Drupal has recently released their version 8.8.0, which is a relatively minor update to their popular CMS. This update does not include any important security patches, which makes upgrading to this level more of a personal preference than a strict requirement for site owners. Their upcoming upgrade schedule includes both version 8.9.0 and 9.0.0 on June 3, 2020. The 8.9.0 will be their long-term support version (meaning no additional feature upgrades) for Drupal 8.x. Drupal 9.0.0 will obviously be a significant release, and we’ll have details on that as they come out.
Changes in Drupal 8.8.0
While this is a relatively minor upgrade, there are some nice changes that many webmasters will appreciate. The major updates are as follows:
- Stable Media Library – This will allow you to easily access and use images, videos, documents, and other media throughout your site with just one upload. This can be accessed right from the library, making it easier than ever to manage your site’s media. Other CMSs have had similar features for some time, so it is good to see it added to Drupal.
- Claro Administration Theme – A new administration theme, called ‘Claro’ has been added to Drupal core. It is still considered ‘beta experimental stability’ but appears to work quite nicely. The theme is more touch-friendly, and has an attractive overall layout. The other admin themes are still available, so give this one a try and see if it is something you like.
- Improvements to Workspaces – Hierarchical workspaces can now be defined, and they can now work with Content Moderation. In addition, path alias changes can be staged on the system, which is convenient.
- Support for Composer now Native – Composer has long been a popular with Drupal users, but has required third-party projects to set up. With this version there is native support for Composer.
- Experimental Help Topics Module – Task-based help topics beta has been added to the Drupal system, which will allow the help system to operate better using modules rather than tasks.
- Improvements to Migration – Updates to the migration system have been made that will allow handling of vocabulary language settings, term language information, localization, and more.
How to Upgrade to Drupal 8.8.X
Anyone running a lower version of Drupal can easily upgrade to version 8.8.X by running the update.php just as with previous updates. Those running version 8.7 need to be aware that security fixes will only be offered for that version until June 3rd, 2020 after which point they must upgrade (either to 8.8, 8.9 or 9.0). Long term support for Drupal 8.X will be provided only for 8.9.X, so those who don’t want to move to 9.0.0 when it is released will need to keep this support schedule in mind to avoid experiencing security issues.
Those who are still on Drupal 7 can also upgrade to version 8 using the normal process, which will bring them to the latest available version. Support for version 7 is going to end on November 2021, so webmasters still have some time to remain on that platform. From November 2021 to November 2024, there will be a vendor extended support program available for those who want to remain on the older system as long as possible.
For additional information, please click HERE to view the full release notes.
