Exploring Magento Versions: History and Future Insights

• History of Magento

• Magento Milestones

• Magento Versions: Key Updates

• What is the Future of Magento 2?

• FAQs

• Summary

Key Takeaways

• Discover Magento's journey to the latest versions, noting significant milestones and transformations.

• Learn about the evolution from Magento 1.0 to Magento 2.4, understanding key updates and their impact on e-commerce.

• Explore detailed feature updates within each version, focusing on functionalities, security enhancements, and platform stability.

• Understand the importance of Magento upgrades for compatibility, security, and leveraging new features.

• Explore the future of Magento, understanding its strategic roadmap aligning with the evolving e-commerce landscape.

History of Magento

Magento began with Varien Inc., an ecommerce development and consulting firm founded in Los Angeles, California, in 2001. In 2007, Magento emerged as an open-source ecommerce platform because of Roy Rubin and Yoav Kutner. Roy Rubin initiated Varien during his time as a UCLA student. Yoav Kutner joined as the CTO and co-founder in 2004, continuing until April 2012.

Around 2003, they discovered osCommerce, an open-source platform with a substantial user base. To serve their ecommerce consultancy clients, Roy and Yoav utilized a modified version of osCommerce for website development.

Initially conceived for their internal client projects, Magento eventually transitioned to open-source software. It initially posed challenges in monetization but ultimately proved advantageous in the long term.

From its beta launch on August 31, 2007, to January 26, 2010, Magento achieved over 1.5 million downloads. After 11 years, Magento was acquired by a Fortune 500 company in a landmark deal worth $1.68 billion.

Magento Milestones

2007

• Roy Rubin and Yoav Kutner started working for Varien Inc., focusing on developing an ecommerce platform.

• Recognizing limitations in osCommerce, they began building Magento for scalability, stability, and more ecommerce features.

• The first beta version of Magento was released on August 31. It was named after the color magenta due to domain availability.

2008

• Within 7 months, the first stable version, Magento Community Edition (CE), was introduced, gaining popularity as a free, customizable open-source platform.

2009

• Bob Schwartz became the president of Varien, contributing to Magento's global recognition and surpassing osCommerce in popularity.

2010

• Varien Inc. rebranded as "Magento."

• eBay invested heavily in Magento, acquiring a significant ownership stake.

2011

• eBay acquired Magento entirely, marking a pivotal moment.

• Integration of PayPal into Magento's payment options occurred.

• The first Magento Imagine Conference drew over 600 participants.

• Magento Developer Certification and official training programs were introduced.

2012

• Magento reached over 4 million downloads and powered over 150,000 ecommerce stores globally.

• Yoav Kutner, a key figure, left Magento, raising questions about its future.

2015

• Magento 2 was released in July, offering improved design, performance, and user experience.

• Magento was separated from eBay and became independent under Permira's ownership.

2016

• Magento acquired RJMetrics on August 1.

• The Magento Enterprise Edition (EE) targeted larger ecommerce businesses.

2017

• Magento renamed its platforms to Magento Open Source (formerly Magento Community) and Magento Commerce (formerly Magento Enterprise).

• Hillhouse Capital invested $250 million in Magento for Asia Pacific expansion.

• Magento received the 2017 Global Ecommerce Platforms Product Line Strategy Leadership Award.

2018

• Adobe acquired Magento for $1.68 billion, integrating it into Adobe Experience Cloud and Enterprise CMS.

• The Magento Imagine 2018 conference drew over 3,000 attendees from 60 countries.

2019

• Adobe merged Magento Commerce Cloud into Adobe Experience Cloud.

• Multiple Magento CE versions were released, focusing on security and enhancements.

2020

• Magento CE 2.4.0 supported PHP 7.4.

• Magento CE 2.4.1 was released on October 14.

2021

• Magento 2.4.2 enhanced platform performance and security in February.

• Magento CE 2.4.4 was released on April 12, expanding technology support.

• Magento 2.4.3 was released on August 10, continuing security and performance improvements.

