This title is not clickbait. It’s a real problem.
It’s been more than a year since Drupal 6 was abandoned by the open source Drupal community, leaving major security vulnerabilities in its wake. If it hasn’t already cost your organization, it will—and in more ways than one.
What Drupal 6 End of Life (EOL) Means
Drupal 6 is open source software, which means it was developed and maintained by a community of developers. Unfortunately, as of February 24th, 2016, that maintenance has come to an end. The software is no longer updated.
Why Drupal 6 Websites Are Vulnerable to Hackers
You and your team have worked hard to build relationships with your supporters. Earning their trust took time—but it will only take a second to lose it.
Due to security vulnerabilities, user information can easily get stolen. Whether it’s through form submission or user accounts, your supporters’ privacy is at constant risk. In fact, we would venture to say if your Drupal 6 website haven’t already been hacked, it’s only a matter of time.
Why Drupal 6 Support Is Expensive
If it were just announced that 99% of mechanics would no longer service the type of vehicle you own, what would it mean for you? Your choices would be severely limited, and they would have the freedom to raise their rates exponentially—same thing with Drupal 6.
Open source software is tested by a ton of users, and the best solutions come from group thinking. Once you eliminate that option, you’re left with little choice, great expense, and solutions less rigorously tested.
Why Drupal 6 Websites Are Slower
New server operating systems are being developed all the time, but Drupal 6 can’t take advantage of those technologies. Its outdated code won’t “talk” with the new server technology, leaving its users stuck in the past. Let’s not forget:
Statistics show you have fewer than 2 seconds to load your site before most users leave. Think of those missed opportunities!
Search rank with Google and Bing are now directly tied to website speed. If your website is slow, you’ll be pushed off of page 1 and attain far less traffic.
How Drupal 6 Harms Your Progress
If you and your staff are constantly forced to deal with website problems by scrambling to find a developer (assuming they will return your call during an emergency), it negatively affects your long-term goals.
With all of your energy addressing emergencies, who has time to create new ideas and strategies that forward your cause?
We know you have enough on your to-do list. Do you need to start your day dealing with an emergency website crash?
Why Now is the Time to Migrate to Drupal 7
You have a choice. Continue running around with your hair on fire, or invest in your digital marketing program.
The process can be involved, but is manageable when you break it into simple steps. That’s why our team has created a four-step process that makes it easy.
The process addresses:
- the amount of content and the content structure
- the functionality and how pages are built
- the design of your website
- the Drupal modules
In the end, it’s a choice between your website being a liability or an asset for your organization. As we all know, websites have become a critical part of our brand identities and programmatic goals.
If a short-term investment can save you long-term costs and present more opportunities in the long run, why not go for it?