A backup before a core update you start
Start a core update from the dashboard and the backup is part of the job: a new one, or the most recent if you took one within the hour. If neither is possible, the update does not start.
Feature
Automatic updates, with a way back
WordPress minor and security releases install themselves, and plugins and themes update on the switches you set. A core update you start from the dashboard takes a new or recent backup first, checks the site still answers, and attempts a restore from that backup if it does not.
At a glance
- You choose the core policy
- A failed dashboard update gets a restore attempt
- Themes too, on the same terms
- You can see what happened
Per plugin, not all or nothing
Automatic updates on for the twelve plugins you trust and off for the one that breaks the checkout every March. It is a switch per plugin and per theme, not one setting for the whole site.
Not a paid add-on
Plugin auto-updates are something this market has learned to charge for, usually as the reason to be one plan higher. Here it is a checkbox, on every Pressy.
The specifics
- You choose the core policy
- Minor and security releases only, or major releases as well. Minor and security updates are always on, and WordPress applies them on its own schedule. Major versions wait for you unless you say otherwise. The choice sits on the same screen as the version you are on.
- A failed dashboard update gets a restore attempt
- If the site stops answering after a core update you started, we attempt to restore the backup we took. When that restore lands, you get an email saying which version you are back on. A release WordPress installed on its own does not run through this job. Your backups are still one click from a restore.
- Themes too, on the same terms
- Per theme, on or off, with the same list showing you what is out of date right now.
- You can see what happened
- An activity feed of what was actually updated and when, in your own timezone, rather than a spinner that ended and a site that feels different.
The questions people ask
Do you charge extra for plugin auto-updates?
No. They are included on every Pressy, and there is no plan above yours that unlocks them.
What if an update breaks my site?
For a core update you start from the dashboard, a backup is taken first and we attempt a restore if the site stops answering. For a release WordPress installed itself, restore any backup from the dashboard; it is free and takes no argument. For plugins, switch automatic updates off for the one that gives you trouble and leave the rest running.
Can I turn automatic updates off entirely?
Plugins and themes, yes: each has its own switch. WordPress core always stays on minor and security releases, and you choose whether major versions install on their own or wait for you.
The other five
The rest of what people switch for. The whole list is on the features page.
The boring job, done without you
Automatic releases, per-item switches, the backup before a core update you start and the restore attempt after a failed one are all included, at every size.