A Step By Step Guide For Manually Updating Your Wordpress

by 20 replies
24
One of the things I noticed while working with clients on their Wordpress blogs is that many don't know how to update their Wordpress manually. In most cases you can do it through your hosting (if you used Fantastico to install your blog) or through your wp-admin, but if you have an older version you might not have these options. So I thought, why not share the steps with you, in case you might need it.

1) First of all, make sure that your hosting company has all the minimum requirements for the latest WP version. You can check the requirements here: WordPress › About Requirements At this time you need PHP version 4.3 or higher and MySQL 4.1.2 or higher.

2) Make sure you have a backup of your site. Maybe you change your mind after upgrading, or maybe something goes wrong, whatever it is, without a backup you can't go back.

3) Disable all your plugins. It's not a must-do, but sometimes a not-updated plugin can cause a problem after the update.

4) Download the latest Wordpress zip file here: WordPress › Download and unpack it on your computer

5) Through your FTP you need to delete the wp-includes and wp-admin folders on your webhost.

6) Upload the new WP files to your webhost, overwriting the old files. You will need to replace every file with the new ones, including the ones in the root directory (your wp-config file will be safe). Be careful when you come to copying the wp-content directory. You should make sure that you only copy the files from this directory, rather than replacing your existing wp-content directory. This is where your themes and plugins live, so you will want to keep theme. If you have customized the default or classic themes without renaming them, make sure not to overwrite those files, otherwise you will lose your changes. (Though you might want to compare them for new features or fixes..)

7) Then, open the wp-config-sample.php file and see if there are new settings you want to add to your own wp-config.php

8) Go to your wp-admin (yourdomain.com/wp-admin) and login. If a database upgrade is needed it will be detected by Wordpress and you will get a link to do that. Follow the link and the instructions you get.

9) Enable your plugins again and see if everything is working like it should.

10) Done.

Really, it's very easy once you get over the fear of messing something up. With a backup in place you can't lose your site, so there's no reason not to update your Wordpress when you only have the manual option available.

Take care,

Leslie
#main internet marketing discussion forum #guide #manually #step #updating #wordpress
  • THANK YOU!

    Leslie, that's awesome. I know as a marketer I'm somehow supposed to know this stuff. But to be honest, I've always been more comfortable with HTML. Yes, WP is somewhat of a mystery to me.



    Thanks for laying everything out in an easy-to-follow manner.

    Much appreciated, and...

    All the best,
    Michael
  • Thank for the step-by-step, Leslie. I'm saving this one because I get asked and I didn't have a clue (I love fantastico...lol).

    Do you mind if I save this with my WarriorPDF to give to people who ask?

    Tina
  • Michael, let me say that html is a mystery to me. I'll teach you WP, you teach me html, sounds good?

    Tina, no I don't mind you using it. That's what it's here for

    Leslie
  • Great information! I am this person you are talking about! This will really help me out.
    Dawn
  • Glad that you can use it, Dawn. It's really pretty easy, just make sure you have the backup ready

    Leslie
  • Oh gosh I can't find that thanks button

    Great post,

    I guess we need to know about all this stuff just in case fantastico doesn't work
  • Leslie,

    Thank you very much. I really needed this information. You have made, what I considered to be complex look easy.

    All the best,
    Adam
  • Wow, Leslie! Nice share! You could easily have put this together in an ebook and charged us money to learn it, but you gave it away.

    Awesome Warrior spirit! I wish the "Thanks" button was back.

    John
  • Adam: A lot of people think that it's complex to install or update wordpress manually, but it's actually quite easy as you can see. Plus, it's also the more safe route to go.

    John: I'll remind you when the thanks-button is back

    Leslie
  • Leslie,

    Your right about the fear thing stopping me from doing an update. I have a huge phobia about trying to do anything that requires me getting into the "techcie" end of my blogs.

    Thanks for the WP Update install info. You have given me the extra little shove I need to update one of my blogs. But when I screw it up, you can bet I know who too call now.

