[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #54021: Auto-update (plugin/theme) needs option to restrict to point or patch release

[WordPress Trac]

#54021: Auto-update (plugin/theme) needs option to restrict to point or patch
release
-----------------------------+---------------------------------
 Reporter:  jqz              |       Owner:  (none)
     Type:  enhancement      |      Status:  new
 Priority:  normal           |   Milestone:  Awaiting Review
Component:  Upgrade/Install  |     Version:
 Severity:  normal           |  Resolution:
 Keywords:  close            |     Focuses:  ui, administration
-----------------------------+---------------------------------
Changes (by audrasjb):

 * keywords:   => close
 * focuses:  ui, docs, administration, coding-standards => ui,
              administration
 * version:  5.8 =>


Comment:

 Hello and thank you for opening this ticket,

 Replying to [comment:2 jqz]:
 > Replying to [comment:1 desrosj]:
 > > Unfortunately this would be nearly impossible to implement.
 > I suggest the range of options be extended, on a per-theme/plugin basis
 as follows:
 > - Allow all: any update will be automatically installed;
 > - Allow only point upgrades (**this should be the default 'allow'
 setting**): updates will be automatically installed provided the first
 digit in the version number does not change (i.e. 1.2 -> 1.3 is fine but
 not 1.2 -> 2.0);
 > - Possibly another option between the above and below which caters for
 4-digit version numbers;
 > - Allow only patch upgrades: updates will be automatically installed
 provided only the final and at-least-thirdmost digit of the version number
 changes (i.e. 1.2 -> 1.2.1 is fine but not 1.2 -> 1.3);
 > - Disallow: updates must be installed manually (by clicking on 'Update')
 as has historically been the case.

 This would add a super hard to understand option in the administration,
 which would require pro-maintainer-level skills. For me, this is clearly
 plugin territory and not core territory. Moreover, the current path is to
 encourage the whole ecosystem to jump into automatic updates for
 everything, not to case-by-case updates. Not that this is a bad idea: your
 proposal is a very specific workflow that may interest WordPress
 maintainers, so it would make sense to develop a plugin for this :)

 > > The plugins and themes in the directories are not required to follow
 any specific versioning practices, so version numbers vary wildly.
 >
 > This does not matter, because, with my suggestion, the update policy can
 be set per theme/plugin by the website administrator based on their
 knowledge of how that particular theme/plugin uses versioning.
 >
 > > I'm going to suggest that this is closed.
 >
 > Please re-open this.  It would be a shame for the work on automatic
 plugin/theme updates to have mostly gone to waste and/or otherwise cause
 website failures due to breaking changes being automatically installed.

 I'm following @desrosj in suggesting closing this ticket in favor of a
 dedicated plugin. For now, the path to handle "website updates failures"
 is to introduce automated rollback features to Core.

 I'm adding back the `close` keyword but don't take it as it was a
 bad/wrong idea. It's a nice proposal, but it would be better if
 implemented in a dedicated plugin.

 Also, feel free to attend the next #core-auto-updates weekly meeting on
 Slack, so your proposal could be discussed :)

 ''(removing version `5.8` as this is not related to WP 5.8)''

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Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/54021#comment:5>
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