WORDPRESS AUTOMATIC UPDATES WITH SAFEUPADTES ON CLOUDWAYS

WordPress Automatic Updates is one unique feature that ensures optimal performance and security of your WordPress website. It helps you maintain and improve website security, fix bugs, patch vulnerabilities, and improve performance. When WordPress updates are applied manually, it takes a lot of time and resources and requires some technical knowledge. WordPress automatic updates bring a lot of solutions to the challenges of having your WordPress core, plugins, themes, and translation files up to date at all times.

In this article, we shall have a holistic look at WordPress Automatic Updates, how to enable it, and the easy, safe and efficient approach to WordPress Automatic Updates with a plugin called SafeUpdates.

Click here to claim your exclusive offer to SafeUpdates on the Cloudways hosting platform.

DOES WORDPRESS HAVE AUTOMATIC UPDATES?

Yes, WordPress does have automatic updates. In the past, WordPress users needed to randomly check for updates from time to time as there was nothing like WordPress Automatic Updates. However, in 2013, the WordPress 3.7 version was released with a feature called "Automatic Background Updates. This feature allows WordPress to automatically update itself for minor releases like security and maintenance updates without manual intervention from the web admin. They help to keep your WordPress website secure and up-to-date with the latest bug fixes and security patches.

There are four main types of WordPress Automatic Updates.

1. Core Updates: Contains the core WordPress files.
2. Plugin Updates: Contains fixes, improvements, and new features for plugins.
3. Theme Updates: Contains Updates related to your WordPress themes.
4. Translation file updates: Contains language packs which are added to and improved via translation updates.

The Core Updates are subdivided into three types:

• Development updates: These updates are specifically for development versions of WordPress.
• Minor core releases:  These are a bunch of bug fixes for maintenance and security updates
• Major core releases: These are feature additions, improvements to existing features, and much more

WordPress Automatic Updates are enabled by default for all minor releases. They do not apply to the major releases as the major releases and updates to plugins and themes still require manual initiation from the web admin. Development updates are never used on live websites but for testing the upcoming releases of WordPress. It's a good practice to keep your WordPress core, plugins, and themes up to date to ensure the security and stability of your website.

HOW OFTEN DOES WORDPRESS AUTOMATIC UPDATES OCCUR?

WordPress automatic updates for minor releases, which include security and maintenance updates, occur more frequently. The frequency of automatic updates for minor releases can vary, but you can generally expect them to happen several times throughout the year. WordPress follows a regular release schedule, aiming to release three major updates per year, along with multiple minor updates in between. These minor updates often include security patches, bug fixes, and maintenance improvements. Automatic updates for these minor releases are typically triggered after the new version becomes available.

 It's necessary to keep an eye on your WordPress dashboard and ensure you're regularly checking for updates. Ensure your website, themes, and plugins are constantly updated to enjoy new features and fixes. SafeUpdates on Cloudways makes it easy to schedule WordPress Updates to run automatically anytime they're available. With SafeUpdates, you can schedule automatic updates during off-peak hours to minimize the impact on your website's availability and reduce the risk of downtime or interruptions that may likely occur.

IS IT ADVISABLE TO ENABLE WORDPRESS AUTOMATIC UPDATES?

Enabling WordPress Automatic Updates is a convenient way of ensuring your website stays up-to-date with security patches and bug fixes. It's a good idea, as automatic updates for minor releases (security and maintenance updates) help to significantly reduce the risk of security vulnerabilities and maintain your website stability without requiring constant manual intervention.

 Here are some considerations to help you make an informed decision.

Security: Automatic updates can help keep your WordPress installation, themes, and plugins secure by quickly addressing known vulnerabilities and applying security patches.

Convenience: You don't need to manually initiate updates, which can save you time and ensure your website is regularly updated.

Stability: Automatic updates often include bug fixes and performance improvements that can improve the overall stability and performance of your website.

 With SafeUpdates, you do not need to worry about compatibility issues with your themes or plugins, backup to revert to in case an update causes problems, or control over changes made to your website. SafeUpdates creates staging environments that allow testing updates to identify any issues or conflicts that may arise and resolve them before applying them to your website. It provides automated backup solutions you can revert to if you wish to mitigate any potential problem from automatic updates.

Click here to learn more about what makes SafeUpdates a better option for WordPress Automatic Updates.

HOW DO I ENABLE AND MANAGE WORDPRESS AUTOMATIC UPDATES?

There are several ways to enable and manage WordPress automatic updates, but we shall cover four easy methods that most professionals prefer.

