Two things live on the same screen: getting a newer version, and going back to an older one. Start with who gets updates automatically, because that decides which half of this page applies to you.
#Who gets automatic updates
Automatic updates in the admin come with licenses bought directly from us. An Envato license does not have them.
The mechanism is the license level rather than the store: automatic updates start at Premium. A Regular key activates, verifies and works normally, and simply does not receive new builds.
The reason, stated plainly: the marketplace share does not cover update infrastructure.
Envato takes a large enough cut of each sale that running the delivery pipeline on top of it does not add up. It is a forced call rather than a way to sell you something else, and every release is still available to an Envato buyer by hand.
The level at which updates begin is set on our side and can change, so check the current pricing rather than treating this as permanent.
#Updating with a direct license
Nothing new to learn. The update appears where WordPress shows every other update: the theme in the themes list, the plugin in the plugins list, the ordinary button.
There is a second place for people working inside the theme: the updates tab on the theme settings page. Rollback lives there too, which is why the two actions sit together.
The only condition is an active license.
The theme and the Pro plugin have separate version lines.
They update independently, so one having an update while the other does not is normal rather than a sign that something failed to arrive.
#Updating by hand
The main route for Envato buyers, and the fallback for everyone when an automatic update will not go through.
Take a backup
Theme files are overwritten by an update. Any edits made directly to them disappear. If you have customizations, they belong in a child theme.
Download the current version
From your Envato downloads or your jkdevstudio account.
Install the theme zip over the old one
Upload it through AppearanceThemesAdd NewUpload Theme. WordPress asks whether to replace the existing copy; replacing is correct.
Do the same for the Pro plugin
Separate file, separate upload, same idea.
#Rolling back
#When it is the right tool
One case: something broke after an update and you need a working site back while the cause is worked out.
Not this case: preferring how an older version looked. That is not what rollback is for.
#How it works
Rollback lives on the same updates tab as the update button. There is no need to visit your account for it.
It works in both directions and for both products: the theme, the Pro plugin, or both.
The same boundary applies as for updates: an Envato license has no automatic rollback, and going back a version there means installing an older zip by hand.
#The rule that matters
The theme and the Pro plugin are built for each other. Rolling the theme back ten versions while the plugin stays current pulls them far enough apart that some features stop working.
That is not a bug. It is how a pair of products works when one extends the other.
The practical rule: roll back one or two steps, and keep the theme and plugin close together. If you rolled one back, check whether the other needs to go with it.
#Before you roll back
Take a backup, because a rollback replaces files too and you may need to come forward again.
Write down which version you were on. Without it, returning is guesswork.
And if the problem is still there on the older version, the update was not the cause. That is worth knowing before you spend an evening on it.
#Common questions
Will I lose my settings when I update?
No, settings live in the database rather than in the theme files, so an update replaces the code and leaves everything you configured exactly where it was.
Do I have to update both the theme and the plugin?
If an update was released for both then yes, because they are designed against each other within nearby versions and drifting far apart is what breaks features.
How far back can I roll?
The available versions are listed on the tab, though how far you should roll is a different question and the answer to that one is a step or two.
An update appeared for the plugin but not the theme
That is expected, since the two have separate version lines and are released independently of each other.
An update fails partway
Note where it failed, because the two halves have different causes: an update that dies at download is usually connectivity or an inactive licence, and one that dies at install is usually a file permission or a memory limit. Both show up in the diagnostics screen, and installing the zip by hand is the reliable fallback while you sort the underlying cause out.
#Still stuck
Open a support ticket with the version you are on, the version you are moving to, and the exact error.
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