What is the TuxCare Extended Lifecycle Support for PHP extension in Plesk?

Aleksandar Stoev

Updated April 22, 2026 13:07

kb: how-to

Applicable to:

Plesk for Linux

Overview

Plesk is introducing the TuxCare Extended Lifecycle Support for PHP extension by CloudLinux, which will allow users to use legacy PHP handler versions with security updates

TuxCare Extended Lifecycle Support for PHP extension for Plesk helps administrators switch End-of-Life (EoL) Plesk PHP versions to secure TuxCare Extended Lifecycle Support (ELS) PHP versions. The extension automates getting packages, preserves all PHP extensions and settings, and ensures ongoing security updates for legacy PHP versions.

Getting Started

Install the extension from the Plesk Extensions Catalog.
Install your TuxCare ELS PHP license key.
Go to Extensions > TuxCare Extended Lifecycle Support for PHP.
Review detected EoL PHP versions and affected sites.
Use the Install & Switch buttons to migrate sites:

FAQ

Which environments are supported?

Operating Systems: CentOS 7, RHEL/AlmaLinux 8-9, Debian 10-12, Ubuntu 18.04-24.04 (x86-64 only)

PHP Versions: 5.6, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 8.0 (EoL versions)

Requirements: Plesk 18.0.72+, TuxCare ELS PHP license, administrator access

What is the installation path?

Files are located at:

CONFIG_TEXT: /opt/alt/php[version]

All modules, configurations, and additional files pertaining to this version will be contained inside that path.

Use the following command to check which versions are installed:

RPM:

# sudo yum list installed | grep php

DEB:

# dpkg -l | grep php

Where are the logs located?

CONFIG_TEXT: /var/log/alt-php*-fpm.log

What are the CLI command examples?

Full CLI support for automation and scripting:

List EoL PHP versions and status

# plesk ext tuxcare-php --list
Install and configure TuxCare ELS PHP 7.4

# plesk ext tuxcare-php --install-configure -version 7.4
Switch all Plesk PHP 7.4 sites to TuxCare ELS PHP 7.4

# plesk ext tuxcare-php --switch -version 7.4

What are the Tuxcare ELS Oval streams?

---

Currently, OVAL data is provided for the following OS versions:

EL 7 (CentOS, CloudLinux, Oracle Linux, Amazon Linux 2, etc.): oval.xml
EL 8 (AlmaLinux, CentOS, CentOS Stream, CloudLinux, Oracle Linux, etc.): oval.xml
EL 9 (AlmaLinux, CentOS, CloudLinux, etc.): oval.xml
EL 10 (AlmaLinux, CloudLinux, Oracle Linux, etc.): oval.xml
Ubuntu 16.04: oval.xml
Ubuntu 18.04: oval.xml
Ubuntu 20.04: oval.xml
Ubuntu 22.04: oval.xml
Ubuntu 24.04: oval.xml
Debian 10: oval.xml
Debian 11: oval.xml
Debian 12: oval.xml
Debian 13: oval.xml

---

Is the Common Security Advisory Framework covered?

Common Security Advisory Framework (CSAF) is a machine-readable format, standardized by OASIS. It's designed to enable consistent and automated sharing of security advisory information.

TuxCare publishes the following CSAF files at security.tuxcare.com:

CSAF Vulnerability Exploitability eXchange (VEX) files – indexed by CVE VEX documents are available in CSAF 2.0 format, including past CVEs.
CSAF Security Advisory files – advisories are published in CSAF 2.0 format and indexed by Security Advisory.

provider-matadata.json contains information for tools and users about where and how to retrieve CSAF advisories published by TuxCare. By OASIS requirements, it is available at two URLs (both serving the same file):

Where can the CVE list be found?

The list of CVEs can be found here:

https://cve.tuxcare.com/els-alt-php/cve

Additional internal information

Video link to presentation: Recap: PHP ELS product integration demo 14 October | Meeting | Microsoft Teams
And internal recap doсs: Click