The context
Les Jardins d'Emptaz designs, builds and maintains gardens around Molsheim. Its WordPress site already existed, with its service pages, its client reviews and its blog. The problem was invisible to visitors: the site was running on PHP 5, a version that had received no security fixes since the end of 2018.
The request was clear: move to an up-to-date version, without rebuilding the site.
The goals
- Put the site back on a maintained version of PHP, with no rebuild and nothing visible to its visitors
The answer
I moved the site from PHP 5 to PHP 8, in 2022. In practice: updating the plugins that supported it, replacing or fixing whatever stopped working, then checking every page. The site stayed the same for its visitors, with a maintained server behind it.
It was a one-off job, with no maintenance afterwards. The site is still online.
What I delivered
- Moving the server from PHP 5 to PHP 8
- Updating the plugins and fixing whatever stopped working under PHP 8
- Checking the site page by page after the migration
Frequently asked questions
Why change the PHP version if the site works?
Because PHP 5 has had no security fixes since the end of 2018. A site running on it is exposed, and hosting companies eventually pull the plug. Migrating before you are forced to avoids doing it in a hurry.
Does the site have to be rebuilt to migrate?
No. Here the site stayed as it was: theme, content, plugins. The migration means updating what needs updating and fixing what breaks. It is a technical job, not a rebuild.
What does this kind of work cost?
A migration is quoted after an audit of the site: how many plugins, how old the theme is, where it is hosted. Expect a short job, well below the cost of a rebuild.