diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-compute.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-compute.rst
index 1346dab92e60..6be153de7ec3 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-compute.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-compute.rst
@@ -26,10 +26,6 @@ Options
 
 .. include:: opts/common.rst
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Files
 =====
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-conductor.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-conductor.rst
index 3020250e3987..114208b312e9 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-conductor.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-conductor.rst
@@ -24,10 +24,6 @@ Options
 
 .. include:: opts/common.rst
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Files
 =====
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-novncproxy.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-novncproxy.rst
index f2df84e2ccae..2b73d1909525 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-novncproxy.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-novncproxy.rst
@@ -72,10 +72,6 @@ Options
     path to a PEM file containing the private key which the VNC proxy server
     presents to the compute node during VNC authentication.
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Files
 =====
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-policy.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-policy.rst
index 480c3b2d983f..a15efeee07a5 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-policy.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-policy.rst
@@ -43,10 +43,6 @@ Options
 
     Defaults to ``$OS_USER_ID``.
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Commands
 ========
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-scheduler.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-scheduler.rst
index dd5cd468725e..647c26d1f923 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-scheduler.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-scheduler.rst
@@ -25,10 +25,6 @@ Options
 
 .. include:: opts/common.rst
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Files
 =====
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-serialproxy.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-serialproxy.rst
index f362b1b951ec..30b25f4c71da 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-serialproxy.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-serialproxy.rst
@@ -45,10 +45,6 @@ Options
     this port number for incoming connection requests to instances which expose
     serial console.
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Files
 =====
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/nova-spicehtml5proxy.rst b/doc/source/cli/nova-spicehtml5proxy.rst
index 65173c8d336c..70857278077b 100644
--- a/doc/source/cli/nova-spicehtml5proxy.rst
+++ b/doc/source/cli/nova-spicehtml5proxy.rst
@@ -46,10 +46,6 @@ Options
     in ``nova.conf``.  The ``nova-spicehtml5proxy`` service must be listening
     on a port that is accessible from the HTML5 client.
 
-.. rubric:: Debugger options
-
-.. include:: opts/debugger.rst
-
 Files
 =====
 
diff --git a/doc/source/cli/opts/debugger.rst b/doc/source/cli/opts/debugger.rst
deleted file mode 100644
index a0698e0c9799..000000000000
--- a/doc/source/cli/opts/debugger.rst
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,15 +0,0 @@
-.. option:: --remote_debug-host REMOTE_DEBUG_HOST
-
-    Debug host (IP or name) to connect to. This command line parameter is used
-    when you want to connect to a nova service via a debugger running on a
-    different host. Note that using the remote debug option changes how Nova
-    uses the eventlet library to support async IO. This could result in
-    failures that do not occur under normal operation. Use at your own risk.
-
-.. option:: --remote_debug-port REMOTE_DEBUG_PORT
-
-    Debug port to connect to. This command line parameter allows you to specify
-    the port you want to use to connect to a nova service via a debugger
-    running on different host. Note that using the remote debug option changes
-    how Nova uses the eventlet library to support async IO. This could result
-    in failures that do not occur under normal operation. Use at your own risk.
diff --git a/doc/source/contributor/development-environment.rst b/doc/source/contributor/development-environment.rst
index 5e2b4c391332..fc80603319a2 100644
--- a/doc/source/contributor/development-environment.rst
+++ b/doc/source/contributor/development-environment.rst
@@ -179,22 +179,6 @@ As a reminder, the hooks are optional and you are not enforced to run them.
 You can either not install pre-commit or skip the hooks once by using the
 ``--no-verify`` flag on ``git commit``.
 
-Using a remote debugger
-=======================
-
-Some modern IDE such as pycharm (commercial) or Eclipse (open source) support remote debugging.  In order to
-run nova with remote debugging, start the nova process with the following parameters::
-
-    --remote_debug-host <host IP where the debugger is running>
-    --remote_debug-port <port it is listening on>
-
-Before you start your nova process, start the remote debugger using the instructions for that debugger:
-
-* For pycharm - http://blog.jetbrains.com/pycharm/2010/12/python-remote-debug-with-pycharm/
-* For Eclipse - http://pydev.org/manual_adv_remote_debugger.html
-
-More detailed instructions are located here - https://wiki.openstack.org/wiki/Nova/RemoteDebugging
-
 Using fake computes for tests
 =============================
 
diff --git a/nova/cmd/baseproxy.py b/nova/cmd/baseproxy.py
index fdd4f28892b4..9260df832363 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/baseproxy.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/baseproxy.py
@@ -26,16 +26,15 @@ from oslo_reports import opts as gmr_opts
 
 import nova.conf
 from nova.conf import novnc
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova.console import websocketproxy
 from nova import objects
 from nova import version
 
