How We Rescued Our WordPress Site After a PHP Upgrade

The Unexpected Crash

It started as a simple maintenance task. We logged into our GoDaddy hosting dashboard and upgraded PHP, but got many incompatibility errors.

Deprecated: Creation of dynamic property wpdb::…

Parse error: syntax error, unexpected token “{“…

HTTP ERROR 500

Reaching Out for Help

We contacted GoDaddy support. They explained that our outdated WordPress version wasn’t compatible with PHP 8.4. We had two options: downgrade PHP or update WordPress. We chose to update WordPress.

Backing Up the Site

Before making any changes, we used the All-in-One WP Migration plugin to back up the site. We exported and downloaded the .wpress file, which gave us peace of mind.

Then we used Update WordPress Database. The site began loading, but only for a second—it redirected elsewhere briefly.

Fixing the Redirect Issue

We also discovered that when visiting our site from search engines like Google or DuckDuckGo, it would briefly redirect to a suspicious URL. This indicated our site might have been compromised.

To fix this, we:

· Scanned the site using GoDaddy’s malware tools

· Removed suspicious code

· Reinstalled fresh plugin and theme files where needed

Fixing Warnings

Though the site loaded, we saw deprecation warnings in the dashboard. To clean them up, we updated all plugins and changed settings.

This wasn’t just technical and about fixing errors. It tested our leadership and learning and evolving the way we manage and sustain our online work. We also took the opportunity to update our website to a new look and organization.

We observed, reflected, acted, and learned continuously using a beginners mind, with peer support tools, and building shared clarity and working at as a team.

And the technical tools I leaned on:

· All-in-One WP Migration for safe backups

· FTP/cPanel for file management

GoDaddy Support as a fallback safety net

From panic to clarity, we handled a broken site, suspicious redirects, updated old systems, and brought everything back to life— with a cleaner, faster website. If you’ve been avoiding updates because you fear breaking things, I hope our story gives you the courage to move forward.