On August 6, 2026 Elastic Beanstalk retired all remaining Amazon Linux 2 platform branches (Docker, Go, Corretto 8, 11 and 17, Tomcat 9, .NET Core), following AL2's end of life. Node.js 20, Python 3.9 and Ruby 3.2 on AL2023 went a week later. How to move to an AL2023 branch with a blue/green swap, and when to leave Beanstalk for ECS.
Amazon Linux 2 reached end of life on June 30, 2026, and Elastic Beanstalk followed on August 6 by retiring every remaining AL2 platform branch: Docker, ECS-based Docker, Go 1, Corretto 8, 11 and 17, Corretto with Tomcat 9, and .NET Core. On August 13 it also retired the Node.js 20, Python 3.9 and Ruby 3.2 branches on AL2023, and PHP 8.1 went in April. Retired environments keep running, but get no platform updates.
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Check the application on the new runtime locally or in a container first: AL2023 changes system packages, and some .ebextensions written for AL2 (yum, older init scripts) need rewriting as platform hooks.
Create a new environment on the AL2023 branch from the same application version.
Test it, then swap environment URLs (Beanstalk's blue/green CNAME swap) so traffic moves with an instant rollback path.
Terminate the old environment after a settling period.
Beanstalk is still supported and fine for a simple web app. Teams leave it when they want container images as the unit of deployment, finer control of networking and scaling, or deployment strategies such as canary releases. ECS Express Mode now gives a similar one-step experience, a container image to an HTTPS service, with ECS underneath when you outgrow the defaults.
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As of October 25, 2026. Provided as is, for general information, and accurate to the best of our knowledge on the date shown. Not legal, compliance, tax, financial or other professional advice. Prices, limits and vendor services change; check current vendor documentation before relying on anything here. Terms of use.