2022

• Magento 2.4.5 brought substantial ecommerce enhancements.

2023

• Adobe Commerce version 2.4.6 was released on March 14.

• The Adobe Summit 2023 took place from March 26 to 28, attracting approximately 10,000 attendees.

• Magento version 2.4.7-beta became available on October 10, 2023.

Magento Versions: Key Updates

1. Magento 1.0

• Magento CE 1.0 – Beta (August 31, 2007)- The first public beta version in Magento's history.

• Magento CE 1.0 (June 24, 2008) - Introduced API, bundled and virtual products, and custom product options.

• Magento CE 1.1 (2008)- Community Edition's first stable Magento version for public download.

• Magento CE 1.2 (December 29, 2008)- Added downloadable products, layered navigation, and FTP.

• Magento CE 1.3 (March 30, 2009)- Introduced Magento catalogs.

• Magento CE 1.4 (February 12, 2010)- Enhanced appearance customization, introduced widgets and WYSIWYG editor.

• Magento CE 1.5 (February 8, 2011)- Added support for iPad and Android in Magento Mobile.

• Magento CE 1.6 (August 8, 2011)- Enabled management of multiple parallel ecommerce stores with Multi DB support.

• Magento CE 1.7 (April 24, 2012)- Introduced a mobile theme, auto-generate coupon codes, and customer group pricing.

• Magento CE 1.8 (December 11, 2013)- Enhanced tax calculations and included Redis cache in the core.

• Magento CE 1.9.x (2014 – 2015)- Numerous improvements, including infinite themes and responsive emails.

2. Magento 2.0

• Magento CE 2.0.0 (November 18, 2015)- Transformation of Magento Platform with a flexible architecture.

• Magento CE 2.0.1 (January 20, 2016)- Included important functional updates and PHP 7.0.2 support.

• Magento CE 2.0.2 (January 29, 2016)- Resolved issues from Magento 2.0.0 to 2.0.1.

• Magento CE 2.0.3 (March 31, 2016)- Replaced by version 2.0.4 the next day.

• Magento CE 2.0.4 (April 1, 2016)- Magento security enhancements and performance improvements were included.

• Magento CE 2.0.5 (April 28, 2016)- Addressed miscellaneous functional issues.

• Magento CE 2.0.6 (May 17, 2016)- Introduced security enhancements and functional fixes.

• Magento CE 2.0.7 (May 24, 2016)- Addressed one functional fix in the payment gateway.

• Magento CE 2.0.8 (July 19, 2016)- Included several functional fixes.

• Magento CE 2.0.9 (August 11, 2016)- Addressed several functional fixes.

• Magento CE 2.0.10 (October, 2016)- Multiple security and functional enhancements were included.

• Magento CE 2.0.11 (December, 2016)- Resolved over 70 bug fixes and enhancements.

• Magento CE 2.0.12 (February, 2017)- Addressed over 20 functional fixes and enhancements and one security enhancement.

• Magento CE 2.0.13 (April 17, 2017)- Resolved several functional issues.

• Magento CE 2.0.14 (May 31, 2017)- Introduced critical security enhancements.

• Magento CE 2.0.15 (June 21, 2017)- Added support for changes in PayPal’s Instant Payment Notification (IPN) service.

3. Magento 2.1

• Magento CE 2.1.0 (June 23, 2016)- Included numerous functional fixes and enhancements.

• Magento CE 2.1.1 (August 30, 2016)- Addressed functional fixes and enhancements for static asset deployment.

• Magento CE 2.1.2 (October 12, 2016)- Included security enhancements and functional fixes.

• Magento CE 2.1.3 (December 14, 2016)- Introduced functional enhancements and fixes.

• Magento CE 2.1.4 (February 7, 2016)- Addressed numerous functional issues.

• Magento CE 2.1.5 (February 21, 2017)- Resolved several functional issues.

• Magento CE 2.1.6 (April 28, 2017)- Introduced performance enhancements for category pages and Magento image resizing.

