How to patch Drupal 6.x to 6.y?

Upgrading from previous versions

Notes:

1. It is best practice to back up your Drupal files and database(s) before upgrading.
2. Two major versions of Drupal are supported at a time. 6.x is the current version. 5.x is the prior version and is still supported. Drupal 4.x is unsupported.
3. Knowing what version to upgrade to:
   • If upgrading from one minor release to another, such as 6.3 to 6.14, jump straight to the latest release within that major version.
   • If upgrading from one major version to another, such as from 4.6 to 6.14, you must upgrade to the latest release within the major version (4.7), then the latest release within the next major version (5.20), etc. until you're at the latest release of the final major version
   • More upgrade information is available at:
     1. The UPGRADE.txt file packaged with your Drupal files.
     2. Release announcements for the version to which you're upgrading (e.g. http://drupal.org/drupal-6.2 for Drupal 6.2). Check the release pages of earlier versions if you must upgrade to them first (e.g., upgrading from 4.6 to 6.20--see above).
     3. Other pages of this handbook section.

References:

• Backup of The Database and Existing Files
• Screencast: Upgrading from Drupal 5.x to 6.x
• Screencast: Drupal Upgrade Tutorial for upgrading from one version of 6.x to another

UPGRADE DRUPAL 6.9 to 6.14
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Let's begin!

1. Backup your database and Drupal directory - especially your "sites"
directory which contains your configuration file and added modules and
themes, any contributed or custom modules in your "modules" directory,

and your "files" directory which contains uploaded files. If other files

have modifications, such as .htaccess or robots.txt, those should be
backed up as well.

Note: for a single site setup, the configuration file is the "settings.php"
file located at sites/default/settings.php. The default.settings.php file
contains a clean copy for restoration purposes, if required.

For multisite configurations, the configuration file is located in a
structure like the following:

sites/default/settings.php
sites/example.com/settings.php
sites/sub.example.com/settings.php
sites/sub.example.com.path/settings.php

More information on multisite configuration is located in INSTALL.txt.

2. If possible, log on as the user with user ID 1, which is the first account
created and the main administrator account. User ID 1 will be able to
automatically access update.php in step #10. There are special instructions
in step #10 if you are unable to log on as user ID 1. Do not close your
browser until the final step is complete.

3. Place the site in "Off-line" mode, to let the database updates run without
interruption and avoid displaying errors to end users of the site. This
option is at http://www.example.com/?q=admin/settings/site-maintenance
(replace www.example.com with your installation's domain name and path).

4. If using a custom or contributed theme, switch
to a core theme, such as Garland or Bluemarine.

5. Disable all custom and contributed modules.

6. Remove all old files and directories from the Drupal installation directory.

7. Unpack the new files and directories into the Drupal installation directory.

8. Copy your backed up "files" and "sites" directories to the Drupal
installation directory. If other system files such as .htaccess or
robots.txt were customized, re-create the modifications in the new
versions of the files using the backups taken in step #1.

9. Verify the new configuration file to make sure it has correct information.

10. Run update.php by visiting http://www.example.com/update.php (replace
www.example.com with your Drupal installation's domain name and path). This
step will update the core database tables to the new Drupal installation.

Note: if you are unable to access update.php do the following:

- Open your settings.php with a text editor.

- There is a line that says $update_free_access = FALSE;
Change it to $update_free_access = TRUE;

- Once update.php is done, you must change the settings.php file
back to its original form with $update_free_access = FALSE;

11. Ensure that the versions of all custom and contributed modules match the
new Drupal version to which you have updated. For a major update, such as
from 5.x to 6.x, modules from previous versions will not be compatible
and updated versions will be required.

- For contributed modules, check http://drupal.org/project/modules
for the version of a module matching your version of Drupal.

- For custom modules, review http://drupal.org/update/modules to
ensure that a custom module is compatible with the current version.

12. Re-enable custom and contributed modules and re-run update.php
to update custom and contributed database tables.

13. Return the site to its original theme (if you switched to a core
theme like Garland or Bluemarine in step #4). If your site uses a
custom or contributed theme, make sure it is compatible with your
version of Drupal.

- For contributed themes, check http://drupal.org/project/themes
for the version of a theme matching your version of Drupal.

- For custom themes, review http://drupal.org/update/theme to ensure
that a custom theme is compatible with the current version.

14. Finally, return your site to "Online" mode so your visitors may resume
browsing. As in step #3, this option is available in your administration
screens at http://www.example.com/?q=admin/settings/site-maintenance
(replace www.example.com with your installation's domain name and path).

For more information on upgrading visit
the Drupal handbook at http://drupal.org/upgrade

See the tutorial video here.

.