Data preservation, deactivation and controlled migrations
Leanmerce Commerce Assistant Free 0.12.7 keeps its established internal settings and data identifiers so existing store information can be preserved across an authorized transition. However, its public WordPress plugin folder and main file differ from older Commerce Assistant/Commerce Compliance releases. WordPress treats those identities as different plugins, not as a transparent in-place upgrade.
Updating a current leanmerce-commerce-assistant installation
If the installed plugin already uses the canonical leanmerce-commerce-assistant/leanmerce-commerce-assistant.php basename, normal WordPress.org update handling applies to later versions published under that identity. Before updates, follow your regular site backup and change-control procedure, especially if WooCommerce orders or other add-ons depend on the site.
Moving from an older plugin identity
This is a controlled migration, not a routine update. Previously used directories include commerce-assistant and leanmerce-commerce-compliance. Do not activate an old and new Free runtime in parallel, and do not assume an unchanged Pro add-on will recognize the new dependency. For the exact procedure and site-specific approvals, refer to MIGRATION.txt shipped in the Free 0.12.7 plugin source.
The documented operator boundaries are:
- Plan an authorized maintenance window and capture a reliable backup of the database, installed package and any private document storage/encryption material.
- Pause incoming order/processing channels as appropriate and consider caches/long-running workers.
- Deactivate incompatible Pro add-ons before deactivating the previous Free identity.
- Transition to the canonical new Free identity without simultaneously running both Free versions.
- Validate saved settings, existing orders and relevant documents against the preserved baseline.
- Reactivate an add-on only after that exact add-on version has independently passed compatibility checks.
This is not permission to run these steps blindly on a production site. In particular, uninstalling an old plugin may delete data depending on its uninstall contract. Do not use uninstall as the default way to solve a warning or menu problem.
Deactivation and historical information
Deactivation removes the active runtime and may change scheduled housekeeping tasks. It is not a substitute for data deletion or an archival policy. Historical order records, document information and protected configuration should be preserved according to the installed version’s lifecycle; confirm actual behavior before relying on it for records retention.
If you need to roll back code, do not restore an older database snapshot on top of more recent real orders. A safe procedure distinguishes code rollback from database restoration and verifies all dependent systems before reopening order processing.
Pro status
At publication of Free 0.12.7, Pro is Coming soon. Existing Pro development candidates are not a validated public upgrade path for the new Free identity and must not be installed on the assumption that the naming change alone guarantees compatibility.
Related guides: Requirements and installation, Diagnostics, Legal scope.