Updating WHMCS from within the admin area

This tutorial is part of our WHMCS tutorials series.

In this tutorial I will show you how to upgrade WHMCS. It is wise to upgrade WHMCS as new versions are launched to take advantage of new features and functionality. As with all software, old versions will eventually become insecure as technology and security evolve over time. So it is vital to keep WHMCS up to date to ensure your website is protected.

To begin login to WHMCS and visit the Update WHMCS page from within the utilities menu.

Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the check now button to force WHMCS to search for the latest version. If there is an update available it will be listed here along with your current version.

If you a certain that you are using an old version but it is not displaying an available update, this generally means your hosting environment does not support the new WHMCS version. For example if you're using an old version of PHP. Refer to the WHMCS website to check the system requirements for the new version and update your hosting account to meet the new requirements. You should then see the available update after clicking the check now button.

The first time you update WHMCS you must first set a directory path that will be used to temporarily store files during the update process.

Let's go ahead and create a directory for this.

Go to cPanel's file manger and access the secure /home directory. Create a new directory, in this example we will go with whmcs_update.

Head back to the Update WHMCS page and click on the Configure Update Settings in the top right. The update channel sets the type of updates you wish to receive. In most cases you will want to select the stable option. Add the path of the directory we just created. The start of your path will be found within the left column of file manager and the end will be the directory we created. Now our path is set you will not need to complete this again in future.

We can now proceed to the Update itself but before we do it is vital to create a full backup of WHMCS, both the files and database. In the event that the update fails the backup can be used to restore your website to its previous state. If your update does fail I recommend submitting a ticket to WHMCS, they will be able to assist you. They may even be able to fix your update without needing to use your backup but it is vital that you have it. I have added a link in the description to our WHMCS backup video tutorial.

Once you have a backup of WHMCS stored in a safe place click on the Update Now button. Follow the prompts to complete the update process, it can take anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes depending on the size of your WHMCS install.

You will see a success confirmation once completed.