The newest release of WordPress, version 2.7.1, is available for download at WordPress.org. For those of you using version 2.7 currently the update to 2.7.1 is a breeze. Simply click on the link at the top of the admin and WordPress will upgrade itself automatically.

This is without a doubt the greatest new feature in the 2.7 version of the WordPress software. Previous versions has the ability to automatically upgrade plugins from within the admin but the ability to upgrade the core software was missing. This meant each time there was a new release people with multiple WordPress blogs had to FTP up the new files to each of their sites.

Automatic updating of the WordPress core has saved bloggers a ton of time in keeping their software current. This ease of upgrading also does great things for WordPress security because any means to make patching holes in the code easier helps prevent the spread of security leaks and problems.