If you have a WordPress website, you are familiar with emails and notices like this...
... which express the need for updates, either to WordPress itself, or one of the plug-ins you are using.
It looks as simple as clicking a button, and you may be tempted to do it - after all, why would they encourage you to do it if it wasn't safe?
STOP NOW! Step Away from your Keyboard!
This is why you are paying Acorn for WordPress hosting! We do these updates for you, we maintain the backups, and we repair any miss-matches that might occur from the update and any of the plug-ins that you are using on your website. This is your WordPress monthly fee at work. Currently, Mark Kolb (who also happens to be co-owner of Acorn), is doing all of these updates for you. Every night your database and files are backed up. More important is the work Mark does to make sure that any new updates DO NOT break your site because of compatibility issues with your current set of plug-ins. Fairly often the updates (both WordPress and the plug-ins) have issues. When they do, Mark finds a new option to keep the site running well and with the same features. Occasionally he will have to roll back to another version of a plug-in. There are varying degrees of how a website can be affected by an update. Sometimes is minor, and not visible to the naked eye, such as your caching is now not working properly, and sometimes it is major, where the whole site is visually broken. All of that careful updating and testing ensures that your site will continue to work, be visible on the internet, and not lose any content.
WARNING E-MAILS can be Scary Too!
Subject: WordPress X.X.X is available. Please update!
Please update your site at http://www.your-url.com to WordPress X.X.X.
We tried but were unable to update your site automatically. Updating is easy and only takes a few moments: http://www.your-url.com/wp-admin/update-core.php
If you experience any issues or need support, the volunteers in the WordPress.org support forums may be able to help. https://wordpress.org/support/
Keeping your site updated is important for security. It also makes the internet a safer place for you and your readers.
The WordPress Team
Again - we are handling it for you. You may just delete these emails. We get them too.
WordPress Updates (when poorly executed) CAN Be Harmful To Your (Site's) Health
Of course, this work all takes time, and seeing that invitation to update can cause site owners to have itchy fingers. Just sit on them - don't touch! Lisa made an apt comparison (movie buff that she is) - it's like when Belloq opened the Ark of the Covenant in Raiders of the Lost Ark - his face melted off and that was the end of Belloq! It's not quite that dramatic if you update your site, but it can cause your site to break and not work properly.
If you click to Update and it Breaks your Website, Time and Money will be LOST!
Because you can't let your best marketing tool be offline, or not work, the site has to be restored. This can become expensive, because now Mark has to not only update the site, he also has to determine what caused the site to break, and make those repairs. This can take hours - which is costing you money twice - as potential guests can't access your site, and you are paying Acorn to fix the site if you break it with an update you perform.
PLEASE! Just Let Us Do the Work For You
The very cool thing is that all of that stress and frustration is easily avoided by not touching those buttons. Rest assured that when you get a notification, we do too, and your site will be updated.
