Drupal update via fantastico - is it safe?

[garrido]

I am a couple of versions behind on my drupal installation, because it says there I shouldn't upgrade if I have installed languages, mods, themes, etc. I can hardly imagine someone having a site without any of these things...

So is it safe for me to do an automatic upgrade? If not, how should I handle this?

[Brandon]

Actually, in case that you have modified any of the Drupal main files, as index.php or the languages, it's not safe to perform the upgrade.

However, the automatic update creates a backup of the present Drupal installation, which can be further restored, if the things go faulty.

Our Support team is very experienced in all Drupal maintenance procedures, as well as in upgrades, so you can always rely on them and benefit from our Exclussive services.

[garrido]

Thank you Brandon, but you forgot to mention I had to pay USD30 to have the backup restored You did mention "Exclusive services", but how should I know I would have to pay more for it... Now I have attempted the upgrade, and it did fail. This is the first time siteground support has let me down, if you had warned me it was a paid service I might have left things as they were.

[garrido]

Ok, I have managed to restore the backup, but I am still using the older version. Seeing as there are a number of security fixes on newer versions of web software such as drupal, and that a breach in one site could potentially affect all the 163 hosted on the same server (is that number right?), perhaps siteground might reconsider this policy, as it is in fact a risk to all users if one single installation is left outdated. Users should be encouraged to upgrade their installations, not charged to do it

[Silvia]

Hello,

I see there has been some misunderstanding about the Application upgrade procedure at SiteGround and I would like to clear out this procedure in connection with this case.

First of all I would like to say that SiteGround strongly encourages all customers to keep their applications up to date at any time and thus reduce the risk of any bug or security wholes. However, it is the customer’s OWN responsibility to keep the software uploaded on his/her account up to date and SiteGround has no liability and it is practically impossible to take care of application upgrades.

Second, there are several possible ways to go about an application upgrade. As open source applications like Drupal, are third party software SiteGround cannot guarantee it flawless upgrade for any for these options. However, there are different levels of risk depending on the upgrade option chosen by the customer:

1. Fantastico upgrades option. If the Customer chooses to upgrade an application through Fantastico, no particular effort is needed and no additional fees are paid. However, there is a certain risk for upgrade failure.

2. Manual application upgrade by the customer. This option requires considerably more effort than the Fantastico upgrade, and its outcome depends on the level of expertise of the customer.

3. Professional upgrade by SiteGround. This option requires no efforts on the customer side but is paid as the SiteGround support team should invest time in performing this service, and this service is not a direct hosting related issue. The risk for unsuccessful upgrade is at its lowest possible with this option.

The price of the Professional upgrade depends on the effort need to be performed. If the upgrade is requested after one unsuccessful attempt by the customer the support team member would need to extract back up versions apart from the usual upgrade procedure and this will raise the price.

[garrido]

Brandon, Silvia, and siteground team:

Thank you for your clear explanation of upgrade procedures. As a suggestion, maybe this procedure (including the fact that you may have to pay for extra help) should be exlpained in the fantastico screen right before you click on "Upgrade"?

I understand your position, and I understand that indeed it would be impossible to handle all upgrades on all your servers... Indeed, I believe no hosting provider does this, so certainly siteground is not at fault here. Perhaps the only mistake here is really only not making this clearer to people before they attempt to upgrade. And, perhaps, help people willing to upgrade by themselves by providing _some_ assistance in case of a failure, free of charge.

I also would like to make it clear that this episode in no way tarnishes my impression of siteground as a great hosting provider, and I will still recommend it to everyone who asks me about hosting. Thought I'd say this for the benefit of prospective customers reading the forums...

[nunovo]

Originally Posted by garrido

... Thought I'd say this for the benefit of prospective customers reading the forums...

That would be me, then. And I do appreciate this kind of thread, as it shows both customers and Siteground Staff at their best. I agree that it would be very helpful if major instances of a possibly fatal change were pre-pended with a list of the available support options.

I too have an out-of-date Drupal installation and am wondering what to do with it as a prospective SiteGround customer. After reading this thread am thinking I should forget about transferring that website and just start over with the newest version. This is partly because I am still not clear on what levels of support I can obtain from staff.

It does seem that Support Options should have its own link on the Siteground footer, along with all those others. A section on the Links page would also be good.

[Silvia]

Hello,

Let me try to clarify our upgrade procedures a bit more.

If you have a website created with an application from Fantastico and this application has not been modded in any way, you can safely upgrade the application using Fantastico. In this case, the upgrade is performed on your end and there will be no charge. However, if you have installed any modules on your website and try to upgrade the application through Fanatastico, you will most probably get errors. In such cases, we advise our customers to make backup of their website so that no matter what happens, the website will not be lost. In case the application is modded, you may consult with a professional and order an upgrade (with or without ordering a backup of the website) and this is when a customer is charged additional fee. Any customer that has performed an upgrade through Fantastico, on his own, will not be charged.