Introduction

Usually aimed at improving security and enhancing performance, newer versions of technologies bring about changes and fixes based on the loopholes of the previous versions. Through this blog, we shall look at the steps to upgrade Magento 2 to its latest version, 2.4.4.

Before we dive into the process, let’s understand the fundamental need for a technological update and the seven areas where Magento 2.4.4 comes across as a massive and substantial release.

About Magento 2.4.4 Update

The core purpose of every version update is to improve security and performance with additional changes like infrastructure upgrades, code enhancements, and the introduction of new features. With the release of Magento 2.4.4, Industry-wide experts are considering it as a significant version release since it focuses on six transformational areas;

• Introducing the support of PHP 8.0 for Magento 2.4.4 and PHP 8.1 for the eCommerce platform. The language update has shown a 23.0% speedup in Symfony Demo.
• Adding OpenSearch Support along with ElasticSearch support.
• Doing away with third-party extensions & modules, Magento is now decoupled and allows most features without having to avail of any third-party integrations.
• Updated crucial software components like adding ElasticSearch 7.16.1 and OpenSearch 1.1 support, upgrading jquery-ui to version 1.13.0, and project libraries and dependencies made compatible with PHP 8.1.
• Removing and updating libraries to enhance performance. The following were removed – es6-collections.js, MutationObserver.js, Modernizr, FormData.js, and updated libraries like script.aculo.us, Chart.js, moment.js, moment-timezone-with-data.js, matchMedia.js, underscore.js, PrototypeJS.
• With the Magento 2.4.4 release, Adobe has promised to fix GraphQL errors to solve product configuration issues, product identification issues, the appearance of categories etc.,

Now that we know the updates that Magento 2.4.4 breaks, let’s look at the steps to upgrade it.

Understanding the benefits and new features of the latest Magento 2 version

Here are key pointers:

• Enhanced Performance: The latest version often introduces performance optimizations, resulting in faster page load times and improved overall site speed.
• Security Enhancements: Each release addresses known security vulnerabilities, ensuring a more secure e-commerce platform.
• Improved User Experience: New features and enhancements enhance the shopping experience, such as streamlined checkout processes or responsive mobile designs.
• Advanced Admin Tools: Upgrades may introduce more intuitive admin interfaces, empowering merchants with better control and management capabilities.
• Integration Options: New integrations and APIs expand the possibilities for seamless integration with third-party systems and services.
• Bug Fixes: The latest version resolves known bugs and issues, enhancing the stability and reliability of the platform.

How To Upgrade To Magento 2.4.4?

• There were three ways to upgrade Magento

• • Using the Composer from the command line
  • Using Web Setup Wizard from admin
  • Download latest Magento and replace the core files

Since the release of Magento 2.4.0, Magento removed the Web Setup Wizard from the admin panel. So, developers have to update Magento from the command line or by file replacement. I will suggest the command line functionality. As there is no Web Setup Wizard option, we will discuss only available options.

• Using The Composer From The Command Line

Updating Magento using the composer is the first method of updating Magento. The first step in this process is to define the new Magento version using the composer. You can run the below command from the Magento root directory.

composer require magento/product-community-edition 2.4.4 –no-update
Once you’ve written the above command, you need to update Magento
using the composer.
composer update

After running the composer update command, you can download all the updated modules from the Magento repository. Make sure that your system specification is compatible with the latest Magento version. If everything is as expected, then you will not face any issue while updating Magento. But you might face most common issues if your system is not up to date or any third party extension might create a problem

• Below Are Some Known Issues That You Might Face While Updating Magento

• • Undefined class constant PRE_COMMAND_RUN

If you are getting this error, that means your composer version is old, and you need to update your composer version. Run the below command to update the composer version.

composer self-update

• • Unknown downloader type: Available types: git, svn, fossil, hg, perforce, zip, rar, tar, gzip, xz, phar, file, path

This is also regarding the composer version if you have updated your composer version and are still getting this error, then backup your vendor folder and re-run the command.

• Download Latest Magento And Replace The Core Files

Replacing the core files is not a recommended way to update Magento. But in some cases, when Magento has more third-party extensions and more customization, we have to choose this way. The process is straightforward.

