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Wordpress Experts please can you help.

by Alfred Shelver
16 replies
I have been helping my Father in law with a website of his for sometime it is www.juniorshelver.com the designer that did it made a whole bunch of graphics and unique scripts to run certain design features.

He has now told us we cannot update our version of wordpress at all as it will effect the scripts and break the website.

This worries me as by all accounts not updating wordpress is a security risk, and how long can one have a non updated wordpress site before it starts effecting plug ins and not being able to have the latest plug ins on my site.

Any advice, thanks
#experts #wordpress
  • Profile picture of the author IMBT
    Nice looking site by the way.

    You can run for a while without updating WP but there can be security risks depending on what the WP update is for. You can look at the WP update when it's released and see what the changes were for.

    When you do update you can test what plug ins fail and see if you can
    find alternative plugins you may be able to use.

    Normally most plugins don't fail with every new WP release it just depends
    on what the update was for.

    Hope this helps
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  • Profile picture of the author Evan-M
    Originally Posted by Cathy Shelver View Post

    I have been helping my Father in law with a website of his for sometime it is www.juniorshelver.com the designer that did it made a whole bunch of graphics and unique scripts to run certain design features.

    He has now told us we cannot update our version of wordpress at all as it will effect the scripts and break the website.

    This worries me as by all accounts not updating wordpress is a security risk, and how long can one have a non updated wordpress site before it starts effecting plug ins and not being able to have the latest plug ins on my site.

    Any advice, thanks
    he is more than likely using links/calls, that may change when WordPress updates,

    in that case the scripts would have to be modified to work with the latest version. its usually only a matter of changing a few lines of code.
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    • Profile picture of the author TSDMike
      The designer had to have known this is bound to happen. Theme creators occasionally have to release updated versions to keep up with the changes to the Wordpress platform. This is common knowledge.

      He's not obligated to do this free of charge, but I can't imagine there is a lot of work involved to make the necessary modifications.

      If he is unwilling/unable to support the theme that he sold you, then he's a pretty poor business person and you should find yourself another designer who's not going to bail on you when you need him most.
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    • Profile picture of the author kentaiwan98
      Actually, you can pretty much figure this out by making a backup of your blog, using a subdomain, and copy of your database.

      Then you can test updates without breaking the main blog. At least you will know what works or doesn't work with each update.

      See if that works.
      Kenneth
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  • Profile picture of the author Abhik
    I can see it's running on version 3.0 which is NOT the latest.

    You can make a test upgrade to see if everything is working in latest.
    To do so, download the blog folder and database and install it in your local machine. Then proceed with the upgrade in local machine.

    IMO, there will be no problem as there are no significant changes in codes since 3.0.
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  • Profile picture of the author sbucciarel
    Banned
    I have blogs (all my demos) that have not been upgraded and they are fine. How many plugins does a blog need? Plugins slow blogs down. Keep what you got and don't upgrade the plugins that you like.

    Beautiful site. Do a complete file and database backup regularly. If anything happens, it's up and running again in minutes.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alfred Shelver
    Thanks everyone some great ideas... My frustration I guess is that all the designer is saying don't upgrade it will break offering no solutions. We loved the work done but now it feels like more hassle than it may be worth. What if he dies or we lose contact.. this site is doing very well already with an Alexa ranking heading under 1 million I just want to know we have a sustainable branded website.

    Thanks again for your comments guys.

    The one thing though is I have a few WP sites and have never as yet backed up and transfered etc any of them so this will be a good learning exercise for me.
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    • Profile picture of the author iamsuneel
      Originally Posted by Cathy Shelver View Post

      What if he dies or we lose contact...


      Very good analogy there.

      There are possible solutions for this problem of yours.

      1. Put an 'Under Construction" or "Maintenance Mode" page and upgrade to check how it affects the blog's look and feel.

      2. Install the best security WP plugins and change the wp-admin link which you use to access the admin section of the page so that it would be hard for malicious coders to enter your site. Just make it something random like, warrior-on-wp, wp-warrior, ugh, cant loose 'Warrior' from my mind these days.

      3. Do not upgrade at all. There would be no problem until and unless someone breaks loose. Use wp plugins to backup your DB on a regular basis and send them to your mail.

      4. Hire a wordpress coder who can help you out.

      Yes, they are the only viable options as far as I am aware of.

