I’ve tried this out on a test installation of WordPress, and it’s great. There are, however, a few issues with this new feature.

The automatic upgrade does not deactivate your plugin first and then reactivate it after upgrading. If the plugin requires activation to run any checks for WordPress version, or do any db fixes, or “activate” any new features then it won’t do this and the plugin won’t work as expected. In most cases this can be simply remedied by remembering to deactivate and then reactivate the plugin after the upgrade is complete.

This is important because plugins sometimes update database entries when a plugin is re-activated after an update. So if you use the automated updater, be sure to deactivate and re-activate the plugin after the update has completed, to insure that the plugin will continue to work correctly.

If the plugin is in the plugins root directory instead of it’s own directory then the automatic upgrade will change it’s location. For example say you have a plugin named myfunplugin.php and it’s located at ../wp-content/plugins/myfunplugin.php – after automatic upgrade does it stuff the plugin will now be located at ../wp-content/plugins/myfunplugin/myfunplugin.php. This could be a breaker for any plugin that has functions referencing the original location of the plugin.

Some plugins, my own GoCodes plugin included, break if they are renamed or moved into a subdirectory. Many plugin authors are likely working on fixes for this (myself included). If a plugin stops working after updating it, it may be because of this. The solution? Use your FTP client to move the plugin file back to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory.

Exercise caution when using this new feature, if you have upgraded your WordPress installation already. Be aware that you may have problems when updating plugins in this easier manner, and you may have to fix issues caused by the system.

Astheria has an in-depth review of the new WordPress 2.5 interface.

Overall, I think the new interface is a great improvement, but there are many things that leave me wondering if it’s had enough polish yet. I am sure the folks at both WordPress and Happy Cog will make the final release a great experience, and I am excited that they are having a period for feedback prior to that release.

There is some nice commentary and creative criticism in the full article, and I would say it’s worth reading. WordPress developers, I hope you’re paying attention! Especially to this part:

The most important screen in the whole application is also one of the most drastically changed. While I love some of the new additions, such as the permalink preview and tag path there are a lot of things here I find questionable.