Joomla - 1.0 - 1.5 - 1.6? What to expect?

Written by Sudhi | 10 September 2009

The article content is extracted from the detailed discussion on the Joomla Professional Users Group on Linkedin. Original link can be followed at http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestionAndAnswers=&gid=52867&discussionID=6695209&goback=.anh_52867

Thoughts -- Author: Richard Barton

Upgrade Joomla! from 1.0 to 1.5 (I think!)

I'm currently running a previous version of Joomla! on my site and it seems to be fine, got a couple of 'issues' with the Simple Machines discussion board bridge but otehrwise it is sound. Thing is I installed 1.5 on a new server and it appears to be a much better interface from an admin point of view and things seem to work better - although admittedly I've not tried to bridge Simple Machines board to this new version. I'm wanting to do an update on my existing older Joomla! site to the newer Joomla! version - I'm concerned that if I do this, my extensions will stop working - is there anyway I can check that if I do the update, the system will ensure I'm running the appropriate extensions, etc? This is what is stopping me from updating as it was my first attempt with Joomla! and it was pretty much trial and error so things are probably not done properly...my site gets a fair amount of traffic so I'm not keen on doing the update and it fails and I'm then left with no site for a few days as I try to fix it. Very sorry if this is not the right place to post this query.

Response - Author: Andy Wallace

Whilst it is not essential to upgrade to 1.5 there are a number of factors to consider:

1. J1.0.12 is not the correct stable release to currently have running this should be 1.0.15 and your system is vulnerable if you do not upgrade asap. With this done if J1.0.15 provides you with the requirements you need then immediate change is not necessary - however read on...

2. Official support for the 1.0.x series ended on 22nd July 2009. This means that there will be no more releases - bug fixes - security releases and therefore again your site will be vulnerable.

3. If you want to take advantage of the wealth of new and updated extensions and functionaliity of Joomla! 1.5 it is better to MIGRATE sooner rather than later. BEFORE undertaking any migration work make sure you fully backup your web site files as well as the database and keep these copies secure. Note the use of the word MIGRATION and not UPDATING to 1.5 - there is signifgicant change between the two and accordingly there is a significant process to be followed using an additional Migration Component to enable this.

4. There will be no official tool released to enable migration from 1.0x direct to the soon to be released 1.6.x series. Therefore it would be better to Migrate to 1.5 now and get your site stablised with new extensions etc, rather than have to do the migration to 1.5.x and then the update to 1.6.x when it is released as stable at the same time.

5. As has been suggested elsewhere the strongest recommendation alongside ensuring backups is to run the migration on a test site BEFORE touching the live site. Make notes all the way through to record problems you encounter and the exact steps you take - it will make it easier when you come to do it for real.

6. The move from 1.5.x to 1.6.x will be an UPDATE/UPGRADE and not a MIGRATION; it will encompass a script to update the database along with the additional changes to the file system which whilst substantial are no where near as significant as the jump from 1.0 to 1.5.

7. Unless you are developing for 1.6.x or choose to run 1.6 Beta/RC's in a sandbox (testign) environment you should wait until 1.6.x stable is released before updating and or using the 1.6 series on a live site and then solely on the understanding that there may be problems with the software until it is released stable. Sign up to the announcements forum and the e-mails from Community for release information. Note the best estimate for a stable release of 1.6.x is Beta1 2weeks then 6 weeks to Beta 2 then 6 weeks to RC1 and 6 weeks to RC2 then 6 weeks to 1.6.1 stable. 26 weeks total. This is using the estimates indicated by the development team for the likely stages and time gaps between each . However as has already been shown with Beta 1 - its release is now at least 6 weeks behind original schedule due to real life issues of the developers (earning money, family, living!!) so the time line suggested above could be way out and does not take account of additional RC levels which may be required. Remember 1.5 took at least 2 years to be released from Alpha! So get your pieces of string ready to work out how long a piece of string actually is ;)

Migration Guide - http://docs.joomla.org/Migrating_from_1.0.x_to_1.5_Stable provides details and links to Migrator

Response:Kevin B Robbins

While I think security and flexibility of Joomla 1.0 vs 1.5 is a factor in the reasons to migrate, I think what fails to be mentioned is some of the things that I feel Richard is looking for and should be considered prior to any migration of a Joomla public site:

1) Template – You would need either create/modify a 1.5 template to look like your existing site or change the entire look of your website.

2) Content migration – Regardless of whether you do it through the db or not, there will inevitably be a bunch of content migration and/or review that content for integrity.

3) Modules / Components / Plugins – All of the modules/mambots that you have on your current site would need to be replaced and reconfigured.

4) Components – Any components that have db tables in the database would need to be migrated, you would need to do an audit of your site to make sure that there are 1.5 versions for everything you are currently using. If there are not 1.5 compatible versions of these, you’re going to have to either find a replacement and migrate the data by hand or live without it.

5) URL’s – Menu items and urls are handled differently and it’s going to cause a spike in 404 errors that you will need to account for. Regardless of whether you are using SEF or not, I can guarantee that you will see this.

6) Similarly, links to pages on your site from other sites – you should make sure you account for this or just rip the band-aid off and deal with it when it comes about.

7) SEO – As I mentioned, you’ll most likely see a hit in your search engine ranking for the first 3 months after the migration. After 3 months most of your old indexed pages in Google should be flushed out and you will begin to reap the rewards of the migration.

8) Training – a move to 1.5 means that you would need to be trained on new processes and interface so that you don’t make the same mistakes you may have made with Joomla 1.0. Obviously, the goal is to minimize the impact of the migration to your business, your current users and potential users. Joomla 1.5 is powerful and has a lot to offer - I’m a big fan – but a proper migration takes a lot of planning and a lot of time.

Author: Richard Barton

Thanks for the comments Kevin - that was the kind of 'serious' news I was needing to know. I've started having a look at the migration last night...very basic stuff just now, just making sure I have everything I need to do the migration - I think I might try installing a 1.5 instance on a dev site, porting the content across to a new database and try to get the new site up and working, then once happy, I'll 'just drop' that into the 'live' environment! The site is a hobby site so isn't quite as serious as a commercial making-money and paying customers site but at the same time, it is used by about 500 people daily so there needs to be a degree of seriousness and planning involved to make sure these people are not troubled by it all.

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