With the version 3.7, WordPress introduced a new feature called the Automatic updates. This feature allows WordPress to automatically update itself to the minor and security releases. However, by default the automatic updates are not enabled for major releases in order to avoid unexpected compatibility issues with existing themes and plugins.

Disable automatic updates for minor / security releases in WordPress

There could be several reasons you might not like the idea of automatic updates. Some developers often modify core WordPress files, or sometimes you might need to prepare your theme or plugins to make them compatible with the next update. Whatever be the case, switching to manual updates gives you a better control, allowing you to skip some minor updates (although not recommended) or updating as per your convenience.

To disable automatic updates in your WordPress blog, you need to add following snippet of code to your wp-config.php file. Adding this code will disable the auto updates but you will still get the notifications, and would be able to update manually as it was done earlier.

define( 'WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE', false );

Enable automatic updates for in major version releases in WordPress

Major version upgrades in WordPress often come with significant changes in core files and might break if your themes or plugins are not ready. Keeping the major updates to manual mode allows you to ensure your files are compatible to the update.

On the other hand, updating manually could be cumbersome if you manage multiple blogs, and your websites haven’t been customized a lot. In these cases, it could be good idea to set and forget the automatic updates on.

To enable automatic updates in WordPress for major releases, you need to add following snippet of code into your wp-config.php file:

define( 'WP_AUTO_UPDATE_CORE', true );

and following code to your functions.php file:

add_filter( 'allow_dev_auto_core_updates', '__return_false');

While the first code enables automatic updates, the second code disables the same for development releases which aren’t recommended for live websites.

Did you like the idea of enabling auto updates for all releases? or prefer to disable them altogether? Let us know via comments.