Every time a new version of Theia is available, we try as hard as possible not to break compatibility with previous functionality. If you're already using an older version of Theia (regardless of whether it is alpha, beta or stable), you'll be glad to know that upgrading your installation is a pretty simple process, and upon which: all of your data will be preserved (ideally) as it is (your content, sections, members, messages, etc.).
Can I upgrade to any version from any version?
Yes, as long as the version you are currently using is older than the version you intend on updating to, you can upgrade a single time to the latest version with ease. Because all structural database changes are logged chronologically with a time stamp, it's always possible to update to the latest version in a single go, regardless of what version you were using before. Though you may actually be 3 builds or versions behind, only one update needs to be done, since the database changes are only applied when their respective stamps are greater than the day you last installed/updated Theia. This eliminates the hassle of having to perform multiple update processes just to get the latest version - which some other apps rely on.
The upgrade procedure
At this point it is assumed that you have downloaded the version you want to upgrade to. If you haven't go download it now! If you're confused: there is only one download (which is the same for performing a fresh installation or an upgrade; it's all in the same package so you just need to select the version you want).
First, upload all of the files in DIR_CFG (cfg on a default installation)... However, do *not* upload core.cfg.php! Just upload all of the files and directories in DIR_CFG *except* core.cfg.php. This is because if you upload this file again, it will reset your configuration, and you will need to manually update the file with the correct paths and mySQL details.
Now, after you have made sure that you are logged into your site as a user who is part of the administrator access group, then you are ready to run the wizard. The update wizard's ID is 4, and the wizard.php file executes Theia's wizards. Thus, if the site was installed at mytheiasite.com, then you would want to go here:
mytheiasite.com/wizard.php?id=4
The first thing that the wizard will do is perform a check of all the files that you have installed which do not match the MD5 hashes from the new version's index (thus meaning the files are old and should be replaced). Depending on how long it has been since you upgraded, you may have a few or a large number of files that should be replaced. Unless you really know what you are doing, you are encouraged not to force-bypass this step, because if it's saying something is modified, it means it is probably out of date and may cause issues with your site later on.
Once you have passed the step that forces you to update your source files, you will then run a step which performs numerous database structure changes. Again, depending on how long it has been since you last upgrade, there may be a lot of changes, which means be patient and click only once.
The final step of the upgrade wizard makes sure that any new options or settings that were added receive default values (otherwise issues would be encountered). For this step, you're okay with using the pre-selected option (which only updates any values which are currently empty for you, and will not overwrite any settings if you already have them). If you don't care and you just want to restore all settings to their default state, then select the option that updates all values.
That's it! You should be done now!
Did you encounter an issue? Need help?
If you ran into trouble, post what went wrong here and someone will help you out! ;)