• Magento CE 2.1.7 (May 31, 2017)- Included critical security enhancements.

• Magento CE 2.2.0 – RC (August 4, 2017)- Introduced significant features and bug fixes.

• Magento Open Source 2.1.8 (August 9, 2017)- Included enhancements to Magento software.

• Magento Open Source 2.1.9 (September 14, 2017)- Addressed security fixes and software enhancements.

4. Magento 2.2

• Magento Open Source 2.2.0 (September 26, 2017)- Introduced new features and enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.1 (November 07, 2017)- Addressed functional fixes and deployment improvements.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.2 (December 12, 2017)- Included new Magento tools, functional fixes, enhancements, and contributions from the community.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.3 (February 27, 2018)- Enhanced product security and ACL control for cache management.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.4 (May 02, 2018)- Included new tools and numerous functional fixes and enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.5 (July 01, 2018)- Improved product security, bug fixes, and enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.6 (September 18, 2018)- Implemented critical improvements in product security, core code fixes, and enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.7 (November 28, 2018)- Improved product security, core code fixes, and enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.2.8 (March 26, 2019)- Implemented critical improvements in product security, core code fixes, and enhancements.

5. Magento 2.3

• Magento Open Source 2.3.1 (March 26, 2019)- Magento 2.3 addressed functional fixes, over 500 community-contributed pull requests, and security enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.3.2 (June 25, 2019)- Introduced functional fixes, 350 community-contributed pull requests, and over 75 security enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.3.3 (October 8, 2019)- Addressed functional fixes, over 75 security enhancements, and 200 contributions from community members.

• Magento Open Source 2.3.4 (January 28, 2020)- Resolved functional issues, over 30 security enhancements, and 275 contributions from community members.

• Magento Open Source 2.3.5 (April 28, 2020)- Addressed functional fixes, security enhancements and resolved 46 GitHub issues by the community.

• Magento Open Source 2.3.6 (October 15, 2020)- Introduced significant platform upgrades, security changes, and performance improvements.

• Magento Open Source 2.3.7 (May 11, 2021)- Supported PHP 7.4, Elasticsearch 7.9.X, Varnish 6.5.1, and Redis 6.X. Included security enhancements and functional fixes.

6. Magento 2.4

• Magento Open Source 2.4.0 (July 28, 2020)- First Magento 2 version to support PHP 7.4, with major security improvements and Elasticsearch as the default search engine.

• Magento Open Source 2.4.1 (October 15, 2020)- Enhanced security and performance, including CAPTCHA protection and over 150 core fixes.

• Magento Open Source 2.4.2 (February 09, 2021)- Improved platform performance, security, and functional enhancements with over 280 new fixes.

• Magento Open Source 2.4.3 (August 10, 2021)- Improved platform performance, security, and Page Builder integration.

• Magento Open Source 2.4.4 (April 12, 2022)- Supported PHP 8.1, including various fixes and enhancements.

• Magento Open Source 2.4.5 (August 09, 2022)- Enhanced platform quality, payment methods, GraphQL caching, and accessibility with over 290 quality fixes.

• Magento Open Source 2.4.6 (March 14, 2023)- Includes 300+ quality fixes, PHP 8.2 support, and a new Magento Community Prioritization process.

• Magento version 2.4.7-beta (October 10, 2023)- Multiple security fixes, platform security enhancements, PHP 8.2 support, and performance improvements. It includes B2B features, GraphQL, and Page Builder updates.

