I recently got into an interesting debate with one of my LinkedIn connections about whether or not we should keep WordPress sites up to date. Good points were made, disagreements were expressed, and in the end, I think we left it as:
“It’s up to the developer to decide what updates are right for the client’s site and understand the risks associated should they choose not to update.
So long as the developer is not only aware of those risks, but can take responsibility for the consequences should there ever be any, and they make the client aware of the risks as well – then to each their own.”
Although we didn’t totally agree in the end, having this discussion with John ( Let’s pretend his name is John ) really got my thinking gears turning. John had one very good point. What about sites that haven’t been updated for several years and are still somehow functioning? Updating a site like that would surely unleash all manner of hell!
So I thought, hey, I should write about that, how to update WordPress without chaos ensuing! And it gives me an excuse to use a witty title – hurray!
Anyway, in cases like John’s, or just in general, what steps should be taken to ensure that as little hell as possible happens? How do you know how much or how little preparation you should be making? And if heaven forbid, bad things happen after your update, how do these steps help to either resolve the problem or revert the site?
And as an added bonus, if all hell breaks loose after a WordPress update, how can we troubleshoot and survive the catastrophe?! Gear up and let’s get started!
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