diff --git a/docs/sphinx/hxtool.py b/docs/sphinx/hxtool.py
index 3729084a36c..a84723be19e 100644
--- a/docs/sphinx/hxtool.py
+++ b/docs/sphinx/hxtool.py
@@ -24,16 +24,10 @@
 from docutils.statemachine import ViewList
 from docutils.parsers.rst import directives, Directive
 from sphinx.errors import ExtensionError
+from sphinx.util.docutils import switch_source_input
 from sphinx.util.nodes import nested_parse_with_titles
 import sphinx
 
-# Sphinx up to 1.6 uses AutodocReporter; 1.7 and later
-# use switch_source_input. Check borrowed from kerneldoc.py.
-Use_SSI = sphinx.__version__[:3] >= '1.7'
-if Use_SSI:
-    from sphinx.util.docutils import switch_source_input
-else:
-    from sphinx.ext.autodoc import AutodocReporter
 
 __version__ = '1.0'
 
@@ -185,16 +179,9 @@ def run(self):
     # of title_styles and section_level that kerneldoc.py does,
     # because nested_parse_with_titles() does that for us.
     def do_parse(self, result, node):
-        if Use_SSI:
-            with switch_source_input(self.state, result):
-                nested_parse_with_titles(self.state, result, node)
-        else:
-            save = self.state.memo.reporter
-            self.state.memo.reporter = AutodocReporter(result, self.state.memo.reporter)
-            try:
-                nested_parse_with_titles(self.state, result, node)
-            finally:
-                self.state.memo.reporter = save
+        with switch_source_input(self.state, result):
+            nested_parse_with_titles(self.state, result, node)
+
 
 def setup(app):
     """ Register hxtool-doc directive with Sphinx"""
diff --git a/docs/sphinx/kerneldoc.py b/docs/sphinx/kerneldoc.py
index 72c403a7379..3aa972f2e89 100644
--- a/docs/sphinx/kerneldoc.py
+++ b/docs/sphinx/kerneldoc.py
@@ -38,20 +38,14 @@
 from docutils.statemachine import ViewList
 from docutils.parsers.rst import directives, Directive
 
-#
-# AutodocReporter is only good up to Sphinx 1.7
-#
 import sphinx
+from sphinx.util import logging
+from sphinx.util.docutils import switch_source_input
 
-Use_SSI = sphinx.__version__[:3] >= '1.7'
-if Use_SSI:
-    from sphinx.util.docutils import switch_source_input
-else:
-    from sphinx.ext.autodoc import AutodocReporter
-
-import kernellog
 
 __version__  = '1.0'
+logger = logging.getLogger('kerneldoc')
+
 
 class KernelDocDirective(Directive):
     """Extract kernel-doc comments from the specified file"""
@@ -111,8 +105,7 @@ def run(self):
         cmd += [filename]
 
         try:
-            kernellog.verbose(env.app,
-                              'calling kernel-doc \'%s\'' % (" ".join(cmd)))
+            logger.verbose('calling kernel-doc \'%s\'' % (" ".join(cmd)))
 
             p = subprocess.Popen(cmd, stdout=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.PIPE)
             out, err = p.communicate()
@@ -122,8 +115,10 @@ def run(self):
             if p.returncode != 0:
                 sys.stderr.write(err)
 
-                kernellog.warn(env.app,
-                               'kernel-doc \'%s\' failed with return code %d' % (" ".join(cmd), p.returncode))
+                logger.warning(
+                    'kernel-doc \'%s\' failed with return code %d' %
+                    (" ".join(cmd), p.returncode)
+                )
                 return [nodes.error(None, nodes.paragraph(text = "kernel-doc missing"))]
             elif env.config.kerneldoc_verbosity > 0:
                 sys.stderr.write(err)
@@ -149,22 +144,13 @@ def run(self):
             return node.children
 
         except Exception as e:  # pylint: disable=W0703
-            kernellog.warn(env.app, 'kernel-doc \'%s\' processing failed with: %s' %
+            logger.warning('kernel-doc \'%s\' processing failed with: %s' %
                            (" ".join(cmd), str(e)))
             return [nodes.error(None, nodes.paragraph(text = "kernel-doc missing"))]
 
