WP ULike
Get Pro

Storage Upgrade (Pulse Migration)

Move existing like records to Pulse: start, pause, finish, verify, and optionally remove old log tables.

If you updated an existing site to WP ULike 5.2+, you may see a notice about faster like storage. This guide walks through the admin upgrade flow end to end.

New installs skip this page — they already run on Pulse.

Background: Pulse Storage Engine.

Before you start

  1. Update to WP ULike 5.2 or newer (and Pro 2.3+ if you use Pro).
  2. Take a database backup (host panel, UpdraftPlus, or similar). Optional cleanup deletes old tables permanently.
  3. You need the manage_options capability (Administrator).

Counts, buttons, and front-end voting keep working the whole time. The site stays online while records copy in the background.

Open the upgrade screen

Pick any path:

  • Admin notice → Begin upgrade
  • WP ULike → Overview → storage card → Get started / Continue / Finish upgrade
  • Tools → Site Health → WP ULike storage or old-log recommendations → linked action

The screen title is Upgrade like storage. It is a task page (not a permanent sidebar item). When there is nothing left to do, it redirects back to Overview.

Phase 1: Move records

  1. Click Get started (or Continue if you paused earlier).
  2. Watch the progress bar and status:
    • Not started
    • Moving records…
    • Paused
    • Complete
  3. You can leave the page. Background jobs keep copying. Re-open Overview or the upgrade URL anytime.
  4. Use Pause if you need to stop the worker temporarily, then Continue later.

Progress labels look like “X records moved” or “X records moved (Y skipped) · complete”. Skipped rows are duplicates or rows that already exist in Pulse — that is normal.

Phase 2: Finish upgrade

When status is Complete:

  1. Click Finish upgrade.
  2. Confirm the prompt. WP ULike verifies legacy vs Pulse counts, then switches reads to the Pulse table.
  3. Mode becomes pulse. New votes and stats reads use Pulse only. Old log tables are still on disk until you remove them.

If finish fails:

MessageWhat to do
Sync incomplete
Wait until status is Complete, or run wp ulike pulse sync
Verification failed
Run wp ulike pulse verify (add --deep for COUNT scans) and contact support if failed rows remain

Full CLI reference: Pulse WP-CLI.

Phase 3: Optional cleanup

After finish, Overview may show Free up disk space:

  1. Open Review cleanup on the upgrade page.
  2. Confirm you have a backup.
  3. Remove old log tables only when you are sure you do not need a rollback path.

This cannot be undone from the UI. Prefer leaving legacy tables for a while on large or regulated sites.

Dismiss the notice without upgrading

You can close the admin notice and keep working on legacy / dual storage. The Overview card and Site Health checks may still mention the upgrade until you finish or dismiss from the upgrade page.

CLI: wp ulike pulse dismiss hides the storage-upgrade admin UI flag.

Checklist

  • Backup database
  • Start / continue move until Complete
  • Finish upgrade (verify + switch reads)
  • Confirm a test like on the front end and in Statistics
  • (Optional) Remove old log tables after a quiet period
  • Purge page cache / CDN if you use full-page caching

Related: Pulse Storage Engine · Troubleshooting · Pulse WP-CLI

Related articles

Continue with these guides