Question
Does the cPanel software perform automatic updates to my PHP versions?
Answer
cPanel updates your existing PHP packages to new builds as they are released. However, the cPanel software does not modify your existing PHP version to newer major releases (example PHP 74 -> PHP 8).
This means that if your server has PHP 7.4 installed, anytime the cPanel update cron is executed, it will check to see if a new build of PHP 7.4 is available.
These new builds are often security releases or small patches that address smaller issues or improvements within the specific version.
However, if a new major revision of PHP is made available, for example, PHP 8, the cPanel software will not replace your existing PHP 7.4 packages.
This is because the cPanel & WHM software actually allows you to have multiple PHP versions installed at a time and allow you to configure different PHP versions on a per-domain basis.
As such, new PHP releases do not replace existing PHP packages since we understand that users may have specific requirements for websites that perform optimally under a specific version. However, as a user, you can always install new versions via the EasyApache interface and manage them via the MultiPHP Manager.