Consequences of Not Upgrading Your Website to Drupal 9

With the latest release of Drupal 9.2, it’s a good time to consider updating your website. It’s not only to stay up-to-date, close security gaps, and get deprecations removed but also to have new features such as increased performance or support for the WebP image format.

And you can get all this simply by installing regular updates. No migration is needed!

Correct! For upgrading from Drupal 8 to Drupal 9 – there is no need for migration. All the features were gradually released inside Drupal 8.

In this blog, we’ll discuss in detail the impacts and risks of putting off upgrading your website a little while longer and choosing not to re-platform at all.

Ready to know more? Let’s get started!

How Long Can You Delay?

Before we dig into why it is important to migrate to Drupal 9, let’s first understand how long can you delay the migration process.

The deadline for you to migrate depends on the version you are currently using.

In the case of Drupal 8, the update is easier, specifically if you have been doing your updates regularly. Even though migration from Drupal 8 to 9 is less risky, more seamless, and can be done over weeks, it is advisable to begin it as soon as possible.

For Drupal 7, migration can be more challenging as the CMS has changed significantly after that. For website owners, this means that they will have to start the migration process immediately.

Now the main question is, what if you do not migrate to Drupal 9?

Unfortunately, there are some financial and security implications involved.

Let’s explore!

Cost Implications

Migrating to a new version of the CMS might seem expensive. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, if you choose not to migrate, there are hidden costs involved.

• No support from the Drupal community – Since Drupal 7 and 8 are reaching the end of life (EOL), official community support for these two versions will end too. This means updates, security fixes, and enhancements will no longer be provided by the community and you have to spend money to get custom infrastructure configurations.
• There will be an increase in maintenance costs too. The companies who stay with Drupal 7 will misspend an estimated 70% of their website budgets on maintenance and bug fixes.

You can save yourself from these cost implications by migrating to Drupal 9. Follow this step-by-step guide for a smooth transition to Drupal 9.

Security Implications

With the end of life for Drupal 7 and 8, operating the website on them is not a secure option.

Here’s why

• The Drupal security team will withdraw support or security advisories, wavering your website’s and its users’ cybersecurity.
• D7 and 9 releases’ on all project pages will be flagged as ‘not supported.’ As a result, D7/8 may be flagged as insecure in 3rd party scans making integration with other third-party tools and systems challenging.

However, migrating to Drupal 9 automatically gives enhanced security. One of the security features offered by Drupal 9 is removing deprecated code so you are working with a smaller codebase. This means there is less chance of potential security risks or errors.

Business Risks

A website that operates on an unsupported platform is vulnerable to bugs and downtimes. And needless to say, it causes poor user experience. In today’s digital-first world, if your website fails to meet the expectations of your prospects and customers, you can miss out on potential revenue.

If you are not planning to migrate to Drupal 9, then you are putting your business at grave risk.

The newer version of Drupal provides businesses with better compatibility, and adaptability than before.

Here are some business risks associated with not upgrading to Drupal 9

• Lost customers due to a poor omnichannel experience
• Missing out on innovative CMS features that other organizations are leveraging to gain a competitive edge
• Outdated software can attract ransomware and cryptojacking attacks that can jeopardize crucial business processes

Ready to migrate to Drupal 9? Watch this short video to know the “what, why, and how” of migration to Drupal 9.

Conclusion

Delaying the migration process will come at a significant long-term cost, even if it might seem like a major expense up-front.

Thus, rather than investing expensive resources to support and maintain an outdated version of Drupal, use them to grow and scale your business.

Need Help Migrating to Drupal 9? Contact Us!