Getting ready for PHP 8

The next major version of PHP, version 8.0, is scheduled for release later this month, and it represents a huge step from current PHP 7.x, but it also brings many breaking changes that would require changes to existing code to be able to run on new PHP.

Jump from PHP 5.x to 7.0 required a lot of testing, modifications, and more testing, and each subsequent PHP version required some additional work, but not too much. With PHP 8, changes will be more substantial, and testing can be difficult.

I have started some initial tests with PHP 8. The problem right now is that current stable WordPress versions are not PHP 8 compatible. Upcoming WordPress 5.6 should be compatible with PHP 8, but even that might not be 100% compatible, and it can take a few more updates to make it compatible. In any case, the plan is first to test all Dev4Press shared library (used by all Dev4Press plugins), and then test individual plugins and apply changes to make plugins PHP 8 compatible.

I have done some initial testing with a limited number of plugins, using current development versions of PHP 8 and WordPress 5.6, and the first tests are very encouraging. When PHP 7 was released, the work I did has paid off in a big way for PHP 8 compatibility, and several plugins I tested all work without any warnings or errors in PHP. I plan to test all the plugins in the coming weeks.

Because of the new PHP and wide range of PHP versions available, from December 2020, Dev4Press plugins will no longer be tested with PHP 5.6. No changes or fixes for PHP 5.6 compatibility will not be deployed, making PHP 7.0 defacto minimal supported version for upcoming releases of Dev4Press plugins since January 1, 2021.

If you notice any issues with Dev4Press and PHP 8, please let me know.

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