In January 2020, we released The Events Calendar 5.0, which included a substantial redesign of our calendar views. We called the upgraded views “V2”. We supported and maintained both V2 and the pre-5.0 legacy views (“V1”) until August  2021, when we officially ended support for V1. As of The Events Calendar 6.0, we have fully removed the plugin’s legacy views. 

If you were already using the updated V2 views, this change does not impact your site. However, if you are using the legacy V1 views when you update to The Events Calendar 6.0, your site is automatically switched to using the updated views.

Why did you remove the V1 legacy views?

The legacy views were created nearly a decade ago and were weighed down by navigation, performance, security, and code standards inconsistencies. It became more difficult for us to maintain and prevented us from adding the new features customers wanted. Furthermore, the changes we did make were more likely to inadvertently cause issues for users, particularly folks who had customized their site.

The new V2 views are not just a redesign; they’re a whole new foundation. This new codebase adheres to higher coding standards. It has improved performance, security, and customizability. The templates are smaller and more manageable and feature more filters, actions, and granular control.

TL;DR – The V1 views outgrew their usefulness and keeping them prevented us from maintaining and improving The Events Calendar and our other plugins.

How are the V2 views different from V1?

The most significant difference between the versions is the design and styles. This is most noticeable in the calendar views themselves, but there are also improvements to single event pages, widgets, and Filter Bar. Check out our demo site for a great example of the updated V2 designs.

But the differences are more than just visual. Many changes in the V2 views improve functionality and customizability across your site. This includes:

  • More Customizer options
  • More filters & actions
  • Better control over CSS & template modifications
  • Improved reliability & caching
  • More consistent permalinks for better SEO
  • Faster loading times

You can read more about these improvements in the original Release Notes for The Events Calendar 5.0.

Lastly, there are new features that are only available if you are using the updated V2 views. These include Summary view, subscribe to calendar, Event Manager, and Series.

How can I customize the V2 views?

You can adjust the colors, fonts, and other aspects of the calendar using the WordPress Customizer or by adding one of our compatible free extensions.

If you’re confident working with some code, we’ve got plenty of articles and documentation to help you customize your site. Here are a few links to get you started:

Will you still support the V1 views?

We cannot support outdated versions of our plugins, so we will not be able to help V1 users unless they are willing to update and thus switch to the upgraded views.

If there is a security vulnerability discovered in the future, we will release security patches for old versions of the plugins going back three years. However, no other updates or fixes will be released for sites using the legacy views. 

I’m using V1 and haven’t updated to The Events Calendar 6.0 yet. How will this update impact my site(s)?

If your site is set to use V1 when you update to The Events Calendar 6.0, your site will automatically switch to use the upgraded views. You’ll see an immediate change on the front end of your site.

The upgraded calendar views have an entirely new set of templates. If you have customized the legacy view templates, those customizations won’t apply to your site once you switch to the new views. Similarly, if you’ve used the WordPress Customizer to style the legacy views, those settings will not carry over–there’s a whole new set of Customizer options for V2.

The best way to see how the update will impact your site is to create a staging site and test with the upgraded views. We’ve written a step-by-step guide detailing how to test and prepare your live site.

Do I have to switch to the V2 views?

If you want to stay up to date with our plugins, yes. We strongly recommend that you update to 6.0 and use the V2 views. However, you can choose to stay on V1 by not updating your site to The Events Calendar 6.0. If you decide not to update, please keep in mind the following:

  • You will need to avoid updating The Events Calendar, Events Calendar Pro, and any other of our event or ticketing plugins. Be sure to turn off automatic updates.
  • Because you are no longer updating the plugins, you will not get access to future bug fixes.
  • We cannot provide support for outdated websites, even for premium users. If you run into trouble, we will not be able to help until you update to the latest versions and the V2 views.
  • All new features will require you to use V2. There are currently multiple features that are only available to folks who have already transitioned, including Summary view, subscribe to calendar, Event Manager, and Series.
  • Updates to WordPress, third-party plugins, or your theme may not be compatible with the outdated versions of The Events Calendar. We cannot provide support for these conflicts, as we only maintain compatibility with our latest versions.

Will you help me update my site?

Premium users can open a ticket with our support team for help updating to 6.0 and upgrading from legacy to V2 views. However, please note that we are limited to providing resources and helping point you in the right direction if you have extensive customizations. You will need to work through any necessary changes yourself or hire an outside developer to assist you.

I like the style of the legacy views better. Can I update to 6.0 but keep that design?

If there’s a particular aspect of the legacy view styling that you like, your best option is to upgrade to the new views and customize them to look the way you want. That way, you’ll get all the critical improvements provided by the V2 framework. Plus, since the new views are easier to customize, you’ll have more options to make your calendar look just the way you envision.

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