Mike Brawley Exploring the World!

How to update Joomla 1.5 from an existing 1.5x version

It is risky to upgrade a live site without testing the upgrade process first. So before upgrading the live site you need to set up a test site which is as close as possible to the configuration of your live site, then test the upgrade on that. When you are happy with the process you can apply it to the live site (having taken a fresh backup of the live site first, of course).

Step 1: Download the upgrade file

To download the most recent patch package:

1. Proceed to the Joomla Download page.
2. Click the "Download other Joomla 1.5.x packages" link
3. Click the "Joomla1.5.XUpdates" link under the "Packages" heading to go to the detail page about the current package
4. Click the "Files" tab to view the various patch files.
5. Locate the row that matches your current installation version and patch package with the extension of ".zip". File should read something like  "Joomla_1.5.x_to_1.5.xx-Stable-Patch_Package.zip" where the x's are the version numbers.
6. Download this zip package to your desktop or  a temp folder.

Step 2: Backup your site

Before you actually upgrade, you really should make a backup of your site. Backup your existing Joomla site files and store all the files and database in case something gets messed up, you wont have any problem reverting back. I recommend backing up with Akeeba Backup. After a backup has completed be sure to download the backup file through FTP to your local computer.

All upgrades should be first tested on a copy of your site before being applied to a live site.

Step 3: Install the upgrade file

There are different ways of installing a package file depending on your particular circumstances. I will show you how to upgrade your site using FTP by unziping the zip file on your local computer then use an FTP client to upload them to your site. This is the most common way and probably the easiest.

1. Locate the file you downloaded in step 1 Right Click this file and select "Extract All..."
2. Open your favorite FTP client. I recommend FileZilla
3. Once your in FileZilla connect to your web server and navigate to the root folder of your website. In most cases, you will need to upload into a folder called "public_html", "htdocs" or "www".
4. In the left panel navigate to the location you extracted the zip file to and open the newly extracted folder "Joomla_1.5.x_to_1.5.xx-Stable-Patch_Package"
5. Highlight all files in the left panel inside the Joomla_1.5.x.... folder by clicking a single file or folder and pressing Ctrl+A.
   
6. Once all files are highlighted right click any file and select "Upload"
7. You will be prompted as the Target file already exists. Check the box next to "Apply to current queue only" and select "OK". This will overwrite all existing files that need to be upgraded.  This process depending on your internet connection speed can take some time to run.
   

Step 4: Check your live site to make sure it is working correctly

Now that your upgrade is finished navigate to your site to make sure it looks the same and functions correctly.  Don't assume that the upgrade will work flawlessly just because the test upgrade worked. If you find a problem and it cannot be resolved quickly you might have to rollback the upgrade using the backup copy you created in step 2.

Find the best Joomla Extensions!!

While this blog is built in WordPress, I run a number of other websites. Three of which are built in Joomla. Joomla is one of the best Content Management Systems (CMS) out there and best of all its Open Source! Meaning its free to use for both commercial and personal use. Joomla has amazing support among the open source community and is used by thousands of websites all over the internet. One of the biggest reasons Joomla has made it, is from all the Extensions and Add-ons people have developed for it. While having a huge following with thousands of Extensions is a good thing. It can be a little hard finding the best extension for what you want. There are sometimes hundreds of extensions that do basically the same thing. Some definitely do that one thing better then others. With so many extensions to search through finding the one that works well and is bug free can be a task in its self.  There are a few ways I have found to find the top Extensions that you can use on multiple Joomla sites.  Usually if an extension is really good people talk about it and word spreads. This extension will get more reviews, more downloads, higher ratings, and become popular.  You can search the Joomla's extension site based on these factors to find Extensions that are well built, bug free, and offer updates to keep up with Joomla updates.

Follow the links below to search by category:

• Most Favoured
• Editors' Picks
• Popular Extensions
• Most Rated
• Top Rated
• Most Reviewed