PHP 5.6 Comes To An End: Make Sure Your PrestaShop Store is Safe and Secure

15 March 2019

Released in August of 2014, PHP 5.6 had brought many good, though minor, updates to the language and became one of the most popular versions of PHP in production. But recently – basically with the end of 2018 ended PHP 5.6 and its earlier versions. They are no longer supported by the community- meaning no more updates, no more security patches and no more assistance.

php5_end_of_life

This makes it increasingly complicated and risky for stores to any of these versions. But exactly does this mean and what are the solutions or the alternatives?

Before jumping to any conclusions or panics, let’s discuss and give you the the low-down.

What is PHP?
PHP (recursive acronym for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor) is a widely-used open source general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited for web development and can be embedded into HTML.

PHP language, like any other software, evolves over time, resulting in the release of new and latest versions. Each major PHP version is supported for a maximum time of three years.

Is It Important To Update PHP Version Of Your Store?

A sure-short answer would be YES!

We do have a list of reasons to support our “so blunt’ answer:

As the earlier versions of PHP are no longer supported, your host cannot guarantee that your system is 100% secureand will eventually force sites to abandon the earlier versions. Updating your version will provide you with benefits of constant improvements, a boost in performance and productivity.
According to Infomaniak, a site operating with PHP 7 is up to twice as fast as a site with PHP 5.6 and up to 14 times as fast as a site with PHP 5.
According to ZDNet, 62% of websites use a version of PHP 5 that is outdated and no longer secure. It is therefore likely that your store is running on an obsolete version of PHP that has to be updated.

Are you looking fo a certified
Prestashop
Developer for your project?

Having mentioned the unmatched benefits and advantages one will reap, the next question that might trouble you:

How To Check and Update the PHP Version Of My Store?

There is nothing to be worried about .

Choose a certified PrestaShop developer or a company – they will check, guide and recommend the best update for your PrestaShop store. Nevertheless, do not hesitate to contact your host if you wish to know which PHP version is currently in place on your hosting solution.

Furthermore, before going for any update ensure that the version of your PrestaShop store is compatible with the latest versions of PHP. This will help you in avoiding errors and random behavior (for example, problems while updating modules, product sheets, etc.).

PrestaShop versions	Compatible PHP versions
1.5.x ~ 1.6.0	5.2 – 5.5
1.6.1.x	5.2 – 7.1
1.7.0 ~ 1.7.3	5.4 – 7.1
1.7.4	5.6 – 7.1
1.7.5	5.6 – 7.2

The table will certainly prove helpful in knowing the compatibility of your store and make way for easy update and migrate.

The Benefits of Migrating Your Store to PrestaShop 1.7
PrestaShop 1.7 comprises the Symfony framework which makes it highly efficient, stable and robust. This version has brought forward some remarkable features that simplify browsing for both the admin and the users.