According to the Zend 2023 PHP Landscape Report, over 61% of PHP community respondents are currently using at least one unsupported version of PHP.



This number rises to around 66% for companies with more than 100 employees. The report found that many teams struggle to keep up with updates due to a lack of resources or prioritization, leaving them vulnerable to potentially dangerous security flaws.

While 68% of respondents plan to update their systems within the next year, over half spend only 25% or less of their development time on tasks such as migrations. The focus is often on developing new features rather than application security. Companies are faced with the choice of ensuring security and falling behind competitors or focusing on new features and risking exposure to vulnerabilities.

However, there are options available to help companies balance both priorities, including commercial PHP LTS and migration services from Zend.

Additionally, the report examined trends in orchestration and containerization for PHP. Over 57% of respondents reported using containerization technology, and over 47% are currently employing orchestration tools. The report found that larger businesses were more likely to adopt these technologies.

The Zend survey also raised funds for Code2040, a nonprofit organization that works to remove obstacles to leadership roles in the innovation economy for Black and Latinx individuals.

Overall, the report highlights the importance of staying up-to-date with PHP updates and balancing the need for new features with application security. It also emphasizes the potential benefits of containerization and orchestration technologies for PHP applications.

To mitigate these challenges, PHP teams should prioritize regular maintenance and updates as part of their software development lifecycle. This includes dedicating time for testing, refactoring, and ensuring backward compatibility with existing code. Collaboration within the team and leveraging automation tools can help streamline the update process, reducing the overall resource burden.

Moreover, as a software engineer, I understand the importance of staying informed about the latest PHP developments and security advisories. By actively monitoring relevant communities and industry news, PHP teams can proactively address potential issues and plan for necessary updates.


it's crucial to acknowledge that outdated versions of PHP may contain security vulnerabilities that can compromise sensitive data and expose systems to potential attacks. Additionally, maintaining compatibility with newer PHP versions is essential for leveraging improved performance and features.

In addressing these challenges, PHP teams should adopt a proactive approach to update management. This entails allocating dedicated time and resources for periodic updates, testing, and quality assurance to ensure that the system remains robust and secure. Collaboration among team members, including developers, testers, and system administrators, is paramount to effectively manage the update process.

Furthermore, leveraging automation tools for tasks such as testing, deployment, and monitoring can significantly streamline the update process, reducing the manual workload and potential errors associated with manual updates.

As a software engineer, I emphasize the importance of staying informed about the latest developments in PHP, security advisories, and best practices. Continuous learning and knowledge-sharing within the team are fundamental for keeping abreast of industry trends and adopting optimal strategies for update management.

Addressing the struggle with PHP updates due to limited resources requires a multifaceted approach encompassing proactive planning, collaboration, automation, and continuous learning. By prioritizing these aspects, PHP teams can effectively manage system updates and maintain the stability, security, and performance of their software.