Add ability to select any version of WordPress

It’d be nice if there was a feature to select what version of WordPress should be installed. Much like I’m able to choose the PHP version. This would be helpful in setting up specific sites for testing especially.

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+1 on this. It’s a need I’ve run into because Flywheel delays updating for a few weeks.

Here’s an example:

I have a site on Flywheel running 4.6.1 that needs some significant edits. I pull it down to Local, and am forced to install 4.7 there. I perform the database updates, and update it the first time I log in on my local server.

Changes are complete, and I think about pushing it back up. But now my local install is at 4.7 and my remote install is at 4.6.1, and I don’t have any way to update it through Flywheel before pushing live.

This has the potential to cause issues particularly in regard to custom post type templates, as the handling of templates has been somewhat changed in 4.7 (and I’ve written a plugin that handles those versions of WordPress separately as a result of that breaking change).

Edge case, but I wanted you so see where I’m coming from.

In my case I need languages. Some installations have to be GB english version, some others US version… sometimes they have to be RU.

Language you can pick in wp-admin, since version 4.5 if i’m not mistaken.

Would love a version picker though, or at least install the latest, instead if 4.6

+1 for a version picker

I’ve created a script that lets you quickly change WordPress versions when ssh-ed in. Not ideal but it gets the job done. This script was originally created for VVV. I’m thinking about making into a dedicated script for the Local app.

Read about it here https://keesiemeijer.wordpress.com/2017/04/09/changing-wordpress-versions-in-the-local-by-flywheel-app/

+1 for this. I’m hoping to use Local to test my WordPress plugins and investigate support issues, etc. It’s great to be able to swap PHP versions and see how they perform, but I also need the ability to change WP versions.

An edge case I’m sure and there are ways around it, but it would be so much nicer to be able to do it through Local.

First, thanks a lot for that amazing FREE tool !

I was searching for a way to try WP 5.0 BEFORE it’s official release…
To bad that we can’t choose / change the WP version from Local…
(Even if we should have a lot of warnings…)

I hope to see that soon (and be able to definitely bury MAMP)… :slightly_smiling_face:

Use WP CLI:

wp core update --version=4.9.8 --force

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or use the Core Rollback plugin :wink:

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This is a pretty old feature request, created when Local Classic was a thing, and which doesn’t seem to have much activity (the last reply was in April 2021, and the last vote happened in 2020)

Given that there’s a few workarounds from @ErmLocal and @afragen – is this still a priority for you users?

@redblue - I think that your edge-case is still a thing, it usually takes a couple of days before the FW infrastructure team to releases new images of WP core. Is this feature still valuable to you, or are the above work arounds sufficient?

If I don’t hear anything from the community (how about in two weeks?) I’ll go ahead and close this request to release the votes and clean up this category.

@ben.turner honestly, in the time since, it’s not been too much of an issue. I generally would use CLI for changing the version on Local anyway, and the remote version and the local version not matching simply hasn’t happened to have mattered as much as WordPress has continued to evolve.

This ticket overall is not still a priority for me, and fixing the edge case is not either.

Thanks for the followup!

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The request is so old and the workarounds have been sufficient thus far. Adding this feature would automate a manual step though, so I still think it’d be slick to be able to quickly spin up a local site with a specific WordPress version (other than latest). I appear to be nearly the only one though, so will continue manually setting WordPress versions a needed.

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I would love to have this feature, It will make everything more covinient and straightforward

I just downloaded Local for the first time today, and It was honestly so confusing for me that I can change my webserver, database and php versions so easily but I can’t chnage wordpress version

In searching for a solution I found this thread, making this process automatic is just better UX IMO and it will come handy a lot

Since different hosts have different versions of Wordpress, it would be really convienet to match the version of wordpress to what your hosting service provides and and make sure everything works nicely

Hello @circlecube & all -

I spoke with the Local development team and this is on the list of future improvements. :tada:

We don’t have a set timeframe for this, but the team acknowledges the value it would provide to Local.

I will keep you all updated as I receive more information.

Thank you,

Sam :woman_technologist:t3: