Magento 2.4.0 is the latest version of Magento released on 20 July 2020. Magento released the official announcement in December 2019.
With every release, Magento introduces new features, improves the earlier features, fixes various bugs, and upgrades the infrastructure to make the platform better.
Magento 2.4 Release Highlights:
Magento platform is itself a powerful PHP based eCommerce platform. The latest version of Magento has features that will improve the performance of the store a lot.
Here are most important Magento 2.4 Features:
- Security-only patch available
- Substantial security enhancements
- Platform upgrades
- Infrastructure improvements
- Performance improvements
- More Highlights
#1 Security-only patch available
The most notable feature of Magento 2.4 is the security-only patch. The merchants do not have to apply all the fixes at once; they can quickly use the security patches.
This feature could be crucial to secure the store from immediate threats.
The hotfixes of 2.3.5 release would be in security only patch. It includes only the urgent security bugs fixes, not the security enhancement, and additional features.
#2 Substantial security enhancements
- More than 30 security enhancements to prevent the remote code execution (RCE) and cross-site (XSS) vulnerabilities.
- Inbuilt 2FA feature for the admin dashboard, magento.com users, and cloud SSH access. Before you have to install the extension, but now it will be enabled by default.
- The template filter strict mode is now enabled by default.
- Data rendering for UI data providers is now disabled by default. It prevents malicious users from taking advantage of executing arbitrary JavaScript.
- Support for a new security.txt file that will help security researchers report potential security issues to site administrators.
#3 Platform upgrades
- PHP 7.4 support introduced, and PHP 7.1 and 7.2 deprecated.
- Support for PHPUnit 9.x and deprecation of PHPUnit 6.5.
- Elasticsearch 7.6.x support. It will be the default search engine for the Magento 2.4.0, and you cannot upgrade to Magento 2.4.0, without installing ELasticsearch 7.6.x. 5.x and 6.x are not supported anymore.
- MySQL 8.0 support. MySQL 5.7 is still supported for Magento 2.4.x, MySQL 5.6 is no longer supported.
- Removal of the MySQL catalog search engine. Elasticsearch is the default catalog search engine for Magento 2.4.0.
- MariaDB 10.4 support. MariaDB 10.0 and 10.1 are no longer supported, although merchants can still use MariaDB 10.2 with Magento 2.4.0.
- Migration of dependencies on Zend Framework to the Laminas project
- The core Braintree module has been removed from the codebase. You have to get the Braintree Payment module from the marketplace. Worldpay, Authorize.net, CyberSource, and eWay, has been removed from the core code.
#4 Infrastructure improvements
- Removal of core integration of third-party payment methods. Authorize.net and other payment methods are removed from the core code.
- Support for the partial-word search for Elasticsearch (new default search engine). It will do the search more quickly.
- PayPal JavaScript SDK upgrade. Replaced the PayPal Express Checkout with the PayPal JavaScript SDK.
- Deprecation and removal of the Web Setup Wizard. You have to use the command line to install or upgrade the Magento.
- Composer update plugin
#5 Performance improvements
- Improvement of up to 25-30% to Quick Order add-to-cart performance.
- Merchants can now use lazy loading to load images. It is an inbuilt feature now.
- Improvement in Redis performance.
#6 More Highlights:
- Ability to license stock image previews from the Media Gallery. One can find any Adobe Stock images in the Media Gallery.
- New Media Gallery. The new Media Gallery offers a more intuitive search interface for Media assets, and it is 30 times faster than the earlier version.
- Inventory Management. This version includes support for in-store pickup and bundle product support.
- Support for PWA Studio
- Enhancement in various Vendor-developed extension
Also Read:
- How to Change Magento 2 Base URL?
- Magento 2 Requirements that You Must Take care of
- Magento 2 Commands: A Useful list for Magento Developers
Wrap Up
To read the official releases you can check these links:
It is recommended to upgrade to the latest version of Magento as soon as possible. But take precautions before upgrading, such as backing up the store and reading the release carefully before doing anything.
However, if you need help in upgrading the store to Magento 2.4.0, you can hire a Magento developer or ask us for help.
ServerGuy is a Magento hosting company, and our team will upgrade the store of our customers at no cost.
If there is an issue, leave it in the commence box.
