Magento 2.2 is the new Magento 1!
Come December 31, 2019, Magento 2.2.x will end of life (EOL) and thousands of merchants will likely be stuck without access to new features and functionalities. PCI compliance for merchants using Magento Commerce 2.2.0-2.2.9 may be at risk too, as of November 30, 2019, due to the end of support for PHP 7.1.
The scariest part, though, is the imminent exposure to malicious cyber-attacks. Without access to security patches for existing vulnerabilities and support, merchants will be forced to upgrade to Magento Commerce 2.3 – a move that will take time, effort, and resource commitments.
This might be a great time to re-evaluate your development and hosting options. Are you working with teams that have executed such projects at your scale, several times before?
The upgrade requires careful planning, meticulous execution, and thorough testing throughout the process. Timelines and resource commitments need to be realistic, considering expected outcomes. Make sure you’re working with a development partner that has processes built to ensure predictability and manage costs. Binary Anvil is a great one.
Focusing on user experience is critical, especially when incorporating new Magento 2.3 features and functionalities into your online storefront. There might also be opportunities to improve page load speeds by implementing performance optimization techniques, enhance site availability by setting up auto-scaling correctly, and implementing robust security features to mitigate different types of cyber-attacks.
To address the most common concerns and challenges merchants have with the Magento 2.3 upgrade, we recently did a joint online workshop with our partner Binary Anvil, on Magento 2.3 development and hosting best practices. Webscale CTO Jay Smith joined John Kraft, CEO of Binary Anvil, and JP Underhill, Director of Client Success at Binary Anvil, as they provided a blueprint for the perfect Magento 2.3 upgrade, discussed hosting, availability, performance, and security best practices, and discussed how merchants can work with developers to effectively manage timelines and costs. Check it out below.
Have a plan in place for Magento 2.2’s end of life? How prepared are you for the upgrade? If you’re in need of advice from experts that have done this for dozens of merchants already, we’d love to help. Drop us a line at sales@webscale.com for more info.
