New versions of Omeka bring new features, fixes, and security improvements. On Platform Manager, upgrading is a couple of clicks, and we handle the work behind the scenes.
How you know an update is waiting
When a newer version of your platform is available, an amber Update Available badge appears next to your site on the Sites list. There is no rush; your site keeps running happily on its current version until you decide to upgrade.
📷 Screenshot: The Sites list with an amber "Update Available" badge showing next to a site.
Start the upgrade
Open the site and go to the Version tab. Here you can pick the version you want to install. Most of the time you will choose the newest one.
📷 Screenshot: The Version tab showing the version dropdown and the "Backup site database before upgrading?" checkbox.
Above the version picker is a checkbox: Backup site database before upgrading? We recommend always ticking it. It creates a backup of your database right before the upgrade begins, which gives you a restore point if anything about the new version does not suit you. It costs you nothing but a moment.
When you are ready, click the install button at the bottom. It reads Install Omeka Version or Install Omeka S Version, depending on your site's platform.
While the upgrade runs
The upgrade takes a few minutes. We download the new version, put it in place, and connect it to your existing database and files.
Your content is untouched by an upgrade. Items, metadata, exhibits, settings, and uploaded files all stay exactly where they are; only the platform software changes. The backup is simply the safety net underneath it all.
After the upgrade
Once the upgrade finishes, visit your site and click around. Check a few item pages, open the admin dashboard, and make sure your theme still looks the way you expect. Major version jumps sometimes change how themes and modules behave, so it is worth a quick look.
If something is off and you ticked the backup checkbox, you have an easy way back: restore the pre-upgrade backup and tick the reinstall option to return both your database and platform files to the previous version. Our guide on restoring a backup walks through it step by step.
One more tip: modules and themes have their own updates, separate from the platform. After a platform upgrade, peek at your site's Modules and Themes tabs to see if any of them have new versions too. See managing versions for how that works.