In some cases, you are not able to update/upgrade your WordPress and WordPress Plugins to a newer version without providing your FTP connection information. This is a common issue whereby the WordPress system can’t write to your /wp-content folder directly.
The most common reason I have run across for this is lack of space in your hosting account. So first check with your hosting provider to see if your hosting is full.
Another common cause is your hosting plan itself. This issue can pop up when you are on a shared hosting plan and you do not have permissions granted to write to the folder. So you can either have your hosting provider change your plan to something compatible with WordPress or you can manually grant yourself write permissions.
To do this you need to access your site via FTP. If you do not have an FTP program, I would recommend FileZilla. If you don’t have your access information, log into your hosting account to get your FTP’s host, username, and password.
Once you have logged in via FTP, navigate to the wp-content folder and right-click on it to change to file permissions to 775. For more information on changing File Permissions and the security risks that come along with it, check out what WordPress has to say at the WordPress Security Codex.
Alternatively, you can follow these steps below to update WordPress automatically without using FTP:
1. Open wordpress/wp-config.php
2. Insert FS_METHOD under the rest of your code
3. Save the php file and upload it to your server. You can either do this through FTP or from your Control Panel (if one is provided from your hosting provider).
Still need help? Leave a comment below…
