a workflow engine developed by Altkom Software that is based on the open-source code of Camunda 7. It is virtually a ‘continuation’ of Camunda 7 Community Edition (CE), which retains the familiar functionalities while allowing for further development and customisation to meet business needs.

Key benefits of Altkom Software BPMN Engine

Smooth transition without migration and downtime

Altkom Software BPMN Engine is a stable solution that is based on the proven Camunda 7 architecture. Thanks to full compatibility, there is no need for migration, costly process modifications or risk of downtime. Companies can continue to work on familiar BPMN models, maintaining continuity of operations without additional time and financial investment.

Flexible implementation

The engine allows deployment in any infrastructure model, depending on the needs of the organisation:

• Locally (on-premises) – full control over infrastructure and data, compliance with internal IT requirements;
• In the cloud – fast availability and scalability of the solution with minimal maintenance costs;
• Hybrid model – combining the flexibility of the cloud with the security of local infrastructure.

This approach gives freedom to manage the implementation environment.

Regular security updates

Altkom BPMN Engine provides regular updates to the engine to address security vulnerabilities and bring the solution in line with the latest regulations, such as:

• GDPR – data protection;
• PSD2 – security in financial transactions;
• PFSA – compliance with guidelines for supervised institutions in Poland.

This enables companies to operate in full compliance with current regulations and minimise the risks associated with cyber threats.

Lightweight and flexible solution

Altkom BPMN Engine allows you to implement only those functions that you actually need. The lack of redundant functionality and modules means less strain on the infrastructure, higher performance, simpler configuration, and lower maintenance costs. The engine can be customised to meet specific business needs, regardless of the scale of the organisation.

No need to train the team

Because Altkom BPMN Engine is based on Camunda 7, technical teams and process analysts do not need additional training. The tools, interfaces and ways of working are familiar to Camunda 7 users, speeding up implementation and eliminating the costs associated with learning new solutions.

Suitable for companies of all sizes

Altkom BPMN Engine is a scalable solution that will work for both small and large organisations. Thanks to its flexibility and simplicity of implementation, it can support the growth of businesses with varying degrees of technological sophistication, offering stability and efficiency regardless of their size.

Summary

Altkom Software’s BPMN Engine is a solution that will allow you not only to ensure the continuous execution of your business processes, but also to create a solid basis for improving and streamlining them. If you want to avoid costly migrations and focus on process improvement, our BPMN engine is the ideal choice.

Contact us to find out how we can help you customise this tool for your business.

Sources:

• https://forum.camunda.io/t/important-update-camunda-7-community-edition-end-of-life-announced
  
• https://docs.camunda.org/enterprise/announcement