Axway API Gateway Migration to Open Source (2026 Guide)
Migrating from Axway API Gateway to an open-source alternative is a structured process that can be completed in 4-6 months using a phased, zero-downtime approach. This guide provides a feature mapping, migration roadmap, and practical advice for enterprise teams evaluating their options.
This article is part of our complete API gateway migration guide. Whether you're coming from Axway, webMethods, MuleSoft, or Apigee, the core migration principles are the same.
Why Teams Are Evaluating Axway Alternatives
Axway has been a reliable enterprise API management platform for over a decade, serving financial services, healthcare, and government organizations worldwide. However, several industry trends are prompting teams to evaluate their options:
Evolving Infrastructure Requirements
The shift to Kubernetes-native infrastructure means API gateways need to integrate natively with container orchestration, service meshes, and GitOps workflows. Teams accustomed to declarative, code-driven configuration find that adapting traditional platforms to these patterns requires significant effort.
AI Agent Integration
As AI agents (Claude, GPT, custom LLM-based systems) begin consuming enterprise APIs programmatically, gateways need native support for the Model Context Protocol (MCP). This includes dynamic tool discovery, streaming responses, and token-level metering — capabilities that were not part of the API gateway landscape when most enterprise platforms were designed.
Open Source Momentum
The open-source API gateway ecosystem has matured significantly. Projects with Apache 2.0 or similar permissive licenses now offer enterprise-grade features — multi-tenancy, mTLS, policy engines, observability — that were previously available only in commercial products. Organizations seeking to avoid vendor lock-in and reduce licensing costs are evaluating these alternatives.
European Sovereignty
European regulations (NIS2, DORA) require organizations to demonstrate control over their API infrastructure, including data residency, incident reporting, and supply chain transparency. Self-hosted, open-source gateways provide the auditability and deployment flexibility needed for compliance.
Feature Comparison
The following comparison maps Axway API Gateway capabilities to their open-source equivalents. Feature availability is based on publicly available documentation.
| Capability | Axway API Gateway | Open-Source Alternative (STOA) |
|---|---|---|
| API Routing | Policy-based routing, URL rewriting | Route matching, path normalization, URL rewriting |
| Authentication | OAuth2, API key, HTTP Basic, mutual TLS | OAuth2/OIDC (Keycloak), API key, mTLS, JWT |
| Authorization | Role-based, custom filters | OPA policy engine (ABAC), per-tenant scopes |
| Rate Limiting | Per-application, per-API quotas | Per-tenant, per-tool, per-API quotas |
| API Portal | Axway API Portal (Joomla-based) | Developer Portal (React, API discovery + subscriptions) |
| API Catalog | API Manager catalog | Control Plane API + Console UI |
| Traffic Monitoring | Real-time analytics, API Gateway Analytics | Prometheus metrics, Grafana dashboards, OpenTelemetry |
| Policy Engine | Policy Studio (visual editor) | OPA/Rego policies (code-as-policy, GitOps) |
| Protocol Support | REST, SOAP, XML, JMS, FTP | REST, MCP, SSE, WebSocket |
| Deployment | VM-based, Docker support | Kubernetes-native (Helm), Docker Compose |
| Multi-Tenancy | API Manager organizations | Namespace-level tenant isolation (CRDs) |
| AI Agent Support | Not natively supported | Native MCP gateway, tool discovery, agent metering |
| Configuration | Policy Studio GUI + XML | Declarative YAML/CRDs, GitOps, CLI |
| Certificate Management | Built-in PKI, certificate store | cert-manager + mTLS module |
| High Availability | Active-active clustering | Kubernetes replicas + HPA |
| Licensing | Commercial (subscription) | Apache 2.0 (fully open source) |
Where Axway Has Strengths
Axway's platform includes several capabilities that reflect its enterprise heritage:
- B2B Integration: Axway B2Bi for EDI/AS2 partner communication is a specialized product with no direct open-source equivalent. Organizations with significant B2B integration needs should evaluate this separately from API gateway migration.
- Policy Studio: The visual policy editor is powerful for teams that prefer GUI-based configuration over code. Organizations transitioning to GitOps/code-as-config may see this differently.
- AMPLIFY Platform: The broader Axway AMPLIFY ecosystem includes Managed File Transfer, B2B integration, and content collaboration. API gateway migration does not require migrating these components.
