Considerations in 2023
As Drupal 9's end-of-life date approaches, the time window for migration preparations is steadily shrinking each month. Given that we are already halfway through the year, we strongly advise initiating preparations promptly. Drupal 10 brings a multitude of exciting new features and enhanced functionality to anticipate, making an early transition highly advantageous.
Drupal 10 features
Boasting improved integrations and themes, Drupal 10 has a lot to offer. Here are the key features you should know about pre-D10 upgrade so you're ready to go!
Out-of-the-box Olivero theme
Looking for fewer frills and more function? Drupal's new default theme, Olivero, is the answer.
After much trialling and testing, Olivero will become a staple default theme for Drupal 10. Embodying a modern approach to web design, Olivero’s out-of-the-box solution for budding and existing Drupal websites offers a crisp, clean style.
However, the winning feature of this default theme isn’t simply aesthetic-related; Olivero is set to be the most accessible Drupal theme yet with full WCAG AA compliance. From its layout to the colours used within the theme, your site will have solid foundations of accessibility using Olivero.
Automatic updates
Extensive manual updates will soon be a thing of the past with Drupal 10; the Automatic Updates module will give site owners everything they need for seamless update processes. Whether it’s released in version 10.0.0 or later, the module will support automatic security, minor version and core updates.
From creating a separate carbon copy of your site (staging site) where error detection and testing can take place, to flagging any issues that require intervention and review, the majority of future updates will soon be a breeze for site owners.
CKEditor 5
CKEditor is a rich text editor (otherwise known as a WYSIWYG - "What You See Is What You Get" - editor) that allows site admins – with the right permissions – to edit, write and remove content within a page. With CKEditor 4 integration’s end of life date reportedly set for the end of 2023, Drupal 10 will only support CKEditor 5 as it plays a key part in the upgrade.
But what’s new with CKEditor 5 compared to its predecessor, CKEditor 4?
Whilst there are under-the-hood improvements for developers such as better integrations with frameworks like React and Node.js, the immediate benefits for site admins entails a much-improved UX and UI.
CKEditor 5 boasts auto-formatting making content writing and edits more intuitive, improved UI & visuals of editor and styling toolbars and increased controls for users to change/amend the UI and features available within the editor.
In short, it provides a much cleaner experience for site owners and admins who want full control of what is/isn’t editable, and want the most intuitive experience when adding and editing content.
Other notable changes with Drupal 10
Alongside the above changes and additions, Drupal 10 will;
- rely on the latest version of Symfony (6.2), which supports website and application development and helps to increase the capabilities of bespoke development for more flexible, scalable solutions
- support decoupled menus giving less-technical members of your team the ability to change menus and increase control over site-specific processes
- require PHP 8.1 meaning it’ll support the latest and greatest programming language to create even better digital solutions
- drop Internet Explorer 11 support due to the browser’s stagnated growth and innovation. Rather than suffer the cost of extra development to accommodate the browser, it’s chosen to say goodbye to its support and invest in other, more future-ready features
- use an updated StarterKit theme generator to provide front-end developers with a robust, clean foundation to build upon
- use an updated Claro administration theme to give the CMS a much-needed revamp and simpler, easy-to-navigate UI
What does Drupal 10 mean for you?
So you know the specifics, but what does upgrading to D10 mean for site owners, marketing teams and business owners?
- Better UI and UX: the changes Drupal is set to make to its content editor, admin UI and control management will give site owners the experience and control they need to get the most out of the CMS and, as a bi-product, support improved internal website processes.
- More opportunities for bespoke solutions: being an open-source framework means Drupal development teams already benefit from an immense amount of flexibility and control, but D10’s new features will provide website teams with even more options to create, edit and scale web solutions to suit business needs.
- Ease of use: with more control, improved UI and a focus on future-ready features like the Automatic Updates module, Drupal is only going to get easier to use if you’re a site admin or owner. As long as your site has been set up correctly by developers well-versed with Drupal, you’ll benefit from the improved functions and usability of D10.
Considerations when upgrading from Drupal 9 to Drupal 10
To make sure your website is prepped for the upgrade, your development team will need enough time to consider fundamental Drupal upgrade processes, migrate content from CKEditor 4 to CKEditor 5 and replace modules in the case of deprecated code.
Whilst Drupal Association, Acquia & Palantir have partnered up to automatically provide patches for as many contributed modules as possible, your development team will still be needed to progress the upgrade and make sure all of the modules your site uses are D10 ready.
Upgrading to Drupal 10 in 2023
Giving your development team enough time to progress the upgrade is vital, but if you’re low on resource or need further support, get in touch to see how we can help. Having worked with Drupal since 2009 we know a thing or two about this open-source framework, so drop us a message or give us a call.