Magento Website Maintenance Checklist – The Ultimate Guide

Looking to keep your Magento website running at its best? Regular maintenance is key to ensuring that your store remains fast, secure, and fully functional. Ongoing Magento performance optimization streamlines your website and provides a better user experience.

In this article, we’ll explore common Magento issues and the essential support services that help keep your site in top shape. Boost your Magento sales and improve the customer experience today by improving your website.

Our team handles all aspects of your Magento store’s health, providing everything from routine maintenance to in-depth quarterly reviews.

Key Takeaways

• Optimize your Magento 2 store to get the full benefit of Magento suppport
• Magento website support services improve the customer experience and streamline the sales process
• Take advantage of new features of Magento to improve security and maintain your website
• Go with support and maintenance teams that understand the differences and support needs for the different editions of Magento
• More insights into our Magento support team for Magento support and maintenance services

Table of Contents

1. What is a Magneto Website Maintenance Plan?
2. Magento Website Maintenance Checklist
3. Security Patches and Updates
4. Review Code Integrity
5. Website Backup and Disaster Recovery
6. Optimize Magento Website Speed and Performance
7. Extension and Magento Theme Updates
8. Database and Log Management
9. Mobile & Browser Testing
10. User Experience (UX) Testing
11. Monitor Magento Cron Jobs and Scheduled Tasks
12. Improve Web Compliance and Accessibility
13. SEO and Broken Link Checks
14. Building your Magento Support Plan
15. Magento Maintenance Website Services FAQs

What is a Magento Website Maintenance Plan?

A Magento website maintenance plan is an ongoing service package that keeps your Magento webstore secure, up-to-date, and performing at its best. These types of service packages typically include routine tasks like software updates, security patches, performance optimizations, bug fixes, backup management, and extension updates.

The goal of these service plans is to improve website performance, minimize website downtime, and prevent issues before they happen. Maintenance plans can range from basic monthly checkups to comprehensive, ongoing support.

Creating a webstore is not a one-and-done task. Launching your website is only the beginning. Well-performing sites require continual checks and updates, including patching security vulnerabilities, updating website themes to the latest version, and ensuring that all extensions and add-ons are secure and compatible.

Our monthly Magento website maintenance plans make website maintenance easy. We do the heavy lifting and ensure that your website remains up to date, allowing you to focus on what you do best: serving your customers.

Magento Website Maintenance Checklist

Here is a list of some of the most common requested Magento website maintenance tasks. Some of these are easy and may require no more than a few minutes per month while others are more time-consuming. It’s important to make sure that any updates or changes don’t break your site or interfere with performance. This is why we recommend having a staging site to test all major updates and new integrations before pushing them to your production Magento webstore.

1. Security Updates and Patches

This is probably the single most important part of Magento website maintenance, particularly in the modern landscape of large well-publicized hacks and data breaches. Researchers and users are constantly identifying new security vulnerabilities, leading online platforms including Magento, Adobe Commerce, Shopify, and more to release new security patches.

Keeping your site secure requires installing these new security patches and checking for new patches on a regular basis.

Tasks

The tasks involved in checking for and installing new Magento security patches include:

• Monitoring Adobe Security Bulletins and checking for new updates
• Applying the latest security patches in you staging site
• Testing website, add-on, and integration performance to ensure compatibility
• Pushing the security updates to your production environment

2. Review Code Integrity

Clean, well-structured code is key to keeping your Magento website running smoothly. Regularly reviewing your codebase ensures that it aligns with Magento’s best practices and coding standards. Well-written code is easier to debug, optimize, and scale as your business evolves. It also helps you avoid technical debt—which can slow down your site and complicate future maintenance.

Magento 2 is an open-source eCommerce platform, meaning developers have free access to modify and customize the source code. This access is what gives Magneto its extreme level of flexibility. The downside is that it makes your Magento webstore more susceptible to coding issues that harm the perform of your site.

Tasks

The tasks involved in reviewing code integrity include:

• Set up a version-controlled environment like Git to track all code changes
• Audit your website code for unauthorized or suspicious code, including unexpected scripts, inline JavaScript, obfuscated code, and more
• Use tools like MageReport, Sucuri SiteCheck, or the Security Scan Tool from Adobe
• Verify the file structure of your website against a clean version of Magento to spot altered core files
• Run automated tests including unit tests, integration tests, and functional tests to validate core functionality
• Check for technical debt, or legacy code, shortcuts, and temporary fixes that could cause issues later and create a plan to refactor or replace problematic code

3. Website Backup and Disaster Recovery

Regular website backups are essential. If something breaks or otherwise goes wrong, having a recent backup of your site allows you to get it back up and running with minimal downtime and information loss.