Where Open Source Has Advantages
- AI Agent Support: Native MCP protocol support, tool discovery, and agent metering are built into the gateway core, not added as plugins.
- GitOps-First: All configuration is declarative YAML managed in Git. No proprietary binary formats or GUI-dependent workflows.
- Cost Transparency: Apache 2.0 licensing with no per-API, per-call, or per-node fees.
- Community: Open-source projects benefit from community contributions, independent security audits, and ecosystem integrations.
Migration Roadmap
Phase 1: Assessment and Inventory (Weeks 1-4)
Before migrating, build a complete picture of your Axway deployment:
API Inventory:
- Export your API catalog from API Manager
- Classify APIs by protocol (REST, SOAP, XML), traffic volume, and business criticality
- Identify custom policies (Policy Studio) that need translation
- Map authentication patterns per API (OAuth2, API key, mutual TLS, custom filters)
Infrastructure Assessment:
| Item | What to Document |
|---|---|
| Gateway instances | Count, location, version |
| API Manager | Organizations, users, applications |
| Policy Studio projects | Custom policies, filter chains |
| Certificates | PKI structure, certificate lifecycle |
| External integrations | LDAP, SMTP, Syslog, SNMP |
| Traffic patterns | Peak TPS per API, seasonal variations |
Dependency Mapping:
- Which systems depend on Axway-specific features (custom filters, B2B protocols)?
- Which APIs are candidates for early migration (REST, standard auth, no custom policies)?
- Which APIs should stay on Axway longer (B2B/EDI, complex SOAP mediation)?
Phase 2: Sidecar Deployment (Weeks 5-8)
Deploy the new gateway alongside Axway without touching production traffic:
Existing Flow (unchanged):
Consumers ──→ Axway API Gateway ──→ Backend APIs
New Flow (added):
AI Agents ──→ STOA MCP Gateway ──→ Backend APIs
New APIs ──→ STOA API Gateway ──→ Backend APIs
Key actions:
- Deploy STOA on your Kubernetes cluster using the Helm chart or Docker Compose quickstart
- Configure Keycloak federation with your existing identity provider (LDAP, Active Directory, SAML IdP)
- Register your first 3-5 non-critical APIs on the new gateway
- Validate routing, authentication, and response correctness
- Rule: all new APIs go through STOA from this point forward
Phase 3: Policy Translation (Weeks 9-14)
Translate Axway Policy Studio policies to their open-source equivalents:
| Axway Policy | Open-Source Equivalent | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| HTTP Basic auth filter | Keycloak realm + client | Centralized identity management |
| OAuth2 token validation | JWT validation (gateway built-in) | Standard OIDC flow |
| Rate limiting filter | Per-tenant quota policy | Configurable via CRD or API |
| XML/SOAP transformation | Service-level code or XSLT proxy | Move transforms to service layer |
| Custom JavaScript filter | OPA/Rego policy | More powerful, auditable |
| Certificate validation | mTLS module + cert-manager | Kubernetes-native PKI |
| Content filtering | Input schema validation | JSON Schema in Tool CRD |
| IP allowlist | NetworkPolicy + gateway policy | Kubernetes-native networking |
For each policy:
- Document the current behavior (input, conditions, output)
- Implement the equivalent on the new gateway
- Test with shadow traffic to validate identical behavior
- Document any behavioral differences
Phase 4: Traffic Migration (Weeks 15-20)
Gradually shift production traffic using DNS or ingress-level routing:
- 5% canary — Route a small slice of traffic through the new gateway. Monitor latency, error rates, response accuracy.
- 25% split — Increase traffic. Validate under moderate load.
- 50% split — Sustained parallel operation. Compare metrics between old and new gateways.
- 90% new gateway — Axway handles only APIs not yet migrated.
- 100% new gateway — All traffic flows through the new gateway. Axway enters standby.
At every step, you can roll back to Axway with a DNS or ingress change in under a minute.
Metrics to monitor at each stage:
- p50, p95, p99 latency per API
- Error rate (4xx, 5xx) per API
- Authentication success/failure rates
- Throughput (requests per second)
Phase 5: Decommission (Weeks 21-26)
When Axway handles no production traffic:
- Verify zero traffic on all Axway instances for at least 2 weeks
- Export and archive API definitions, policy configurations, and certificates
- Decommission Axway instances and terminate license agreements
- Update documentation, runbooks, and monitoring dashboards
- Notify teams of the cutover completion
Common Challenges and Solutions
Challenge 1: Policy Studio Complexity
Axway Policy Studio allows building complex filter chains with visual tooling. Translating these to code-based policies requires understanding what each filter does.
