# Update phpVMS

https://vmshost.io/kb/a/update-phpvms

Follow these steps to update phpVMS 7 to a new release.

## 1. Make a backup

Don't skip this. At a minimum:

- Download your `.env` file.
- Download the `config` folder, if you changed any files in it.
- Export your database. In cPanel, open **phpMyAdmin**, select your phpVMS database, and click **Export**.

## 2. Remove the old dependencies and caches

With File Manager or SFTP, in your phpVMS folder:

1. Delete the `vendor` folder.
2. Delete everything inside `bootstrap/cache` and `storage/framework/cache`. Delete the contents only, not the folders.

## 3. Upload the new release

Download the new release package from the [phpVMS releases page](https://github.com/phpvms/phpvms/releases). Upload it, extract it over your phpVMS folder, and replace all the files.

If you copied the `public` folder into `public_html`, copy the new contents of `public` into `public_html` too. See [Choose where phpVMS lives](https://vmshost.io/knowledgebase/article/phpvms-folder-layout).

## 4. Run the update

Go to `/update` on your site, for example `https://crew.yourva.com/update`, and follow the steps. This updates your database.

## 5. Check your theme

Read the release's changelog for template changes. If you use a custom theme, you may need to update it.

## If you get an error

If you see an error like this one, delete the `vendor` folder and upload it again:

```
Argument 1 passed to Carbon\CarbonInterval::setLocalTranslator() must implement interface Symfony\Component\Translation\TranslatorInterface
```

For other errors, see [Turn on debugging and read the logs](https://vmshost.io/knowledgebase/article/phpvms-debugging-and-logs).