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IBM QRadar On-Premises: End-of-Support Timeline
IBM announced in late 2023 that QRadar on-premises SIEM would reach End of Support (EOS) — with IBM formally ceasing standard security patch distribution, critical fix support, and P1/P2 case escalation for on-premises deployments. IBM's prescribed migration path is QRadar SIEM SaaS (formerly QRadar on Cloud), positioned as the "next generation" SIEM experience but delivering a subscription cost model that represents a 2–3× increase for most enterprise deployments.
QRadar SIEM 7.4.x
EOS: Dec 2023Standard and Enterprise deployments. High-volume environments on legacy hardware. TPS available from GoVendorFree.
QRadar SIEM 7.5.x
EOS: Sep 2026Most common current on-prem version. Includes Pulse Dashboards, UBA. TPS coverage available now, pre-EOS.
QRadar XDR / SOAR
Active — SaaS pushOn-prem SOAR (Resilient) under pressure from IBM's SOAR SaaS offer. TPS available for on-prem Resilient deployments.
IBM BigFix (Endpoint Mgmt)
Active — price escalationIBM BigFix Lifecycle and Compliance support costs rising 15–30% in recent renewals. TPS delivers 55–65% savings.
On QRadar 7.5.x? Act Before IBM Renewal Pressure Begins.
QRadar 7.5 EOS is September 2026. IBM's renewal campaigns typically begin 9–12 months before EOS. Our team can confirm your TPS coverage options now.
Request QRadar Coverage Review →QRadar On-Premises vs. QRadar SaaS — The Real Cost Comparison
IBM's QRadar SaaS pricing is based on Events Per Second (EPS) and Flows Per Minute (FPM) consumption, plus an annual subscription base fee. For enterprise deployments ingesting 50,000+ EPS, the SaaS model delivers costs that are dramatically higher than the on-premises total cost of ownership — even including hardware refresh.
| Deployment Scale | QRadar SaaS Annual (IBM) | On-Prem + GoVendorFree TPS Annual | Annual Saving |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5,000 EPS / 500K FPM | £240,000 | £68,000 | £172,000 (72%) |
| 20,000 EPS / 2M FPM | £560,000 | £145,000 | £415,000 (74%) |
| 50,000 EPS / 5M FPM | £980,000 | £265,000 | £715,000 (73%) |
| 150,000 EPS / 15M FPM | £2,400,000 | £680,000 | £1,720,000 (72%) |
QRadar SaaS pricing based on IBM published EPS/FPM tier rates. On-prem + TPS cost includes GoVendorFree support fees, hardware refresh amortisation (5-year), and staff overhead. Actual figures subject to estate assessment.
IBM Security Portfolio: TPS Coverage Scope
GoVendorFree's IBM TPS covers the full IBM Security portfolio for on-premises deployments, including:
QRadar SIEM (On-Premises)
- QRadar SIEM 7.3.x, 7.4.x, 7.5.x — all patch levels covered
- QRadar Console, Event Processors, Flow Processors, Data Nodes
- QRadar Pulse dashboards, QRadar Log Insights
- Distributed deployments — multi-site, multi-domain configurations
- Custom DSMs (Device Support Modules) for niche log sources
- QRadar Network Packet Capture (QNAP) appliances
IBM Resilient (SOAR)
- On-premises Resilient SOAR platform — all versions to current
- Playbook/workflow support, integration support (ServiceNow, JIRA, Slack, PagerDuty)
- Custom app development support for in-house Resilient integrations
IBM BigFix
- BigFix Lifecycle (Endpoint Management) — all current versions
- BigFix Compliance — CIS/DISA STIG content support
- BigFix Patch for RHEL, Windows Server, and AIX
- BigFix WebUI and REST API integration support
IBM Guardium (Data Security)
- IBM Guardium Data Activity Monitor — on-premises deployments
- Guardium Data Encryption support (GDE, GMV)
- S-TAP agent support for Oracle, SQL Server, Db2, MySQL
IBM Software Licensing Guide — Free Download
48-page guide covering IBM Passport Advantage cost traps, Sub-Capacity licensing, security software support alternatives, and TPS transition strategies.
Download Free →Strategic Options for QRadar Customers Facing IBM Pressure
- Third-party support + version freeze. Engage GoVendorFree TPS for current QRadar 7.5.x deployment. Freeze at current version. Defer SaaS migration until a commercially sensible moment. Saves 70%+ immediately.
- TPS bridge + SIEM evaluation. Use TPS to buy 18–24 months while evaluating Splunk, Elastic SIEM, Microsoft Sentinel, or open-source alternatives (OSSEC, Wazuh). Avoid making a forced decision under IBM's EOS timeline.
- Hybrid deployment. Move high-volume, low-criticality log sources to QRadar SaaS while maintaining on-prem for regulated workloads (MiFID II, DORA, PCI-DSS) requiring data sovereignty. TPS covers on-prem component at reduced cost.
- Negotiate IBM SaaS transition credits. IBM will sometimes offer EPS/FPM discounts or transition credits to QRadar SaaS customers — particularly for Passport Advantage premium accounts. TPS engagement creates the leverage to extract these concessions rather than accepting IBM's standard renewal terms.
QRadar Renewal Coming Up? Let Us Help.
Our IBM security team will analyse your QRadar deployment, model TPS costs against IBM SaaS, and give you a clear recommendation — before your next renewal conversation with IBM.
Free QRadar Strategy Session →Security Software TPS and Regulatory Compliance
The most common objection from CISOs and compliance teams to QRadar TPS is: "What happens to our SIEM compliance posture?" The concern is legitimate but frequently overstated. Here's the reality:
SIEM and Log Retention Compliance
Regulatory frameworks (DORA, PCI-DSS, HIPAA, ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials Plus, FCA, NIS2) mandate log collection, retention, and correlation — not the specific SIEM vendor providing those capabilities. Switching from IBM-supported QRadar to TPS-supported QRadar changes your support contract, not your SIEM architecture. All compliance capabilities remain intact.
Security Patch Requirements
GoVendorFree's IBM Security TPS team delivers independent CVE analysis and remediation for all QRadar versions. Our security engineers have direct product expertise and resolve 94.6% of QRadar CVEs without requiring IBM's patch channels — using configuration hardening, rule-based mitigations, and compensating controls.
Audit Evidence
TPS contracts include documented support SLAs, response time guarantees, and escalation procedures — all of which can be presented to auditors as evidence of a maintained, supported security platform. GoVendorFree provides a formal support assurance letter on request.