Install & update via download
Installing a kit
The most simple way to install Kirby without any additional tools, is to download one of the existing Kits:
Once downloaded,
- Extract the contents of the ZIP file into your server's Document root
- Visit your new Kirby site in your browser at
yourdomain.com - Visit the Panel at
yourdomain.com/panel
Updating your installation
To update Kirby, download the Kirby version you want to upgrade to from GitHub and replace the kirby folder with the extracted zip folder (make sure to rename the unzipped folder to kirby.
Make sure to delete the media folder. It will be automatically recreated.
If you use any plugins, make sure to update them as well.
That's it! Because Kirby does not use a database by default, you don't have to run any database migrations.
Kirby uses the Semantic Versioning scheme:
{major}.{minor}(.{patch})
Major releases (e.g 4.0 to 5.0) may contain breaking changes and deprecations. In such a case, you might have to update your code and plugins used in your installation. You can find breaking changes of a new release in the changelogs. If you are updating from older versions, multiple changelogs may apply. Always read them carefully to identify potential issues.
Minor and patch releases (e.g. 4.1 to 4.2 or 4.1 to 4.1.1) can generally be applied without changes to your site code.
Note that the major version of Kirby 3 was the second number (e.g. the major version of Kirby 3.9.0 is 9). So e.g. updates from Kirby 3.8 to Kirby 3.9 also came with breaking changes.
In any case, please never update a live website directly on the server. Test updates locally first to see if something breaks.