4 How to upgrade WordPress securely

Essentials of Upgrading WordPress

The biggest scariest thing about upgrading is when all hell breaks loose. Pieces of the site fall out of the sky and nothing is ever the same again. Unfortunately I’m not really exaggerating all that much. Some of you know exactly what I’m talking about. It is not pretty when the source of our livelihood goes down and you have no idea how to fix it!

That is exactly why we’re featuring this security week on WordPress Barista. This week is to help prevent huge fails like the above. First, backup.

Now – upgrade. I know it’s scary, and yes sometimes the bad stuff does happen.

But if you delay upgrading, more bad stuff is likely to happen – like sending porn to your grandmother who reads your blog.

1. It should be repeated: you backed up, right?
2. Upgrade your plugins first. All of them.
3. Clear the cache. Click around – everything good?
4. Upgrade your framework, if upgrades are available. (If you don’t have a child theme, you may not want to upgrade – see this post on Frameworks & Child Theme FAQs.)
5. Clear the cache, click around – look ok?
6. Upgrade WordPress. Press the button. I’m right here. You can do it!! (Here’s my toll free number: (844) 972-9997 But I charge double on weekends so… you know… weekends are good. haha)
7. Clear the cache.

Not too hairy, right?

For all things good and right, do it. Upgrades are not optional. Unless you enjoy redirecting your readers to performance enhancement products.