First, you need to take a backup of all Magento core folders, not only the “vendor” folder.

After taking backup of core folders, you need to download the latest Magento version and replace particular folders.

Once you have made all the above changes, you need to run setup upgrade and deploy commands.

php bin/magento setup:upgrade
php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy

And this is all that you need to do to update Magento. There are few things to consider before updating Magento.

Backup your site first
Backup your database because when you run the “setup upgrade” command after an upgrade, new fields in the table or some fields might wipe-out.
Check if your theme and extensions are compatible with more recent versions of Magento.

Above, we saw the issues while upgrading Magento. Now we will discuss some known issues after upgrading the Magento.

Refused to execute inline script because it violates the following Content Security Policy directive.

Magento introduced the new module called “Magento_CSP” With regards to the CSRF Protection. You need to allow access to all the CDN resources. You can create an XML file in your module on below path

app/etc/COMPANYNAME/MODULENAME/etc/csp_whitelist.xml

Add the below code to your file. This example works for the google analytics URLs

 <?xml version=”1.0″?>

<csp_whitelist xmlns:xsi=”http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance” xsi:noNamespaceSchemaLocation=”urn:magento:module:Magento_Csp/etc/csp_whitelist.xsd”>

<policies&gt

<policy id=”script-src”>

<values>

<!–Google>

<value id=”google-analytics” type=”host”>www.google-analytics.com> </value>

</values>

<policy>

<policies>

<csp_whitelist>

Post-Upgrade Testing and Quality Assurance

• Verify that the freshly upgraded system is operating correctly. Taking a close look at how well its core features and capabilities work.
• Verify that your customizations, plugins, and themes are compatible with the latest version. And they don’t conflict with or break the platform’s native functionality.
• Maintaining a fast and responsive Magento 2 site requires regular updates. Loading and response times on the server and overall system performance should be evaluated.
• After an update, you need to double-check the user interface and navigation. The goal is to make sure both users and IT staff are happy.
• You must do thorough security testing on the upgraded Magento 2 installation to guarantee that it is immune to attacks and threats.
• Verify that the newly updated Magento 2 installation is compatible with all of your external tools and services.

Best practices for ongoing maintenance and staying up to date with future Magento 2 releases

Consider the following pointers:

• Regular Updates: Stay updated with the latest Magento 2 releases, including security patches and feature updates.
• Test in Staging: Perform thorough testing in a staging environment before applying updates to the production site.
• Backup and Disaster Recovery: Maintain regular backups of your Magento 2 installation to safeguard against data loss or unexpected issues during updates.
• Review Release Notes: Stay informed about release notes to understand the changes, bug fixes, and new features introduced in each update.
• Extensions and Themes: Keep third-party extensions and themes up to date, ensuring compatibility with the latest Magento 2 version.
• Performance Optimization: Regularly optimize your Magento 2 installation for improved performance, such as cache management and database optimisation.

Future Roadmap: What to Expect Beyond Magento 2.4.4

• Progressive Web Applications (PWAs)- Magento aims to further enhance PWA Studio. Moreover, enabling merchants to deliver fast and engaging shopping experiences across different devices.
• Headless Commerce- Magento plans to continue supporting headless commerce. Hence, providing flexibility in frontend development and seamless integration with various touchpoints.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)- The future roadmap includes leveraging AI and ML technologies. Further, it is to improve personalization, customer segmentation, fraud detection, and product recommendations.
• Enhanced B2B Capabilities: Magento intends to invest in expanding B2B features, such as advanced pricing, quotation workflows, and streamlined order management for B2B merchants.
• Improved Performance and Scalability: The Magento team continues to focus on optimizing performance and scalability. Further, ensuring that the platform can handle high traffic loads and growing business demands.
• Streamlined Admin Experience: Efforts will be made to refine the Magento admin interface. Also, making it more intuitive, user-friendly, and efficient for store owners and administrators.

Conclusion

Running an older version of Magento is not a good idea. Nowadays, it is necessary to be up to date. Upgrading Magento will provide you with the latest security updates and advantage of new features and performance improvements.

Magento also requires the updated version of extensions and themes so you can take advantage of those as well. So, contact an experienced Magento Development Company that will fulfill your development needs hassle-free!