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
+# NOTE this is required ensure CONF.web
+# is registered properly
 novnc.register_cli_opts(CONF)
-
 gmr_opts.set_defaults(CONF)
 objects.register_all()
 
diff --git a/nova/cmd/compute.py b/nova/cmd/compute.py
index 3d68892d805a..58e765667bc6 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/compute.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/compute.py
@@ -29,7 +29,6 @@ from oslo_reports import opts as gmr_opts
 from nova.compute import rpcapi as compute_rpcapi
 from nova.conductor import rpcapi as conductor_rpcapi
 import nova.conf
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova import config
 import nova.db.main.api
 from nova import objects
@@ -39,7 +38,6 @@ from nova import utils
 from nova import version
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 
 
 def main():
diff --git a/nova/cmd/conductor.py b/nova/cmd/conductor.py
index f7ae1f6b8f8f..16847c2e5610 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/conductor.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/conductor.py
@@ -23,14 +23,12 @@ from oslo_reports import opts as gmr_opts
 
 from nova.conductor import rpcapi
 import nova.conf
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova import config
 from nova import objects
 from nova import service
 from nova import version
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 
 
 def main():
diff --git a/nova/cmd/novncproxy.py b/nova/cmd/novncproxy.py
index 36635f77d973..7d4234ad10f1 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/novncproxy.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/novncproxy.py
@@ -23,14 +23,12 @@ import sys
 
 from nova.cmd import baseproxy
 import nova.conf
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova.conf import vnc
 from nova import config
 from nova.console.securityproxy import rfb
 
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 vnc.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 
 
diff --git a/nova/cmd/scheduler.py b/nova/cmd/scheduler.py
index 8b9892d7424e..5c72a19bc575 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/scheduler.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/scheduler.py
@@ -24,7 +24,6 @@ from oslo_reports import guru_meditation_report as gmr
 from oslo_reports import opts as gmr_opts
 
 import nova.conf
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova import config
 from nova import objects
 from nova.scheduler import rpcapi
@@ -32,7 +31,6 @@ from nova import service
 from nova import version
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 
 
 def main():
diff --git a/nova/cmd/serialproxy.py b/nova/cmd/serialproxy.py
index 49d402d6df2e..8b93abf2eefa 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/serialproxy.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/serialproxy.py
@@ -21,13 +21,11 @@ import sys
 
 from nova.cmd import baseproxy
 import nova.conf
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova.conf import serial_console as serial
 from nova import config
 
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 serial.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 
 
diff --git a/nova/cmd/spicehtml5proxy.py b/nova/cmd/spicehtml5proxy.py
index c2a6926cc786..1365215be5d8 100644
--- a/nova/cmd/spicehtml5proxy.py
+++ b/nova/cmd/spicehtml5proxy.py
@@ -22,13 +22,11 @@ import sys
 
 from nova.cmd import baseproxy
 import nova.conf
-from nova.conf import remote_debug
 from nova.conf import spice
 from nova import config
 
 
 CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-remote_debug.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 spice.register_cli_opts(CONF)
 
