How to upgrade WordPress without a sweat

A few months ago, I did a WordPress upgrade for Bloomize and my other blogs, without using a plugin. It was my first attempt at upgrading since the day I started on WP in um…2006. I know I should have upgraded ages ago but I can’t help myself at being really comfortable with ancient versions.

But at last I went forth to collect these steps and took them in order to upgrade without a glitch:

• Do a backup at phpMyAdmin.
• Backup all WP files into the hard drive.
• Deactivate all plugins.
• Download the new version from the official WP site. Unzip and extract to the hard drive.
• With the exceptions of wp-content and wp-config.php, upload + overwrite every other WP related file over to the web server via FTP.
• Login to the blog and click on the link shown to complete the new installation.

Jots:

• An existing theme or plugin might not be compatible with the new WP version. Checks can be done at WordPress Theme Compatibilities or WordPress Plugin Compatibilities.
• Keep backup files from the Theme and Plugins directory, especially after making changes to the theme or any of the plugins.
• Ensure these files are not deleted from the site during an upgrade.
• Useful link:
  Codex/Upgrading WP (detailed instructions)