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Why is my Scanner Appliance flagged as "Operating System End of Life"?

The current Scanner Appliance runs on Debian 11, which reached the end of its long-term support (LTS) on 31 August 2026. A new version of the Scanner Appliance, built on Debian 13, is on the way. Because the operating system is changing, the new version won't arrive as an automatic update, so you'll need to do a fresh installation to get it. We'll announce its availability in the platform, in our release notes and in a newsletter.

Why is my Scanner Appliance flagged as "Operating System End of Life"?

If you scan the Scanner Appliance itself, Holm Security's OS End of Life detection will report it as Critical (CVSS 10) – Operating System End of Life. This finding is correct. Debian 11 no longer receives security updates from the Debian project.

What is the risk of running the current Scanner Appliance until the new version is available?

The risk is limited. The Scanner Appliance sits inside your network and is not exposed to the internet. The appliance is fully hardened and doesn't expose extra open ports to the network. Running it on an EOL operating system for a short period is low risk.

What is changing in the upcoming version?

  • The operating system is upgraded from Debian 11 to Debian 13.
  • The scan architecture is new.
  • The installation is clean and built on current best practices.

We're bundling these changes into a single release, so you only need to reinstall once rather than several times in quick succession.

Will the upgrade happen automatically?

No. Normal appliance updates are delivered remotely, but a new Debian major version needs a reinstallation of the Scanner Appliance. This is also why OS version changes don't happen often.

When will it be released?

We don't have a confirmed release date yet. The new version is currently in testing and is planned to ship around the time of the next platform release. We'll announce the date through our usual channels and via a banner in Security Center. 

What should I do now?

  • Keep using your current Scanner Appliance. No action is needed right now.
  • If you need to respond to an audit, you can refer to this article. In short: the OS is EOL, Holm Security still maintains security for the appliance through its own repositories, and a Debian 13 release is on the way.
  • When the new version is announced, plan a reinstallation of each appliance.

For questions, contact Holm Security's Support team.