 
diff --git a/nova/conf/remote_debug.py b/nova/conf/remote_debug.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 4dea3f5944ea..000000000000
--- a/nova/conf/remote_debug.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,71 +0,0 @@
-# Copyright (c) 2016 Intel, Inc.
-# Copyright (c) 2013 OpenStack Foundation
-# All Rights Reserved.
-#
-#    Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may
-#    not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain
-#    a copy of the License at
-#
-#         http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
-#
-#    Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
-#    distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT
-#    WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the
-#    License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations
-#    under the License.
-
-from oslo_config import cfg
-
-debugger_group = cfg.OptGroup('remote_debug',
-    title='debugger options')
-
-CLI_OPTS = [
-    cfg.HostAddressOpt('host',
-        help="""
-Debug host (IP or name) to connect to.
-
-This command line parameter is used when you want to connect to a nova service
-via a debugger running on a different host.
-
-Note that using the remote debug option changes how nova uses the eventlet
-library to support async IO. This could result in failures that do not occur
-under normal operation. Use at your own risk.
-
-Possible Values:
-
-* IP address of a remote host as a command line parameter to a nova service.
-  For example::
-
-    nova-compute --config-file /etc/nova/nova.conf \
-      --remote_debug-host <IP address of the debugger>
-"""),
-    cfg.PortOpt('port',
-        help="""
-Debug port to connect to.
-
-This command line parameter allows you to specify the port you want to use to
-connect to a nova service via a debugger running on different host.
-
-Note that using the remote debug option changes how nova uses the eventlet
-library to support async IO. This could result in failures that do not occur
-under normal operation. Use at your own risk.
-
-Possible Values:
-
-* Port number you want to use as a command line parameter to a nova service.
-  For example::
-
-    nova-compute --config-file /etc/nova/nova.conf \
-      --remote_debug-host <IP address of the debugger> \
-      --remote_debug-port <port debugger is listening on>.
-"""),
-]
-
-
-def register_cli_opts(conf):
-    conf.register_group(debugger_group)
-    conf.register_cli_opts(CLI_OPTS, group=debugger_group)
-
-
-def list_opts():
-    return {debugger_group: CLI_OPTS}
diff --git a/nova/debugger.py b/nova/debugger.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 6e52e712eb3e..000000000000
--- a/nova/debugger.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,60 +0,0 @@
-# Copyright 2010 United States Government as represented by the
-# Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
-# Copyright 2011 Justin Santa Barbara
-# All Rights Reserved.
-#
-#    Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may
-#    not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain
-#    a copy of the License at
-#
-#         http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
-#
-#    Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
-#    distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT
-#    WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the
-#    License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations
-#    under the License.
-
-# NOTE(markmc): this is imported before monkey patching in nova.cmd
-# so we avoid extra imports here
-
-import sys
-
-
-def enabled():
-    return ('--remote_debug-host' in sys.argv and
-            '--remote_debug-port' in sys.argv)
-
-
-def init():
-    import nova.conf
-    CONF = nova.conf.CONF
-
-    # NOTE(markmc): gracefully handle the CLI options not being registered
-    if 'remote_debug' not in CONF:
-        return
-
-    if not (CONF.remote_debug.host and CONF.remote_debug.port):
-        return
-
-    from oslo_log import log as logging
-    LOG = logging.getLogger(__name__)
-
-    LOG.debug('Listening on %(host)s:%(port)s for debug connection',
-              {'host': CONF.remote_debug.host,
-               'port': CONF.remote_debug.port})
-
-    try:
-        from pydev import pydevd
-    except ImportError:
-        import pydevd
-
-    pydevd.settrace(host=CONF.remote_debug.host,
-                    port=CONF.remote_debug.port,
-                    stdoutToServer=False,
-                    stderrToServer=False)
-
-    LOG.warning('WARNING: Using the remote debug option changes how '
-                'Nova uses the eventlet library to support async IO. This '
-                'could result in failures that do not occur under normal '
-                'operation. Use at your own risk.')
diff --git a/nova/monkey_patch.py b/nova/monkey_patch.py
index 1dea5f9360ec..27171a42f044 100644
--- a/nova/monkey_patch.py
+++ b/nova/monkey_patch.py
@@ -30,10 +30,6 @@ def _monkey_patch():
     import eventlet
     import sys
 
-    # NOTE(mdbooth): Imports only sys (2019-01-30). Other modules imported at
-    # runtime on execution of debugger.init().
-    from nova import debugger
-
     # Note any modules with known monkey-patching issues which have been
     # imported before monkey patching.
     # urllib3: https://bugs.launchpad.net/nova/+bug/1808951
@@ -41,11 +37,7 @@ def _monkey_patch():
     problems = (set(['urllib3', 'oslo_context.context']) &
                 set(sys.modules.keys()))
 
-    if debugger.enabled():
-        # turn off thread patching to enable the remote debugger
-        eventlet.monkey_patch(thread=False)
-    else:
-        eventlet.monkey_patch()
+    eventlet.monkey_patch()
 
     # NOTE(mdbooth): Log here instead of earlier to avoid loading oslo logging
     # before monkey patching.
diff --git a/nova/service.py b/nova/service.py
index 2a8d8e9cb325..ed54f7a55233 100644
--- a/nova/service.py
+++ b/nova/service.py
@@ -31,7 +31,6 @@ from nova import baserpc
 from nova import conductor
 import nova.conf
 from nova import context
-from nova import debugger
 from nova import exception
 from nova.i18n import _
 from nova import objects
@@ -243,8 +242,6 @@ class Service(service.Service):
         if periodic_fuzzy_delay is None:
             periodic_fuzzy_delay = CONF.periodic_fuzzy_delay
 
-        debugger.init()
-
         service_obj = cls(host, binary, topic, manager,
                           report_interval=report_interval,
                           periodic_enable=periodic_enable,
diff --git a/releasenotes/notes/remote-debugger-removal-07e26d43c561d495.yaml b/releasenotes/notes/remote-debugger-removal-07e26d43c561d495.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..bbd0940d6d09
--- /dev/null
+++ b/releasenotes/notes/remote-debugger-removal-07e26d43c561d495.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+---
+upgrade:
+  - |
+    The remote debugger has been removed from the codebase. If you were using
+    it, you will need to find an alternative solution. The remote debugger was
+    un-maintained and was first introduced in the early days of OpenStack when
+    we used python 2.7. While it was useful at the time, it has not been
+    maintained and updated to work with new versions of python and eventlet.
+    As a result it is being removed until we complete the eventlet removal.
\ No newline at end of file