Skipping Moodle™ 5.0
At Open LMS, we’re committed to providing you with a reliable, secure, and forward-thinking learning platform. After careful analysis and collaboration across our product, engineering, and support teams, we’ve made the strategic decision to bypass Moodle™ 5.0 and upgrade directly to Moodle™ 5.1 in mid-2026.
This decision applies to all Open LMS EDU SaaS and Open LMS WORK SaaS sites. Below, we'd like to outline the reasons behind this decision and what it means for you as our client or partner.
What This Means for You
- If you are a SaaS customer, your platform will remain on Moodle™ 4.5, a Long-Term Support (LTS) version, until the planned upgrade to 5.1 in mid-2026. Final dates will be shared with the 2026 release calendar.
- You’ll continue receiving regular Maintenance Packs that include security updates, bug fixes, and new Open LMS features throughout 2025.
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No action is required from your side at this time, and we’ll keep you informed well ahead of the 5.1 rollout.
Why We’re Skipping Moodle™ 5.0
1. Complex and Risky Platform Changes
Moodle™ 5.0 introduces major changes to core systems, including:
- New server and database requirements (e.g., PHP 8.2+, MariaDB 10.11+)
- Removal of legacy plugins like Atto Editor and Survey activity
- Front-end changes including Bootstrap 5 and TinyMCE 6
- Complete removal of the YUI JavaScript library
These changes demand extensive development, testing, and plugin updates—not just from our internal teams, but also from community plugin developers.
2. Prioritizing Stability and Compatibility
By remaining on Moodle™ 4.5 (LTS), we ensure:
- A stable and secure foundation for your learning environment
- Continued compatibility across your current plugins, themes, and tools
- More time for third-party plugin developers to align with the 5.x series
3. Responding to Client and Seasonal Realities
We’ve consistently received feedback from clients about the challenges of receiving a major upgrade in December. These include:
- Holiday season constraints: December is a low-capacity period across client institutions and staffing.
- Limited sandbox usage: Clients typically engage less with sandbox environments during this period, which increases the risk of undetected bugs in production environments.
By avoiding a major upgrade during this period, we are prioritizing platform stability and reducing the risk of unexpected issues for clients during a traditionally slower and more complex time of year.
4. Delivering More Value through Strategic Focus
Delaying the upgrade allows us to:
- Improve key platform experiences, including our Snap and WORK themes
- Advance Open Reports Engine (ORE) unification across platforms
- Enhance PLD, Conduit, AI-powered tools, and other high-impact features
5. A Smoother, More Informed Transition to Moodle™ 5.1
We’re taking time to:
- Learn from early Moodle™ 5.0 adopters in the broader Moodle™ community
- Prepare infrastructure and upgrade tooling in advance
- Ensure that 5.1 is a refined, stable release with broader plugin support
What’s Next
December 2025: Maintenance Pack Releases
We will maintain our regular release cadence:
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EDU 4.5 MP3
- Sandbox: November 25, 2025
- Production: December 30, 2025
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WORK 4.5 MP5
- Sandbox: December 9, 2025
- Production: January 6, 2026
These releases will include bug fixes, plugin updates, and usability improvements while we prepare for Moodle™ 5.1.
Mid-2026: Major Upgrade to Moodle™ 5.1
- EDU will upgrade to Moodle™ 5.1 in July 2026
- WORK will upgrade to Moodle™ 5.1 in June 2026
Exact dates will be confirmed with the 2026 release calendar.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Can I upgrade my site to Moodle™ 5.0 early?
We strongly recommend waiting for 5.1. We will not support Moodle™ 5.0 upgrades for EDU and WORK SaaS sites. Managed Hosting clients are advised to stay on Moodle™ 4.5 or upgrade to it if they are on an older version. Requesting 5.1 in MH will need to go through a formal review process and accept limited plugin support. -
What happens to the new Moodle™ 5.0 features?
Moodle™ 5.0 capabilities will be included in our Moodle™ 5.1 release. - Will Moodle™ 5.1 require any specific action or preparation on our end?
No, there is no immediate preparation needed from your side. -
Will there be a sandbox version of 5.1 available for testing before production upgrades?
Yes. All clients will have a sandbox upgraded/deployed to 5.1 to test the newest version of Moodle™, a month before the production upgrade. -
Can we get a preview or roadmap of the platform improvements you’re working on in the meantime?
Of course, here is our latest roadmap for 2025. -
When will you share the full 2026 release calendar?
We usually release our SaaS release calendar by December of the previous year.
In Summary
We believe that skipping Moodle™ 5.0 and moving directly to Moodle™ 5.1 enables us to deliver a more stable, secure, and well-supported platform. This approach provides us time to focus on the features and improvements that matter most to our clients while ensuring a smoother, lower-risk upgrade experience.
We appreciate your continued trust in Open LMS.