Method 1: Using WordPress Dashboard

WordPress offers an in-built feature that allows you to enable and manage automatic updates from the WP-admin dashboard. Minor updates (security and maintenance releases) are enabled by default. So, here's how you enable updates for major releases. 

Go to your WordPress Dashboard > Updates. 

Here you will see the Core, Plugin, and Theme updates.

*Click on the Switch to automatic updates for maintenance and security releases only link to enable major updates.

* When you switch to automatic updates, you'll receive a message that WordPress will only receive automatic security and maintenance releases from now on.

*Then click the Enable automatic updates for all new versions of the WordPress link, and you'll see a message notifying you that automatic updates for all WordPress versions have been enabled, as shown in the image below.

Method 2: Using the wp-config.php File

The second method of managing automatic WordPress updates is setting constants in the wp-config file. You must be extra careful and correctly include the line of code. A single character missing by accident can cause your website to crash, and you won’t know what went wrong. I’ll use the FileZilla FTP Client to access the wp-config.php file in the core WordPress files. To do this, follow the steps below:

 * Access your WordPress site’s files via FileZilla.

*Open the public_html folder.

* Click on the wp-config.php file.

Download the wp-config.php file and add the following code just before the / That’s all, stop editing! Happy blogging. */ line. 

define (‘WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE', true); 

*Save the changes and rewrite or upload the wp-config.php file in the publich_html folder to enable the auto updates. 

A word of caution: The wp-config.php file is among your website’s primary and critical core files containing database connections and passwords. It connects your website to the database and manages user password security. Be careful when making changes here.

Method 3: Using API Filters 

The third method of enabling WordPress automatic updates that is really flexible and useful for developers is via API filters. There are several filters that WordPress provides to let users control updates. 

API filters allow you to manipulate variables in a specific command to fine-tune the details of how you want to execute the automatic updates. You can automate the core, plugins, themes, and translation file by returning true, through the auto_update_core, auto_update_theme, auto_update_plugin, and auto_update_translation filters. 

The best practice for using these filters is to add them to the must-use plugin folder. To do this, you create a filter and place it in the mu-plugins folder in the wp-content directory. The must-use plugins are automatically enabled by WordPress. These plugins do not appear in the WordPress Plugins Screen, so they cannot be accidentally disabled or removed by the site admin. Do not put filters in the wp-config file, as it interferes with the load order in WordPress. 

Here are some filters you can use to enable and manage WordPress automatic updates.

To disable all automatic updates.

add_filter( 'automatic_updater_disabled', '__return_true' );

To update the core of your WordPress.

add_filter (‘auto_update_core', '__return_true’);

To allow the automatic WordPress plugin updates.

add_filter (‘auto_update_plugin', '__return_true’);

To allow the automatic WordPress theme updates.

add_filter (‘auto_update_theme', '__return_true’);

Method 4: Using Plugins 

There are many WordPress plugins available to enable auto-updates on your WordPress website. Plugins like Auto Updater, Easy Update Manager, Companion, Updater, and more can help you customize your automatic update settings. Easy Updates Manager is one of the most popular WordPress auto-update plugins. It also has a free version that covers all the basics. Installing and configuring the Easy Updates Manager plugin is easy. Let’s explore and see how it works.

1. Access your WordPress Dashboard and go to Plugins.

2. Find Easy Updates Manager using the search bar.

3. Install and Activate the plugin.

4. Go to Updated Options and configure your preferred settings.

Easy Updates Manager has customizable settings that allow you to disable and enable WordPress core, theme, and plugin updates, configure email notification settings, and do many more with one click.

MANAGING WORDPRESS AUTOMATIC UPDATES USING THE SAFEUPDATES PLUGIN

The SafeUpdates plugin offers a better approach to WordPress Automatic Updates that requires zero attention and performs updates without risks or errors. It streamlines the maintenance process, which allows detecting, testing, and deploying updates without hassles. 

It is a revolutionary feature available on Cloudways for as low as $2/month per application. The SafeUpdates is on Cloudways, an efficient WordPress hosting platform that allows you to manage and schedule automatic updates with zero effort. Access to this plugin is exclusive to subscribers of the Cloudways hosting platform. 

How Does SafeUpdates Work?

SafeUpdates actively monitors your WordPress application to detect, test, and install updates automatically. Once there are pending updates, it takes the following steps to execute the updates, ensuring they're safe, secure, and bug-free: 

1. It takes a backup of your application, so it can always roll back if the updates are aborted.
2. It creates a staging application temporarily and first carries out the updates in the staging environment.
3. It takes a snapshot and record of your staging environment and performs unit testing to ensure the application works fine.
4. It executes all selected updates in the staging environment.

