On February 24, 2025, Umbraco 8 will reach its End-of-Life (EOL).
In this blog post, we’ll break down what this means for your project and walk you through the next steps when your website is built on Umbraco 8.
What Umbraco 8 EOL Means for E-commerce Managers
As an e-commerce manager, your daily duties focus on ensuring your webshop runs efficiently. You’re responsible for managing promotions, prices, overseeing product catalogs, etc. — all of which demand a seamless and dependable back-end system. However, with Umbraco 8 reaching its end-of-life (EOL), you might be concerned about how this will impact your workflow and the future of the platform you rely on.
When is Umbraco 8 End-of-Life?
After February 24, 2025, Umbraco 8 will no longer be maintained, which will have serious implications for users who continue to operate on this version.
When Umbraco 8 reaches its End-of-Life (EOL), it will no longer receive updates or support from the developers. For Umbraco 8, this includes critical security patches and technical support.
Risks of continuing with Umbraco 8 Post-EOL
Even after EOL it's possible to use Umbraco 8 for your site and is tempting to do so. After all, what's the worst thing that could happen? In reality, the array of risks is extensive, with potentially serious consequences that will have a significant impact.
Ucommerce does not recommend using software that has reached its EOL. It will have implications, including security vulnerabilities, compliance risks, performance, no new features, and lack of support.
So, upgrade sooner rather than later. It is worth the investment considering the issues it will bring to wait. It is the cheaper option in the long run.
Understanding the potential challenges that may arise is crucial. In this section, we will highlight the risks and provide a detailed explanation of each one:
- Without continuous updates, staying aligned with essential regulations, such as GDPR, becomes more challenging. As compliance becomes harder to ensure, the risk of legal penalties and financial consequences increases.
- Once Umbraco 8 transitions out of the security phase, the software ceases to provide fixes for any new security vulnerabilities. While the software may continue to operate, there is no guarantee of maintaining optimal security post the EOL date. Operating on unsupported software leaves your system highly exposed to cyber-attacks, putting your data and customer information at risk.
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As your system continues to operate without updates, you may start noticing performance issues like sluggish load times and a less-than-ideal user experience. By delaying the upgrade, you risk missing out on significant performance improvements that will enhance user experience and boost SEO benefits. Upgrading is key to maintaining an optimal user journey and maximizing SEO advantages.
- Failure to upgrade will result in missing out on the latest features and enhancements offered in the newer versions of Umbraco. Continuing to use outdated software means foregoing opportunities for business expansion and innovation that these advancements bring.
Umbraco 8 EOL: What's Your Next Step?
Our recommendation for migration is:
- Migrate to Ucommerce Next Gen integrating with your existing Umbraco solution.
- Migrate Umbraco to the latest LTS (an LTS, Long-Term Support, version is a software release that receives maintenance, security updates, and critical bug fixes over a prolonged period, ensuring stability and reliability without requiring frequent upgrades to newer versions.)
- Point Ucommerce Next Gen to the new Umbraco solution.
We are with you the whole time
When it comes to migrating to Ucommerce NextGen, we understand how critical a smooth transition is. Many of you are still on older versions, so it’s vital for us to provide the right tools, services, and processes to make your migration as seamless and easy as possible.
The goal is simple: reduce the cost and time needed for your migration while ensuring the process is as secure and efficient as possible.
Automated commerce data migration tool
Regardless of which version of Ucommerce you’re currently using, with just the flick of a button, all your data - carts, orders, catalogs, everything - can be migrated automatically to NextGen. It’s effortless from your side; once the button is pressed, your data is securely transferred to the new platform, ready for you to start building.
Migration best practices document
This resource outlines how things were done in the old system and how to do them in the new platform, making the process clear and straightforward, so you can move from A to B without the guesswork.
Masterclass
Training is another key element. We’ve revamped our masterclasses to ensure developers, whether entry-level or senior, can quickly get up to speed with NextGen and all its latest features. It covers everything from new capabilities to the latest Microsoft technologies, preparing your team to build confidently on our composable, headless platform. And the best part? It’s completely free. We’ll come to you, deliver the training, and help your developers gain the skills they need - all at no cost.
Hypercare
This goes beyond the prep phase - it’s there for when you’re deep in the migration process. We know that questions and challenges will arise, so Hypercare provides direct, instant communication between your migration team and our product and solutions teams. With quick responses through instant messaging, you’ll get fast answers and avoid unnecessary delays, making the entire process much smoother.
So, if you’re considering migrating to Ucommerce NextGen, remember we’ve got the tools, expertise, and team ready to assist you every step of the way.What version of Umbraco should I migrate to?
Let's say Umbraco is the CMS you’ve chosen for your website. In that case, we highly recommend upgrading to their latest Long-Term Support (LTS) version to ensure you’re getting the best support and stability. Currently, that would be Umbraco 13.
Why upgrade to Umbraco 13? Here’s why:
- Extended Support: As an LTS release, Umbraco 13 will receive ongoing support and updates, providing you with peace of mind and security for years to come.
- New Features: Umbraco 13 comes packed with new features and improvements designed to enhance performance, user experience, and flexibility, making it easier to manage your content and build sophisticated websites.
Umbraco 13 and Ucommerce Next Gen
Ucommerce Next Gen is composable. Unlike traditional monolithic systems, which are built as a whole and replaced every few years, composable solutions allow businesses to construct their IT systems from interchangeable parts. These parts can be updated, replaced, or expanded independently, ensuring the system evolves with the business's needs without needing a complete overhaul.
Here's what you get if you combine Ucommerce Next Gen with Umbraco:
.NET Performance improvements
Firstly, the primary advantage of combining Ucommerce Next Gen with Umbraco 13 is that both are built on the latest .NET platform. .NET comes with HUGE performance improvements compared to the old .NET Framework that Ucommerce Classic and Umbraco 8 are built on.
A Developer Friendly Environment
Ucommerce Next Gen uses Microsoft best practices and tools e.g. EF Core, Microsoft Dependency Injection Framework and async programming.
Familiarity in Ucommerce
Ucommerce Next Gen is built on the same principles as Ucommerce Classic. This means that your custom logic can be migrated easily, ensuring a smooth transition without the need for extensive rewrites or reconfigurations. The familiarity of the underlying architecture allows developers to leverage their existing knowledge and expertise, minimizing the learning curve and reducing the time and effort required to adapt.
Whether you continue with Umbraco or opt for a different CMS, we’re here to support your Ucommerce migration and ensure seamless integration with your chosen platform, making the transition as smooth as possible.
Let us help you
With over 15 years of experience in e-commerce, Ucommerce has been deeply involved with Umbraco since our first integration with Umbraco 4 back in 2009. Having built numerous Umbraco-based solutions, we understand the platform inside out. Our commitment is to keep our community informed about important changes in the Umbraco ecosystem, ensuring you're always up to date with key developments.
Book a meeting
When using an older version, it's time to decide on your next steps. But don’t worry - we will help! Whether you choose to continue with Umbraco or explore another CMS, we're ready to assist with the Ucommerce migration, and integration with the CMS, to ensure a smooth transition.
Our team is committed to supporting you in finding the best solution for your needs and making the process as seamless as possible. You don't need to be concerned - we’ve got you covered every step of the way.
For personalized guidance, feel free to book a 1-1 session with our Customer Success team, where we'll offer tailored advice and discuss potential next steps for your solution.
