Update from V1.6.0
How Do I?
Hi all, I am assisting a small business with updating their website, and noticed they are on version 1.6.0. I am fairly new to Expression Engine, and wanted to get a recommendation on the best way to update the site to V4 or V5? Is it possible? The documentation only starts at updating V2 to V3. They ultimately want a new website, but are not able to afford one right now. Thanks so much!
Welcome to the forums
The biggest hurdle to upgrading from V1 are 3rd party addons - they changed a lot between V1-V2, and V2-V3. Then you have a problem with V1 addons that have no V2 counterparts, and V2 addons that have no V3 counterparts.
As it’s a V1 site I’d be tempted to rebuild it in V5, it would probably be quicker to do, especially if you don’t have a huge number of entries.
If you wanted to do the upgrade route you’d need to assess what addons have an upgrade path all the way to V5 (most of the popular addons do, and some V1 addons can be replaced with new EE5 functionality). Then you’d need to look at what addons can’t be upgraded and look for alternatives or refactoring template code to suit.
A V1 > V5 upgrade is possible but you’re probably going to run into a lot of issues if the site uses a lot of 3rd party addons.