    Speaking of calling can you bail me out if I do screw it up? I'm serious about that question. I promise I will do a backup, so you will have something to work with.

    Ken Leatherman

    The Old Geezer
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • Ken, as long as you have a full backup of your blog, I'll be there to save your ass if needed, no problem.

    Palitra, it's difficult to say if an update would fix it, without seeing the backend of your blog. What version are you using at the moment?

    Leslie
    • [1] reply
    • Leslie - You are such a great contributor here on the forum and I also know you provide excellent wordpress installation services. We manage a few hundred WP blogs - and yes, central management is the topic of another conversation you and I should have .
      Suffice it to say a couple of fundamental things about upgrading and some great points were already made in the posts here.

      1. I like to automate so I use a backup plugin, a few are available and you can search right within your wp-admin panel in "plugin - add new". I think the top two wordpress.org database backup plugins are wp-backup and db-manager. I'm sure there are more. Those seem to be the most popular. Also if you install a plugin called Automatic, or Wordpress Automatic Upgrade you get a db backup within that plugin as well.

      2. If you don't upgrade via the Automatic plugin and have not used a third party installer to install your original WP blog, AND [a lot of "and-s" ] and you have fantastico and you use cpanel, you simply go to fantastico and click on upgrade and it backups and upgrades wordpress.

      I prefer #2 over #1 but I like the scheduling features of the sql db backup in #1. Also, I mentioned I love automations, so I try to automate the whole process (if you have a lot of blogs) with Edna's DB Manager.
  • Hi Lisa,

    You are correct, there are backup plugins available, I use one of those myself. I use the one called WP-DB-Backup, which sends me a mail every week with the backup files.

    In regards to updating through your wp-admin or fantastico, like I said, in some cases this isn't possible. Especially if you a version that's too old, that's why I started this thread. Another reason why you might want to know how to do it manually is for security reasons. If you can update your wordpress version through your wp-admin or your hosting, you might create security issues which would make it easier for hackers to access your blogs, but that's another discussion Like I said, I mainly started this post for people who waited too long to update their wordpress version and are still stuck with Wordpress 2.3 or something like that. They don't have the automated options available for them.

    Leslie
  • Thanks Leslie for the step by step guide. I've read through a couple of other "how to" articles and they always left me scratching my head.
  • Thanks Leslie and Lisa

    I am a real WP fan but you have both given me great information. I love learning more every day
    • [1] reply
    • You are welcome Sue. There is a long learning curve with wordpress as its features and capabilities are continuously being developed. Good Luck.
  • Mike, most "how to" articles start from the assumption that most people have at least a basic knowledge on how to do manually installation or adaptions to Wordpress. But that's not the case, a lot of people who have installed Wordpress through fantastico but never updated to newer versions are at a loss when their version becomes too old to update automatically. So, with this step by step plan I'm sure everyone should be able to do it.

    Sue, I'm glad you could use the information I gave you. I love WP too (as you might have noticed) and I'm glad it makes me NOT have to learn a lot about html, which I feared when I first heard about internet marketing.

    Leslie
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • Palitra,

    If you want me to take a look at it, you can send me your wp-admin login information via PM. I'll see if I can find a solution for you.

    Leslie
  • Hey Leslie, do you mind if I copy this and send it to my list? (And credit you of course...)

    I've had a couple questions about this very thing that I haven't been able to answer.
  • Sure, no problem Lisa
Join the discussion

Next Topics on Trending Feed

  • 24

    A Step By Step Guide For Manually Updating Your Wordpress

    One of the things I noticed while working with clients on their Wordpress blogs is that many don't know how to update their Wordpress manually. In most cases you can do it through your hosting (if you used Fantastico to install your blog) or through your wp-admin, but if you have an older version you might not have these options. So I thought, why not share the steps with you, in case you might need it. 1) First of all, make sure that your hosting company has all the minimum requirements for the latest WP version. You can check the requirements here: WordPress › About Requirements At this time you need PHP version 4.3 or higher and MySQL 4.1.2 or higher.