 Once it completes the updates, SafeUpdates takes a snapshot and performs unit testing. It tests for performance, WordPress updates, HTML, browser console, and network errors and compares the before and after screenshots using proprietary Visual Regression Testing (VRT) algorithms. Once it runs a successful testing process, SafeUpdates updates the production application. If an error occurs after the live application is updated, SafeUpdates will roll back changes and restore your application to its previous working state.

 Why Use SafeUpdates?

• SafeUpdates offers a unique and better approach to WordPress updates. Such approach includes:
• Streamlines and automates WordPress maintenance and updates, saving you from the hassles of manual updates.
• Provides automated backup solutions for rolling back and mitigating any issues or unexpected problems during updates.
• Creates staging environments for testing and identifying issues or conflicts before applying updates.
• Implements several security measures to protect your websites from vulnerabilities and potential threats.
• Incorporates server-level caching mechanisms to mitigate potential issues and improve website performance.

 Click on this link to find out how to Activate and Configure SafeUpdates

 What are the Benefits of Using SafeUpdates?

1. Saves Time: With SafeUpdates, you will save a lot of time updating your WordPress website, as manual updates can be time-consuming. Automatic updates with SafeUpdates save time by eliminating the need to manually check and apply updates on your WordPress site one after the other. Businesses that manage multiple WordPress installations and frequently check for new updates and releases can save hours using SafeUpdates.
2.  Simplifies Maintenance: SafeUpdates streamlines the maintenance process for your WordPress website. It allows you to bring in more WordPress website maintenance clients. You can combine SafeUpdates with team collaboration tools for monitoring, staging, and streamlining your WordPress updates. It is an efficient automation tool with powerful features to help your operations, WordPress maintenance tasks, and other important website management activities.
3. Enhances Security: SafeUpdates helps keep your WordPress installation, themes, and plugins secure. It detects, tests, and deploys automatic updates that ensure your WordPress website is up-to-date with the latest security patches and bug fixes. With SafeUpdates, you never need to worry about outdated WordPress versions, themes, and plugins, as it quickly addresses known vulnerabilities that hackers can exploit. It applies security patches that might leave your websites vulnerable.
4. Improves Performance: Automatic updates with SafeUpdates will improve your WordPress performance, functionality, and speed. It helps to promptly address issues, enhance stability, and optimize the performance of your website. With SafeUpdates, you can always keep your WordPress website up-to-date automatically. It allows you to incorporate advanced tools and specific technology to boost your WordPress website’s performance so you can focus more on business growth.
5. Improves User Experience: WordPress automatic updates will help you stay up-to-date with the latest features that benefit your website's users. SafeUpdates delivers Updated plugins and themes with new features, improved functionality, and enhanced user interfaces. With SafeUpdates, you are sure of regular updates for an improved and better user experience for your website visitors. 
6. Compatibility: Automatic updates with SafeUpdates will ensure compatibility between your WordPress website themes and plugins, as WordPress updates frequently introduce new features and functionalities. SafeUpdates thoroughly test updates on a temporary staging environment to detect and fix compatibility issues. It ensures your website remains compatible with the latest WordPress version for a smooth and functioning website.
7. Reduces Downtime and Interruptions: SafeUpdates allows you to schedule updates during off-peak hours to minimize the impact on your website's availability. It has many flexible features that help to reduce the risk of downtime or interruptions that may likely occur whenever an update is available.
8. Gives You Peace of Mind: SafeUpdates allows you to automate WordPress updates with confidence that your website is safe and secure. With SafeUpdates, you enjoy peace of mind knowing that your website is regularly updated and secured. You can leverage its testing algorithms to protect your website against security threats. It keeps your website safe and reduces the risk of data breaches and other security issues

CONCLUSION

WordPress regularly release updates for cores, plugins, themes, and translation files to ensure the security and stability of your website. These updates are critical to your website's security and performance. SafeUpdates offers a better approach to WordPress Automatic Updates that help you save time and costs. It is affordable, fast, automated, and secure. Save yourself the hassles of manually updating your WordPress website with SafeUpdates. Leverage its features to improve and maximize the functioning and performance of WordPress and Woocommerce websites. SafeUpdates has unique features that allow you to incorporate advanced tools for protection against security threats in the broader web ecosystem.