      If you need any help regarding WordPress blogs, you can give me a ping. I had been living with them for the past 3 years and I consider that I know inside out. If not, I can point you in the right direction.
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  • Profile picture of the author espradley
    Thats emerging technology though. It's always going to be this way...where software, themes, and stuff get old and aren't used anymore.

    The biggest concern is security. Alot of WP updates are heavy on closing exploits that people have found with older WP versions. Point is, you have no choice to to upgrade or someone will eventually hack you.

    It's a cost that you have to assume really or you have to change themes. Any WP programmer can fix up your theme for you... It's just gonna cost money.

    If this guy isn't willing to take money to fix it up...then yea, boo to him... but he shouldn't do it free...since he cannot control how fast the web industry moves...
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    • Profile picture of the author Exfilius
      You should be fine with 3.0, because 3.0.1 fixed only minor bugs not security holes.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alfred Shelver
    Can I then ask what is the oldest version of WP that you currently know of housing a successful blog.

    I do feel better though with many of your replies. It felt very end of the worldy when I first heard, because I believed that WP's security is only as good as the update and I was about to be hacked any minute.
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  • Profile picture of the author oneplusone
    I have nothing to add to the discussion (I'm not a Wordpress expert) but the portfolio on Junior Shelver is incredible.
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    'If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint and that voice will be silenced.' Vincent Van Gogh.
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    • Profile picture of the author Alfred Shelver
      Thanks it is one of the reasons I really want to insure the best security and functionality on the site .... we have done well in a short time to rank the site and get good traffic etc... but don't want lose that because I did not think ahead.

      Originally Posted by oneplusone View Post

      I have nothing to add to the discussion (I'm not a Wordpress expert) but the portfolio on Junior Shelver is incredible.
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  • Profile picture of the author iamsuneel
    Cathy, stop worrying and start building the site more formidably.

    You need to be scared of getting hacked or bruised in the long term only when you attract more competition and high earning capability.

    That's because I have seen several individuals(read, cheap scared humans who can't take competition in a sportive manner) who ask sites to be hacked and posts to be deleted on a regular basis.

    By then, I think you might have moved from sticking to the same wordpress version.

    PS: The moment you start earning considerably(read, >$100/month), its the right time to upgrade and secure the site and please, never advertise the revenues that you earn.
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  • Profile picture of the author Istvan Horvath
    A good lesson for the future: when ordering a custom theme - make sure you include a term like "not touching the core files + compatibility with future WP upgrades".

    During the history of WP there were versions that had instantly serious security holes... and there were others that could run for years without any big issues. I did have some of the good 2.x.x versions running for long, long time on some blogs. (But you have to keep it running with older plugins; compatible with your WP version - don't update the plugins, either!)

    Your guy may be a good graphic designer but must be a crappy coder if a WP upgrade would ruin his work... Be aware of such "experts" and avoid them by all means! (Once I had a client with a 3 years old blog that he couldn't do anything with it because some smarta$$ coders from India modified the core files and then disappeared. When his WP was finally upgraded we had to re-create a lot of functionality with proper WP tools, plus a new theme... and it cost him thousands)
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    • Profile picture of the author Alfred Shelver
      Istvan , Sir thank you

      When the scenario played it self out the other day and the designer said "NEVER UPGRADE" and he and I had our argument, my first thought was WWID (What Would Istvan Do)

      I will be paraphrasing many of these replies and sitting with him and pointing them out .... I want to insure in 5 years we still have a fully functional site , not just a good looking one.

      Everyone has been great thank you .... And those of you that have not seen Istvan's constant help on this forum with WP do your self a favor and check it out He is a No BS tell it like it is WP genius IMHO.



      Originally Posted by Istvan Horvath View Post

      A good lesson for the future: when ordering a custom theme - make sure you include a term like "not touching the core files + compatibility with future WP upgrades".

      During the history of WP there were versions that had instantly serious security holes... and there were others that could run for years without any big issues. I did have some of the good 2.x.x versions running for long, long time on some blogs. (But you have to keep it running with older plugins; compatible with your WP version - don't update the plugins, either!)

      Your guy may be a good graphic designer but must be a crappy coder if a WP upgrade would ruin his work... Be aware of such "experts" and avoid them by all means! (Once I had a client with a 3 years old blog that he couldn't do anything with it because some smarta$$ coders from India modified the core files and then disappeared. When his WP was finally upgraded we had to re-create a lot of functionality with proper WP tools, plus a new theme... and it cost him thousands)
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