Do you know how often you need to update WordPress plugins? You should check for updates regularly, especially for security reasons. Outdated plugins (as well as WordPress themes and versions) make your site vulnerable to hackers. Even deactivating plugins without uninstalling them can harm your site.
A potential problem and challenge for website owners and those using a test version of WordPress for development is making sure they install or update their WordPress plugins effectively.
Developers update their plugins at different times on their own schedule. Below are a few tools and tips to help you install and manage your WordPress site (s).
Note. Before updating any plugins, themes or WP versions on your websites, you should always create a backup. If something goes wrong with the update, you can restore the old working version.
Use regularly maintained plug-ins
As mentioned above, plugins are updated for many reasons, including to make them compatible with the latest version of WordPress. When plugins are not supported, they are more likely to malfunction or even break your site.
Some developers create plugins as a side project, or when setting up WordPress on a domain, they refuse it for various reasons.
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When choosing a plug-in, select one that:
- was developed by a well-known developer.
- Updated regularly for at least the last six months. Since there are so many plugins available, if you are using one that is not supported, look for another one. According to WordPress.org, there are 54,882 plugins. Finding one that supports what you need or desire doesn’t have to be too difficult.
Use a premium plugin whenever possible, rather than a free one.
Manage multiple websites from one place with ManageWP
If you manage multiple websites, logging in, logging out, and maintaining them can be cumbersome.
With ManageWP, you have access to a single dashboard for all your sites.
Installation is easy
Simple installation
First, create an account at ManageWP.com Start adding your sites. This is it. It is so simple.
ManageWP is free forever for unlimited sites. The premium version provides additional features.
Simplify your workflow
Simplify your workflow
Instead of logging in and out of the WP sites you manage, all data from your sites is collected in one dashboard using ManageWP.
You no longer have to use password managers and bookmarks. Once you’ve added all your sites to your dashboard, you can access them with one simple click.
Perform Bulk Actions
Execute Bulk Actions
See all available plugins, WP versions, and theme updates in one place. Select or deselect the updates you want to enable with one click.
Track your sites
Track your locations
Log into your ManageWP dashboard to monitor all your sites at once. Check quickly to see if something is wrong and you should be able to fix it.
Cloud Backup
Cloud Backup
Additional valuable Manage WP features are available in the free version. Some of them are:
- Cloud Backup
- Professional Customer Reporting
- Secure Updates
- Google Analytics Integration
Check out everything you need to automate your workflow for a complete list of all features, including premium.
Associated Auto Update
It’s not always easy to remember to check your WP plugins, especially if you’re hosting multiple websites.
Auto-update companion allows you to automatically update all your plugins (as well as themes and WP versions, if you choose) via customization options.
Install plugin
- In your WordPress dashboard, go to the Plugins section.
- Click Add. In the upper right corner, search for “Companion Auto Update”.
Install the Plugin
- From your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins .
- Click Add New . In the upper right, search for Auto-update accompanying .
Notice in the screenshot above:
- The number of currently active installations.
- User rating.
- Date of last update.
- Compatible with your WP version
If you see a plugin that has few installs, few stars, hasn’t been updated recently, and is incompatible with your version of WordPress, don’t use it.
- Click the Install button Click the Now button and then Activate when the installation is complete. The plugin you just installed can be found in the Tools menu and then Auto Update.
With this plugin, you can select or deselect the components that you want to update.
You have complete control through the settings. You can also choose if and how you want to be notified when:
- an update is available.
- Plugin updated.
- WordPress has been updated to a newer version.
The default schedule settings are set to run twice a day. You can change these settings to whatever you want.
For example, you can choose a time when your server is less active to avoid overloading.
Companion Auto Update is a useful plugin that gives you complete control over which updates to run and when.
Easy Update Manager
If you need a powerful plugin that will allow you to manage WordPress updates for one or more sites, you can use Easy Updates Manager.
Some of the features of the free version include:
- Configure automatic update settings.
- Enable selected automatic updates with one click.
- Configure email notification settings.
Easy Installation
- In the WP admin panel, go to the Plugins section and click Add New Plugin.
- Enter Easy Updates Manager in the search bar.
Easy Installation
- From the WP Admin Control Panel, go to Plugins and click Add New Plugin .
- Type Easy Updates Manager into the search bar.
- Click Install and then Activate Plugin. To configure the plugin, find the Update Options in your admin area.
- To configure the plugin, go to the control panel and select “Update options”.
What does Easy Updates Manager do?
What does Easy Updates Manager do?
With this plugin you can keep your sites up to date and error free. The extensive customization options give you complete control over when to run which updates.
Both free and advanced versions of the plugin allow users to:
- choose what to update (plugins, themes, WP versions).
- view update logs.
- Debug and rollback sites to an older version that works.
Visit the official site to learn more about the free and premium versions of Easy Updates Manager.
Use the built-in update system in WordPress
WordPress automatically checks your sites for updates and shows you in the dashboard when updates are available. Using an embedded system is an easy way to keep your site up to date and also keep your WordPress database clean
- You can also view details of what needs to be updated by clicking Updates in the left navigation pane.
- To install updates, go to the plugins page in your dashboard and view the notifications under each plugin for which an update is available.
Manually Bulk Update
To update multiple plugins at the same time, go to the Plugins section and click the Update Available link.
You will now see a list of all plugins that have updates. Check the box next to Select All, choose Update from the drop-down menu, and click Apply. However, this is not recommended. It’s best to update plugins one at a time so that if a problem occurs, you know which plugin caused it.
The manual process isn’t ideal if you’re managing multiple sites. You will need to log into each website and manage updates. For those of you looking to make it easier to install and manage plugins for multiple sites, it’s best to use one of the above WordPress plugins.
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