We’re pleased to announce the immediate availability of PHP 7.4 in SpinupWP! ????

When PHP 7.4 was released back on November 28th, we notified customers that it wouldn’t be available until the php-redis package was updated in the package archive we use. This package was updated, and after some internal testing, we’re happy to add PHP 7.4 to SpinupWP.

But First, Update WP-CLI

Before switching any sites over to using PHP 7.4, you should update WP-CLI to the latest version. Older versions of WP-CLI are not compatible with PHP 7.4. There should be a notice in your server settings that looks like this…

Notice in server settings showing the server needs upgrading.

Clicking “Upgrade Instructions” should get you a message like this…

Dialogue box alerting you that the server will be upgraded

If it’s a different message, you probably have some older server upgrades to execute first before the WP-CLI upgrade can be executed. Run the upgrades until the upgrade message disappears from your server settings screen.

Careful, WordPress 5.3+ Required

Updating your site to use PHP 7.4 is as simple as selecting PHP 7.4 from a dropdown in the SpinupWP dashboard…

PHP Version dropdown menu in SpinupWP showing 7.4 as an option.

When you select PHP 7.4, you will get a warning that WordPress 5.3+ is required and that you should update your site to WordPress 5.3+ before switching to PHP 7.4…

Warning showing WordPress 5.3+ is required

If you choose to continue and then save settings, PHP 7.4 will be installed on your server alongside the previous versions of PHP.

Events notification showing PHP Version is being updated.

Reverting back to the older version of PHP is also as simple as selecting it from the dropdown and saving. As always, we recommend you first test on a staging site before updating your production site.

If you’re interested in what’s new in PHP 7.4, check out php.net’s migration guide.