The clock is ticking for Drupal 7 users.
Built on principles such as collaboration, globalism and innovation, Drupal is a free, open-source content management system powering many of the digital applications and sites we use each day.
Previously, Drupal 7’s end-of-life was scheduled for November 2021; this means automated testing services for Drupal 7 will be shut down and there will be no more enhancements or security updates available.
However, due to the impact of COVID-19 on businesses and their budgets, Drupal 7’s end-of-life has been delayed until Nov. 28, 2022. Drupal 7 users will be able to continue running sites and apply security updates via normal channels and processes, allowing for an extra year to convert to Drupal 9.
If you are unable to migrate to Drupal 9 by the time version 7 reaches end of life, there will be a few organizations that will provide Drupal 7 Vendor Extended Support (D7ES) for their paying clients. It will be an additional paid service, fully operated by these organizations with help from Drupal’s security team.
WHAT HAPPENED TO DRUPAL 8?
Drupal is dependent on some third-party systems for its operation. Because these systems, such as Symfony, PHP version 7.3 and CKEditor 4, have their own scheduled end-of-life and lack backwards compatibility, it’s necessary for Drupal to advance.
Most notably, Drupal 8 is connected to Symfony 3, which reached its end-of-life last month. Because Symfony 4 doesn’t support backwards compatibility, Drupal 8’s end-of-life was also scheduled for November 2021, forcing a move to Drupal 9.
DO I NEED TO UPGRADE TO DRUPAL 8 BEFORE I UPGRADE TO DRUPAL 9?
No, Drupal 7 users should plan ASAP to upgrade directly to Drupal 9 for the most efficient migration.
Drupal 9 is identical to the final Drupal 8 release, but with deprecated code removed and third-party dependencies updated. As automated testing, security updates and enhancements are no longer available for Drupal 8, the potential for cyber threats and security lapses is greater and support is limited with its use.
DOJO Creative is a web, print, branding and digital marketing company that can help your business if it needs help with Drupal migration.