     def do_parse(self, result, node):
-        if Use_SSI:
-            with switch_source_input(self.state, result):
-                self.state.nested_parse(result, 0, node, match_titles=1)
-        else:
-            save = self.state.memo.title_styles, self.state.memo.section_level, self.state.memo.reporter
-            self.state.memo.reporter = AutodocReporter(result, self.state.memo.reporter)
-            self.state.memo.title_styles, self.state.memo.section_level = [], 0
-            try:
-                self.state.nested_parse(result, 0, node, match_titles=1)
-            finally:
-                self.state.memo.title_styles, self.state.memo.section_level, self.state.memo.reporter = save
+        with switch_source_input(self.state, result):
+            self.state.nested_parse(result, 0, node, match_titles=1)
 
 
 def setup(app):
diff --git a/docs/sphinx/kernellog.py b/docs/sphinx/kernellog.py
deleted file mode 100644
index af924f51a7d..00000000000
--- a/docs/sphinx/kernellog.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,28 +0,0 @@
-# SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0
-#
-# Sphinx has deprecated its older logging interface, but the replacement
-# only goes back to 1.6.  So here's a wrapper layer to keep around for
-# as long as we support 1.4.
-#
-import sphinx
-
-if sphinx.__version__[:3] >= '1.6':
-    UseLogging = True
-    from sphinx.util import logging
-    logger = logging.getLogger('kerneldoc')
-else:
-    UseLogging = False
-
-def warn(app, message):
-    if UseLogging:
-        logger.warning(message)
-    else:
-        app.warn(message)
-
-def verbose(app, message):
-    if UseLogging:
-        logger.verbose(message)
-    else:
-        app.verbose(message)
-
-
diff --git a/docs/sphinx/qapidoc.py b/docs/sphinx/qapidoc.py
index 2b06750a3cd..62b39833ca0 100644
--- a/docs/sphinx/qapidoc.py
+++ b/docs/sphinx/qapidoc.py
@@ -35,22 +35,11 @@
 from qapi.gen import QAPISchemaVisitor
 from qapi.schema import QAPISchema
 
-import sphinx
 from sphinx.errors import ExtensionError
+from sphinx.util.docutils import switch_source_input
 from sphinx.util.nodes import nested_parse_with_titles
 
 
-# Sphinx up to 1.6 uses AutodocReporter; 1.7 and later
-# use switch_source_input. Check borrowed from kerneldoc.py.
-USE_SSI = sphinx.__version__[:3] >= "1.7"
-if USE_SSI:
-    from sphinx.util.docutils import switch_source_input
-else:
-    from sphinx.ext.autodoc import (  # pylint: disable=no-name-in-module
-        AutodocReporter,
-    )
-
-
 __version__ = "1.0"
 
 
@@ -539,24 +528,8 @@ def do_parse(self, rstlist, node):
         subheadings (titles) without confusing the rendering of
         anything else.
         """
-        # This is from kerneldoc.py -- it works around an API change in
-        # Sphinx between 1.6 and 1.7. Unlike kerneldoc.py, we use
-        # sphinx.util.nodes.nested_parse_with_titles() rather than the
-        # plain self.state.nested_parse(), and so we can drop the saving
-        # of title_styles and section_level that kerneldoc.py does,
-        # because nested_parse_with_titles() does that for us.
-        if USE_SSI:
-            with switch_source_input(self.state, rstlist):
-                nested_parse_with_titles(self.state, rstlist, node)
-        else:
-            save = self.state.memo.reporter
-            self.state.memo.reporter = AutodocReporter(
-                rstlist, self.state.memo.reporter
-            )
-            try:
-                nested_parse_with_titles(self.state, rstlist, node)
-            finally:
-                self.state.memo.reporter = save
+        with switch_source_input(self.state, rstlist):
+            nested_parse_with_titles(self.state, rstlist, node)
 
 
 def setup(app):
