If I don't Update My Wordpress Sites What Will Happen ..?

What will happen? Probably nothing. What might happen? Your sites might be hacked. It really depends on the reason for the new version. If it is a security release you are better off upgrading. You might get away with going a few point releases before upgrading. I'd try to keep up with the reasons for the upgrades though.

The sky will fall on your head ...

No, just kidding. Initially nothing will happen but, over time, you might expose your site to security flaws/vulnerabilities.

You do not have to update immediately on each new release, unless it's a security patch or there's another good reason to.

On the other hand, it's really very easy to upgrade WordPress - much easier than a lot of other content management systems out there - so there really isn't a good reason to complain.

Have you thought about using the multi-site feature of WordPress to run all your sites with one installation? It can be a bit of a PITA to setup but would save you a lot of time in the long run.

True, some plugins do not maintain their settings on update, and there may be conflicts with a new WP version, but my experience is that is the exception, rather than the rule.

I, also, have many WP sites to update, but usually do it piecemeal and not all at once. I update the plugins of one site, to see if there are any issues and then move on to other sites.

When I update plugins for the first time, I make sure I have a backup, then have the following backend pages open in different browser tabs: Widgets, the settings page(s) of the plugin(s) to be updated, and the site's front page. That way, I can see if the plugin's settings were maintained after updating, or there are any issues. I also have the old settings in case I have to manually insert them after the update.

Sometimes, there may be plugins that I do not update, or do not want to update - I just make a mental note of those. For example, atm I am not updating the GD Pages Navigator and Sociable plugins on some of my sites, because the update of the former doesn't work so well as the "old version" IMHO, and the latter requires new settings, and I do not have the time to do it for each site right now.

Like everyone else said, probably nothing. But I have had my Wordpress site hacked before, and let me tell you, unless you've set up daily backups to your server, you would much rather just update than having to go through the process to restore everything, and still not have it be totally just like it used to be.

Updates fix security vulnerabilities and add features. While the latter there might not be nearly as important to you, the first one is. Now you don't exactly have to update the day a new update comes out. A few weeks at a time probably isn't going to kill you, but its just a matter of who's trying (god forbid) to hack you. It might take them an hour to figure out your running outdated software, or it might take 6 months. Also, to throw into the mix, most patches for Wordpress only fix small bugs. Every since WP3.0, the odds of having your whole site compromised is slim already, hell, I'm not sure if there are any vulnerabilities for 3.0+ that can actually do real harm, not just useless crap.

It is probably best to have good backup, and be ready to restore site. Also there are services that will check are these sites live and notify you if they are not. Now when you do have all this prepared, you do not have to upgrade at all Really. Then, when you are making modification on some site, upgrade all plugins and WP and make sure you check that everything is working properly. Backup again.

If you don't update WordPress, and if they have any backlinks or ranking, they will eventually get hacked.

They may either remain up with embedded links to bad neighbourhoods (splogs, gambling, porn) or malware (which will see it removed from Google Chrome & Firefox), or just your content deleted.

I recommend updating as much as you can - prioritise the sites with most traffic and rankings.

One tip: avoid plugin salad. Then you get dependent on them every time you need to update the core.

Other tip: always keep your WP installs updated. Better safe then sorry.

Well I hate doing HTML, but at least with HTML websites I don't need to worry about new updates all the time. Yes, WP is easy and convienient to use, but it also comes with constant updates that sap my time, and time is money.
I understand about the security issues, but when you have 50+ WP websites like I have, it's quite a big time consuming job keeping the Theme and Plug-ins all updated.

Hey Zoro,

the reasons for upgrading ahve been explained several times here, so all I have to add is: You can make your life easier and use a solution like this:

WordPress Multiple Blogs Manager – ManageWP.com

(no affiliate link), which I use myself, or I would get crazy updating 300+ websites.


@Mal: You should not hijack threads with your questions, but open a new thread for your question.

To answer it: as long as your active theme is not twentyten or -11, you're safe to either update, delete or leave them (though it's recommended to keep a standard theme as a "fallback" theme). If they are not active, your site isn't using them, so no harm will be done.

Cheers,
Rob

Wasn't there a WSO for a plugin or software that would update all your blogs at once, not all that long ago?

Hello Zoro, It is always safe to update your wordpress sites otherwise the backlinks which your site have are eventually hacked.