TL;DR
- Updates occasionally break things. A plugin, theme, or WordPress itself can clash with the rest of your site.
- A “technical issue” email doesn’t always mean your site is down. Check whether visitors can still see it.
- Big WordPress releases mostly change the dashboard, the behind-the-scenes area where you edit.
- Backups make it fixable. We restore the last working version, find the cause, and update again.
Why Do WordPress Updates Break Websites?
Your site is WordPress, plus a theme, plus plugins, each from a different developer. An update to one piece can clash with another. As our support plan page puts it, “Plugin, theme, or core updates occasionally cause site errors.” Common causes:
- A plugin or theme that hasn’t caught up with the latest WordPress.
- An abandoned theme. Without updates from its developer, it falls further behind with every release. See What Happens When a WordPress Plugin or Theme Is Abandoned?
- Server limits. After one WordPress release, several sites went down with a memory error. That means the server ran out of the working memory set aside for the site. Beth fixed it on client sites.
- An expired license. A plugin that can’t update falls behind everything around it. See Why Did a WordPress Plugin Fail to Update?
What Does the “Your Site Is Experiencing a Technical Issue” Email Mean?
WordPress sends it when it catches an error. It can fire during updates even when your site looks fine to visitors. After one round of updates, Beth told a client, “I was running updates on your site, and that probably triggered the email.”
- Check your site in a browser. If it loads, it may not be affecting visitors.
- Forward the email to us. It often says which plugin or theme caused the error, which speeds up the fix.
- Site down? See How Fast Will You Fix Website Problems, Including Emergencies?
Why Does My Website Look Different After a Major WordPress Update?
Usually it’s the dashboard that changed, not your public site. Major WordPress releases get extra care. After one, Beth told a client, “I had the team do it manually because it was a huge upgrade.”
If your public site looks off, clear your browser’s cache (the saved copies of pages your browser keeps) first. If it still looks wrong, tell us.
How Webmaster For Hire Fixes a Broken Update
- We back up first, every time.
- We check what visitors see, in more than one browser.
- We restore the last working version if the site is broken.
- We find the cause, fix it, and run the update again.
For sites on our support plans, the plan page is clear: “If your site breaks following an update, notify us promptly.” For more on backups, see How Should I Back Up My WordPress Website?
What Webmaster For Hire Recommends
- Never update a live site without a backup. See Should I Run WordPress Updates Myself or Hire a Webmaster?
- Tell us right away if something looks wrong after an update.
- Keep premium licenses active, so every piece of your site can keep up.
:: Common Questions ::
Will Updates Break My Site Every Time?
No. Most updates go through without a problem. Breaks happen occasionally, which is why every update starts with a backup.
Should I Stop Updating to Avoid Problems?
No. Skipping updates leaves security holes open, and catching up later is harder. See How Often Should I Update WordPress and My Plugins?
Want Updates Handled With a Safety Net?
See our WordPress Support Services, or request a consultation.