Tasks

The tasks involved in performing regular Magento website backups include:

• Perform regular, automated full-site backups, including the files and database
• Store these backups in remote/cloud locations
• Check with your hosting provider, as some offer regular website backup services or can easily restore previous versions of your site

4. Optimize Magento Website Speed and Performance

Slow-loading pages can hurt your business. They can lead to higher bounce rates, abandoned shopping carts, and poor search rankings. Magento performance optimization streamlines your site and provides a better user experience, boosting your rankings on Search Engines like Google.

Use tools such as Google PageSpeed Insights to analyze your site’s performance and uncover key issues, such as:

• Unoptimized images
• Excessive or bulky code
• Inefficient database queries

Performing website optimizations to boost site speed both improves the user performance and your visibility in search results. This keeps visitors engaged and conversions high. Magento speed optimization is a critical service that we provide to keep your site performing its best.

Tasks

The tasks involved in optimizing your Magento website speed and performance include:

• Compress images to reduce load time
• Minify CSS and JavaScript to streamline code
• Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN) to serve content faster
• Enable full-page caching
• Regularly audit slow queries and optimize MySQL indexes

5. Extension and Magento Theme Updates

Outdated website extensions or Magento themes are a common source of problems. They may even result in security vulnerabilities or breaches. Third-party extensions and integrations like our E-Link Sage eCommerce integration can add valuable features to your Magento webstore, but they can also require updates or regular checks to ensure compatibility. In addition, updating your website theme may make it incompatible with some existing extensions. This means that the updating process must be done carefully, ideally on staging site before it gets pushed to the main server.

Tasks

The tasks involved in managing your extension and Magento theme updates include:

• Review all third-party extensions and integrations monthly
• Remove unused, outdate, or abandoned modules
• Update themes and custom code to align with core Magento updates

6. Database and Log Management

A website database contains all of your website’s data. A well-managed website database allows your site to efficiently store, organize, and retrieve information. A website log contains records of everything that happens on your website and server, including user log ins, server errors, system updates, and more.

Website database and log management are critical components of overall website performance. An oversized website database can reduce website performance and slow down your website. Database optimization allows your website to retrieve information more quickly and improve the user experience. More efficient queries can reduce the load on your server, lowering hosting costs.

Tasks

The tasks involved in database and log management include:

• Regularly monitor and clean Magento website logs
• Reindex your catalogue data regularly
• Optimize MySQL tables and review error logs
• Check your Magento 2 webstore’s coding standards after all customizations, migrations, and upgrades to ensure they adhere to Magento’s coding standards

7. Mobile & Browser Testing

It’s critical to provide a good user experience across all screen sizes and browsers. Your website may display and behave differently of each combination of device and browser. Your website may not be optimized for mobile, leading to broken layouts, slow loading speeds, and features that don’t work.

These types of issues will reduce the user experience, leading to higher bounce rates and lost conversions. It will also harm your search rankings, making your webstore less visible to potential users. That’s why it’s important to perform regular mobile and browser testing for Magento.

Tasks

The tasks involved in website mobile and browser testing include:

• Test website performance on all major browsers and devices
• Check mobile page speed and layout
• Review Core Web Vitals metrics in Google Search Console

8. User Experience (UX) Testing

User experience (UX) describes the experience your website provides to visitors. Ideally, your website should be easy, intuitive, and enjoyable to use. UX testing helps you understand how real users interact with your site and identify potential pain points that could be lowering engagement, conversions, and customer satisfaction. It reduces friction and drop-off points while boosting customer retention.

Tasks

The tasks involved in Magento UX testing include:

• Run usability tests on different devices and browsers
• Monitor user behavior using tools like Google Analytics
• Regularly the checkout process for bugs or friction points

9. Monitor Magento Cron Jobs and Scheduled Tasks

In Magento 2, cron jobs and scheduled tasks are automated background processes that run at specific intervals. They keep your site running smoothly without the need for constant manual input. Cron jobs automate key processes on your Magento site, including:

• Indexing
• Generating sitemaps
• Syncing data

If cron jobs and scheduled tasks don’t run properly, it can lead to performance issues, data inconsistencies, and broken functionality. That’s why it’s important to regularly check your cron configuration.

Tasks

The tasks involved in managing cron jobs and scheduled tasks include:

• Regularly check and monitor your backend cron configuration
• Confirm that cron jobs are running at the correct intervals
• Review the cron_schedule table
• Use monitoring tools and alerts for when critical cron jobs fail

10. Improve Website Compliance and Accessibility

Improving website compliance and accessibility boosts website visibility and user access. Website owners are required to follow certain legal and industry standards such as the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDRP) or the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

Website accessibility relates to the American with Disabilities Act (ADA). Improving access to your website is good business practice. It ensures that all people can use it, including those on screen readers or other assisted devices. It also helps you avoid potentially costly lawsuits and boost your search rankings, since Google and other popular search engines factor ADA compliance into their rankings. Our Magento ADA compliance services help ensure that your website remains accessible to all.