Solution: Start by documenting each policy's behavior in plain text (not Axway XML). Then implement the equivalent as an OPA/Rego policy or gateway configuration. Many Policy Studio chains contain accumulated complexity that can be simplified during migration.
Challenge 2: Certificate Management
Axway has built-in PKI and certificate store capabilities. Moving to Kubernetes-native certificate management requires a different approach.
Solution: Use cert-manager for automated certificate lifecycle on Kubernetes. For mTLS between gateway and backends, STOA's mTLS module integrates with cert-manager and supports certificate rotation without downtime.
Challenge 3: B2B/EDI Workloads
If you use Axway B2Bi alongside the API Gateway for B2B/EDI partner communication, this is a separate product with specialized capabilities.
Solution: B2B/EDI migration is out of scope for API gateway migration. Keep Axway B2Bi for partner communication while migrating the API gateway layer. The two can coexist indefinitely. Evaluate B2B/EDI alternatives separately if needed.
Challenge 4: Team Skills Transition
Teams experienced with Policy Studio and Axway administration need to learn Kubernetes, GitOps, and OPA.
Solution: Phase 2 (sidecar deployment) is designed for this. Teams learn the new platform on new APIs before migrating existing ones. Budget 2-4 weeks of hands-on training during the sidecar phase.
Challenge 5: Compliance and Audit Continuity
Regulated industries need continuous audit trails through the migration.
Solution: Run both gateways in parallel during Phases 3-4. Each gateway produces its own audit logs. After full migration, the new gateway's structured audit events (per-tenant, per-tool, per-invocation) typically provide richer data than the source platform.
Timeline Summary
For a mid-size Axway deployment (50-150 APIs, 2-3 gateway instances):
| Phase | Duration | Team Size | Risk Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment and Inventory | 4 weeks | 2 architects | None |
| Sidecar Deployment | 4 weeks | 1-2 platform engineers | Low |
| Policy Translation | 6 weeks | 2-3 engineers | Low-Medium |
| Traffic Migration | 6 weeks | 2-3 engineers | Medium (mitigated by canary) |
| Decommission | 4-6 weeks | 1-2 engineers | Low |
| Total | 4-6 months | Peak: 3-5 people |
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does an Axway migration typically take?
For a mid-size deployment (50-150 APIs), expect 4-6 months using the phased approach described here. The largest variable is policy translation (Phase 3) — complex Policy Studio chains with custom filters take longer to reimplement. Start with an inventory to size the effort. See the complete migration guide for frameworks applicable to all legacy platforms.
Can I keep Axway for some APIs and use the new gateway for others?
Yes. The sidecar deployment pattern is designed for exactly this. Many organizations keep their legacy gateway for APIs with complex mediation or B2B protocols while routing all new development and AI agent traffic through the new gateway. This hybrid model can run indefinitely.
What about Axway AMPLIFY features beyond the API Gateway?
Axway AMPLIFY includes Managed File Transfer, B2B Integration, and content collaboration alongside API Management. Gateway migration does not require migrating these components. Evaluate each product independently based on your requirements.
Is the migration reversible?
Yes, at every phase. During Phases 2-4, Axway continues running in parallel. Traffic can be switched back to Axway with a DNS or ingress change in under a minute. The only irreversible step is Phase 5 (decommission), which should only happen after 2+ weeks of zero traffic on Axway.
Next Steps
- API Gateway Migration Guide 2026 — Comprehensive vendor-neutral migration framework
- Open-Source API Gateway Comparison 2026 — Compare STOA, Kong, Gravitee, and more
- Migration Documentation — Detailed technical guides per platform
- Quickstart Guide — Deploy STOA in 15 minutes to evaluate
This guide describes technical migration steps and does not imply any deficiency in the source platform. Migration decisions depend on specific organizational requirements. All trademarks belong to their respective owners.
Feature comparisons are based on publicly available documentation as of 2026-02. Product capabilities change frequently. We encourage readers to verify current features directly with each vendor. See trademarks for details.