[wp-meta] [Making WordPress.org] #6292: Surface last supported plugin/theme update if latest version(s) not supported

[Making WordPress.org]

#6292: Surface last supported plugin/theme update if latest version(s) not
supported
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 Reporter:  flixos90     |      Owner:  (none)
     Type:  enhancement  |     Status:  new
 Priority:  normal       |  Milestone:
Component:  API          |   Keywords:  needs-patch
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 WordPress core has for a while now prevented updates to plugins for which
 the minimum WordPress version or PHP version is not supported (see e.g.
 https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/43987).

 While this works reliably, there is the potential of an undesirable
 situation with that approach though: Since wordpress.org currently only
 surfaces the very latest update to a WordPress site when it queries for
 updates, there is no way for the site to get the latest ''supported''
 version of the plugin if the site does not support the very latest version
 of the plugin.

 Let me clarify by example:
 * Let's say my site is on PHP 7.0.
 * Let's say I use "Super Plugin" version 1.0. I haven't updated in a
 while, and numerous versions have been released since then.
 * In the meantime, more versions of the plugin, e.g. 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, and so
 on have been released.
 * At some point, the developers of "Super Plugin" bump the minimum
 required PHP version to 7.2, as part of the 2.0 plugin release.
 * I now want to update again. But WordPress will just show me version 2.0
 of the plugin and tell me that I cannot update to it because my site's PHP
 version is insufficient.
 * A much nicer experience for the user (and also better for security and
 other related reasons) would be that WordPress would show the last
 supported version of the plugin (e.g. 1.9 in the example above) and allow
 the user to update to that version. This way at least they are up to date
 as much as possible with their environment.

 A potential solution for this could be:
 * WordPress core includes WP and PHP version information of the site in
 the request for plugin updates (similar for core and theme updates of
 course).
 * The wordpress.org API then does the following:
     * If the most recent update is not supported by the site, go further
 back to see whether there is another update relevant for the site that it
 ''does'' support.
     * If so, surface the most recent ''supported'' update to the site.
     * If not, continue surfacing the latest update even though it is
 unsupported. It's good to keep nagging site owners to update their
 versions to eventually update to that plugin version.

 With an enhancement like the above, we would be able to improve the
 experience here without changing any of the UI, just by slightly more
 intelligent logic in WordPress core and the wordpress.org API.

 I acknowledge that not updating core, a plugin, or a theme for a while is
 not a great idea in itself, but still, it would be better to still help
 out these sites with the latest supported version when we can.

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/6292>
Making WordPress.org <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/>
Making WordPress.org