Magento version release	Release dates	Key features added	End of support
Magento 1.0-1.9x	March 31, 2008–2015.	The first stable Magento version with essential ecommerce functionality.	June 30, 2020.
Magento 2.0	November 17, 2015–February 27, 2018.	Total platform transformation for speed, security, and user-friendliness	March 31, 2018.
Magento 2.1	June 23, 2016–June 25, 2019.	Content staging and preview, Elasticsearch for Commerce versions, PayPal payment methods, and admin interface improvements.	June 30, 2019.
Magento 2.2	September 26, 2017–January 28, 2020.	Advanced reporting functionality, instant checkout, Magento shipping, and new B2B features.	December 1, 2019.
Magento 2.3	November 28, 2018–October 12, 2021.	Progressive web apps, multi-source inventory, Elasticsearch, and improved page builder.	September 8, 2022.
Magento 2.4.0–2.4.3	July 28, 2020–October 12, 2021.	2FA, enhanced media gallery, Default Elasticsearch search engine, seller-assisted shopping, and improved progressive web apps.	November, 2022.
Magento 2.4.4–2.4.7	April 12, 2022–October 10, 2023.	OpenSearch, PHP 8.2 support, page builder, cart updates, new payment methods	April 24, 2025–April 19, 2027.

What is the Future of Magento 2?

1. Adobe's Microservices Approach

• Adobe is developing a microservices-based framework for Magento to improve its future-proofing.
• This framework uses serverless functions for customization, ensuring seamless upgrades without code conflicts.
• It focuses on frontend PWAs, backend logic with Adobe I/O, and integration with GraphQL, REST APIs, and middleware.

2. Magento Association's Initiatives

• The Magento Association maintains and develops Magento Open Source, collaborating with Adobe.
• Their Magento Open Source Task Force, formed in October 2021, prepares for Magento Open Source's future.

3. Mage-OS Association's Vision

• Mage-OS Association preserves Magento's monolithic architecture as Adobe transitions to microservices.
• They aim to create a copy of the monolithic codebase for community support.
• The goal is a vibrant Magento Open Source ecosystem with lightweight, cost-effective hosting.

4. 2024 Release Schedule

• February 13, 2024: Feature Release, Security-only patches for Magento 2.4.6, 2.4.5, 2.4.4.
• April 9, 2024: Feature Release, 2.4.7 patch release, Security-only patches for 2.4.6, 2.4.5, 2.4.4.
• June 11, 2024: Feature Release, Security-only patches for 2.4.7, 2.4.6, 2.4.5, 2.4.4.
• August 13, 2024: Feature Release, Security-only patches for 2.4.7, 2.4.6, 2.4.5, 2.4.4.
• October 8, 2024: Feature Release, Beta version patch release for 2.4.8, Security-only patches for 2.4.7, 2.4.6, 2.4.5, 2.4.4.

FAQs

1. Is backward compatibility ensured during Magento upgrades?

Magento prioritizes backward compatibility in its upgrades to minimize disruptions to existing functionalities. However, thorough compatibility checks and testing are recommended before initiating an upgrade. It ensures seamless transitions and avoids potential conflicts with customizations or Magento extensions.

2. How can I find information about deprecated features in Magento versions?

The release notes accompanying each Magento version highlight deprecated features. These notes detail features that are no longer supported in the current release. It also offers guidance on alternatives or workarounds for smoother transitions during upgrades.

3. What resources are available for Magento installation and migration processes?

Magento provides comprehensive documentation outlining step-by-step installation guides and Magento migration strategies. These resources offer clear instructions and best practices to facilitate smooth installations and migrations to newer versions.

4. Does Magento offer improvements in security features like reCAPTCHA?

Magento consistently enhances security functionalities, including reCAPTCHA support, to prevent potential threats. These improvements enhance the platform's security and protect e-commerce sites from malicious activities. It ensures a safer online environment for businesses and customers.

5. How does Magento plan its roadmap for future enhancements and improvements?

Magento's roadmap is strategically designed, considering market trends, user feedback, and industry advancements. Regular updates outline the platform's growth trajectory, showcasing planned improvements aligned with evolving market needs.

Summary

Magento version history traces the platform's evolution, highlighting key milestones, significant updates, and future insights. This article covered the journey of Magento versions, detailing its major milestones, ownership changes, and future improvements. Explore reliable Magento server hosting solutions to ensure optimal performance and scalability for your Magento version.