10 reasons to upgrade Bitrix24 on-premises — Avivi's expert opinion

Bitrix24 differs from other business systems by its special flexibility and ability for comprehensive customization. Owners of on-premise versions feel this to the full extent. The Avivi company has been engaged in individual development for Bitrix24 since 2012 and has implemented its services in the markets of 56 countries around the world. We adhere to the statement: "if Bitrix24 lacks something, we can create it for you." And for the most part this is actually true, but there are exceptions.

Indeed, it is not a problem to develop new functionality or create a custom integration. However, a lot depends on the product itself and its capabilities, which no developers can cross. Even us. Bitrix24 updates its product every year or even twice a year, and each update is different from the previous one. In addition to adding new tools, each subsequent version contains additional methods, libraries, and most importantly, fixes previous errors that make the product more perfect. Cloud services are updated automatically and almost imperceptibly for users. But on-premise versions require manual updating, which is impossible without the consent of the owners.

We already wrote about the features of the update in the article "Be sure to read before updating Bitrix24!” of our blog, so we will not stop there. Now we want to share a list of 10 points that we compiled based on the appeals to Avivi of average users of Bitrix24 who had problems using the product. In all of these cases, custom development is ineffective or not possible at all because the legacy components of the on-premise version are unable to give customers what they need from their business software. However, a simple update to the latest version can completely solve the problem or remove the obstacles to solving it for Avivi developers.

On-premise upgrade is inextricably linked with PHP upgrade. As you know, the PHP language formed the basis of the Bitrix framework, in which Bitrix24 is developed. Since 2012, this language has also undergone many changes and updates, which made it perfect and powerful. New versions of the product are developed on version 8 and above, and from February 2023, the development team of Bitrix24 warned about the end of support for products on earlier versions. It is clear that the old on-premise versions will no longer be able to work with next-generation interpreters. For example, the Bitrix24 server of 2017 was created on PHP 5, which is no longer able to work with most modern databases. This is a significant obstacle to custom development and work in general. However, a simple on-premise Bitrix24 update resolves the interpreter issue and ensures that you are using the latest, up-to-date version of PHP.

Database capabilities are improved in updated versions. Data and work with it are of the utmost importance for Bitrix24. Therefore, talking about improving the performance of databases is simply unnecessary — it is an axiom. Modern databases differ from their predecessors in their resistance to failures and correct operation, they consume less resources, which is important for the productive operation of the server. You can find many advantages of this point, but here is a really good example: the new on-premise versions use caching when working with databases. This speeds up the system ten times.

We mentioned caching, so the next point concerns the loading of system pages in users' browsers. A good example would be a Lead page or other CRM entity. Compared to the old versions, where there was no caching, the speed of downloading content increases many times. In addition, reloading does not require additional access to the server databases: the system checks the cached copy, which requires much less time and resources.

Most Bitrix24 users are used to CRM having a fixed list of entities. If you think so too, it's time to update your on-premise. After all, the new versions support smart processes that involve the creation of your own CRM entities in addition to the standard ones. And for each of them, it is possible to develop its own properties, funnels, statuses and everything that is inherent to other entities of the system.

More possibilities for layout of new pages. Bitrix24 on-premise allows you to add any pages or slider windows to the Portal, which is an absolute advantage for the implementation of the customer's ideas. However, previous versions contain a limited number of styles used in the frontend. Due to this, the pages used to look not very attractive and this is not good at all for a modern IT product. After the updates, layout options are significantly expanded, which allows developers to do their work better.

Advanced components. Bitrix24 can use third-party components and various libraries. This is required in custom development when we add new features and tools to the system. Usually, developers install these components additionally, which increases the working time and the check for the client. In addition, various conflicts and other unforeseen difficulties may arise. In new versions, most of the necessary components are already installed and configured. For example, you can name the Bootstrap or jQuery libraries.

New version of CentOS. We will not go into technical details, but it is worth noting that the Bitrix24 software core is based on the free Linux distribution. CentOS versions below 7 have an imperfect architecture that affects the performance of all software. The latest 8th version contains previous bug fixes and works much better. This version was released in 2019, so if you haven't updated Bitrix24 since then, you should do so now.

Wide possibilities of integrations. We have repeatedly written on the blog that Bitrix24 can be integrated with all third-party services that have open APIs. This is true, but an important condition here will be the compatibility of the methods of both platforms. Here again comes the issue of software versions and it is important that your Bitrix24 has the same or older version. This is also important in the case of native integrations that not only work on the backend, but also have a front-end display.

Quick search. Unfortunately, the old versions of Beatris24 do not differ in fast execution of search queries. The algorithms used to find the necessary information are cumbersome and clumsy. The new versions are equipped with advanced morphological analysis technology, reaching a speed of 150-200 requests per second to each core, which can accommodate 1 million documents. These are serious numbers that should be taken into account. Especially now, when fast search has become a global trend for IT solutions.

And finally, we are left with a real problem that cannot be solved by any custom method. It is related to the Push and Pull method, which is responsible for any changes on the portal page without updating it. Many of Avivi's customers had the same problem where users did not receive notifications or they arrived late, messages did not arrive in chats, or the list of letters in the mail did not update. This is due to changes in Push and Pull methods and interaction with external Bitrix24 servers, which operate according to their own rules. In each of the cases, updating the on-premise version to the current version solved all the inconveniences 100%.

We hope we have provided you with comprehensive information on the importance of keeping your software up to date. And when you definitely decide to do it, take your time to act on your own. After all, this is a difficult process that requires attention and skill. Otherwise, some of the important information accumulated over the years may be lost. Better entrust this process to the experts at Avivi. We are always happy to help you with questions related to Bitrix24.