Magento, Ecommerce Development Company in Kochi, Kerala, India

Why You Need to Update the PHP Version of Your Website?

PHP is utilized on more than 78.9% of all websites. The year 2020 will be notable for PHP. On November 26, 2020, the much-anticipated PHP 8 was released, introducing several breaking changes from prior versions. PHP 7.4 is the most recent stable version. It’s the last version before PHP 8 and was released on November 28, 2019.

Even though PHP 5.6, 7.0, 7.1, and 7.2 are no longer officially supported, many websites still use them. It’s been the most recent and exciting development in the PHP business for quite some time. Although it is currently supported by many PHP-based frameworks and content management systems (CMS), it is not supported by all. However, it is now time to modify the concept.

1. Why the update is important?

Top web hosting companies including SiteGround, Bluehost, and Hostwinds have already notified their clients that as of June 21, 2021, they would begin phasing out PHP 7.2, 7.1, 7.0, 5.6, and lower on their servers.

This is necessary since all PHP versions below 7.4 are no longer supported in terms of security, and utilizing such a version puts your site and servers in danger. The web hosting companies will begin upgrading sites utilizing previous PHP versions to the new default version – PHP 7.4, and PHP 7.4 below versions will no longer be accessible for use on these servers by December 31, 2021.

This update, not only will improve your site’s efficiency, but it will also make it more secure against security flaws discovered in older versions of PHP. Before you upgrade your site, ensure sure it’s compatible with the PHP version you wish to use and that you have a backup.

2. How will your website be affected when PHP is updated?

That depends on how you’ve built your website. If your site is created with HTML, like Website Builder, then the PHP update has no effect at all.

If your site is created with PHP and the code is compatible with the new PHP version, your website will function the same or better. If you use a CMS like WordPress, you can probably notice some improvements in performance, provided you have updated WordPress to the latest version.

If you use code that is outdated and not supported in the new version of PHP, then your site will give errors and may stop working altogether. For example, if you haven’t updated your CMS to the latest version, or if your website uses custom code, for which an update isn’t readily available. In that case, you need to update the code to make it compatible.

If you suspect that your site contains outdated code, it’s very important that you take the time to update your site, before older PHP versions are removed from your servers. It’s easier to fix things, if your site is still working, and you are able to switch between older PHP versions.

3. What are the risks if you don’t update?

If you host your E-commerce site on a web server that doesn’t support PHP 7.4, your site’s security could be jeopardized at any time. As a result, you won’t be able to ensure that your information is secure. Nobody can guarantee that your website will not be hacked.

It’s also crucial — else, your site’s speed won’t improve. The truth is that using the most recent PHP versions will significantly speed up your site.
When it comes to a WordPress site, many free and paid plug-ins are using, so, a single line of faulty code can create an error. The first step is to rule out the possibility that the problem is caused by a plug-in or theme. To accomplish this, deactivate all of your WordPress plug-ins and switch to the default WordPress theme.
The vast majority of Magento websites in the world are still using an unsupported PHP version. If you are using anything older than version 7.4, you are probably missing out on some performance gains. But, more crucially, you are putting your website at risk of potential security flaws.

4. What are the benefits of updating?

Better security – The most obvious reason to update is security. Newer versions are better at countering hackers, for example, because deprecated (outdated) code is no longer supported.

Faster websites – Newer PHP versions are faster. PHP 7.4 is significantly faster than the previous versions, and with faster execution times and less memory usage, especially WordPress sites will benefit.

New features and improvements – As with all updates, a newer version includes new features and improvements on how to do things, for example, preloading.

If you require any additional information or support, please do not hesitate to contact us. As the best web development company in Kochi, we can assist you in resolving this issue.