Tasks

The tasks involved in improving website compliance and accessibility include:

• Run accessibility audits such as WCAG 2.1
• Ensure cookie consent and data privacy policies are up to date
• Set up a secure checkout with HTTPS and PCI compliance

11. SEO and Broken Link Checks

Good content, including pictures, product descriptions, and text, is the backbone of websites. It’s an important part of the user experience and improves SEO. Over time, content on your site can become outdated. External links may break as third-party content is moved or changed. Regularly updating your website content improves the user experience and boosts your site visibility.

Search engines like Google prioritize fresh, updated content. SEO has moved beyond keywords to focus on user engagement, which means your site needs useful, updated content that is attractive to users.

Tasks

The tasks involved in improving your Magento 2 webstore’s SEO include:

• Check for broken links and 404 pages every month
• Validate structured data and rich text snippets
• Avoid duplicate content and canonical tags
• Use SEM tools like SEMRush and Ahrefs to regularly optimize site content

Magento Website Maintenance FAQs

Here are some of the most common FAQs about Magento website maintenance.

How do Magento eCommerce services improve website performance?

Magento website maintenance services are designed to keep your site running at optimal performance. Certified Magento experts use proven strategies to improve speed, security, and stability. These services include routine updates, critical security patches, and performance optimization. With professional Magento support, even the most complex maintenance tasks are handled efficiently, so you don’t have to worry about the technical details.

How does Magento 2 maintenance help my online store?

Top-tier Magento support and maintenance services keep your platform up to date and running smoothly. With a dedicated maintenance team, you gain access to a full range of development support and Magento expertise from front-end to back-end development. Proactive maintenance helps resolve issues before they affect your business, minimizing downtime and improving the user experience.

What benefits do website maintenance services offered by certified Magento developers offer for eCommerce stores?

Continuous maintenance by certified Magento developers brings significant advantages to ecommerce stores. These specialists keep your site secure, up-to-date, and running efficiently. They’re equipped to swiftly address issues, introduce new features, and fine-tune performance. Their expertise is critical for managing the complexities of Magento-based ecommerce platforms.

How do Magento support packages balance cost and service quality for online stores?

Magento support services are crafted to provide a cost-effective approach to ongoing website maintenance, offering flexible packages that suit a wide range of Magento stores. These services play a crucial role in enhancing website performance and strengthening security. While the cost of Magento 2 development can vary depending on your site’s complexity, investing in professional maintenance often proves more economical over time by helping you avoid expensive downtime and security vulnerabilities. When selecting a support package, it’s important to consider factors such as the size of your store, your team’s technical expertise, and your overall budget. Choosing a well-structured solution ensures your website remains secure, efficient, and competitive in the ecommerce landscape.

How to improve the speed of your Magento 2 website?

Improving the speed of your Magento 2 website involves optimizing website performance. To do this, focus on tasks including optimizing caching, compressing images, and streamlining your code. Enabling full-page caching and using a CDN will deliver static content faster. Minimize the use of CSS and Javascript to reduce load times and consider using Redis for faster caching and session storage. Regularly clean your database, audit extensions and integrations, and choose high-performance hosting solutions tailored for Magento. These steps will collectively improve your site speed while boosting search engine rankings.

Why should I care about the maintenance of my Magento website?

Regular maintenance is essential for several key reasons. It improves security by protecting your site against cyber threats and preventing hackers from accessing sensitive customer information. Maintenance also improves website performance, ensuring fast loading speeds and a better user experience. From an SEO perspective, regular updates boost your rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs). Additionally, regular maintenance improves sales by preventing failures caused by outdated content or technical issues.

What are the usual costs associated with Magento website maintenance?

The cost of maintaining a Magento website depends on several factors, including the complexity of your site, the level of support needed, and whether you choose a maintenance package or hourly services. While we have provided a general Magento 2 website checklist, support needs can vary based on need and the complexity of the site. For a personalized quote that fits your specific needs, please contact us using the form below.

How frequently should I update my Magento website?

The frequency of updates varies depending on the type of update. You should apply security patches as soon as they become available to protect your site from potential threats. Updates to the Magento core code, add-ons, extensions, and themes are less critical. We recommend performing these updates every few weeks to ensure optimal performance and compatibility.

What are the benefits of hiring an agency to handle Magento website maintenance?

Although it’s possible to handle maintenance tasks on your own, partnering with a Magento maintenance provider like Icecube Digital is often a more efficient and cost-effective solution. Their expertise and resources ensure every aspect of Magento maintenance is professionally managed, freeing you to focus on growing your business.

Magento Maintenance Tips

This is one in our ongoing series of Magento Maintenance Tips and Tricks. We’re previously covered other topics including:

Magento Support and Maintenance Services – Building Your Magento Support Plan

At CertiPro, we specialize in all things related to Magento, including Sage Magento integrations, Magento website maintenance services, ADA compliance, and SEO services.

We’ll help you build or maintain a beautiful, well-programmed site that is accessible to all users and easy to find on popular search engines, including Google, Bing, and more. Contact us today to start building your personalized Magento support plan.

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