How to Update WordPress, Plugins and Themes Safely

Updates fix security holes and bugs, so install them promptly. Most updates go smoothly, but a plugin that doesn’t get along with a new version can break your site. A few minutes of preparation means you can undo any problem quickly.

Before you update

1. Check that you have a backup. We keep daily backups of your site for 30 days, and support can restore one if an update goes wrong. Anything added since that backup, such as new orders, would be lost.
2. Make your own copy too, if you can. On Shared Web Hosting, click Files in cPanel’s sidebar, open the Backups tab, and under Individual Components download your Home Directory and your Databases (see how to download a backup). If you see a Backup icon instead, click it. You can also type Backups in cPanel’s search box (Ctrl+K or Cmd+K). If you can’t find it, or you have Managed WordPress Hosting, open a support ticket before a big update and ask about your backup options.
3. For big updates, such as a new major WordPress version or a large theme update, read what’s changed first. For a plugin, go to Plugins and click View version … details under it.
4. Pick a quiet time, when few visitors or orders are coming in.

Run the updates

1. Go to yourdomain.com/wp-admin and log in.
2. Go to Dashboard → Updates.
3. Update plugins: check the plugins you want (or Select All) and click Update Plugins.
4. Update themes. Warning: if you or a developer changed the theme’s own files, the update erases those changes, so if you’re not sure, ask whoever built your site first. Then check the themes and click Update Themes.
5. Update WordPress itself: click Update to version followed by the new version number, at the top of the screen.
6. Wait for each update to report success. Don’t close the tab while updates are running.

How to tell it worked

1. Go back to Dashboard → Updates. It says “You have the latest version of WordPress.” and lists no waiting plugin or theme updates.
2. Open your site in a private browser window and check the home page, a post, your forms and, if you have one, the shop.

Turn on auto-updates

By default, WordPress installs minor and security releases of itself automatically. You choose which plugins and themes update themselves.

1. Go to Plugins. In the Automatic Updates column, click Enable auto-updates for each plugin you trust.
2. To do several at once, check them, choose Enable Auto-updates from the bulk actions menu, and click Apply.
3. For a theme, go to Appearance → Themes, click the theme, and click Enable auto-updates.

Troubleshooting

• “Briefly unavailable for scheduled maintenance. Check back in a minute.” won’t go away: wait 10 minutes; WordPress ends maintenance mode by itself after that. If it stays, remove the .maintenance file. On Managed WordPress Hosting, or if you can’t log in to cPanel or don’t have File Manager, open a support ticket instead.
  1. Log in to cPanel, click Files in the sidebar and open the File Manager tab. (If you see a File Manager icon instead, click it.)
  2. Click the More (⋯) button in the toolbar and select Show hidden files. (If you see a Settings button instead, click it, select Show Hidden Files (dotfiles) and click Save.)
  3. Open public_html, or this site’s own folder if it has one. It’s the folder that contains wp-admin.
  4. Delete is permanent, so check the name first (click Download before deleting if you want a copy). Select only .maintenance, click Delete and confirm.
  5. Reload your site and run the update again.
• A critical error appeared after updating: check your site’s admin email for a WordPress message with a subject that ends “Your Site is Experiencing a Technical Issue”. Use its link to log in and turn off the plugin or theme you just updated. If there’s no email, or that doesn’t fix it, open a support ticket and ask us to restore the backup from before the update.
• Auto-updates never run: they rely on WordPress’s scheduled tasks. Go to Tools → Site Health. If you see A scheduled event has failed, A scheduled event is late or Background updates are not working as expected, open a support ticket and include that message.
• A plugin needs a newer PHP version: open a support ticket and tell us which plugin it is and the PHP version it needs.

Still need help?

Open a support ticket from the Client Portal at my.bluearctic.com. Include your domain, which update you ran and its version numbers, the exact error text, a screenshot and what you already tried. Never include your password.