---
title: "Troubleshooting issues with Drupal Starter Kits upgrade"
date: "2025-06-30T08:49:17+00:00"
summary: "Resolve Drupal Starter Kits upgrade issues with our guide on fixing indirect dependencies and minimum stability problems."
image:
type: "article"
url: "/drupal-starter-kits/help/69686-troubleshooting-issues-drupal-starter-kits-upgrade"
id: "c8389ce6-a61e-4fce-b8e7-3a3542be321c"
---

Indirect dependencies issues
----------------------------

When you run the `composer update` command to update Drupal Starter Kits, the system might not be able to update Drupal Starter Kits. The update command fails and the system displays the following error message:

![cms\_not-updated.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/7nzywujm3v/web/cms_not-updated.png?w=480&v=dcceca05-e2e4-4365-bdea-a3e77d1d1a23&itok=wYCrzYHw)

To determine the root cause of the issue:

1.  Run the following command:
    
        composer why-not acquia/acquia_cms
    
    The system displays the following message:
    
    ![cms\_composer-why-not-with-acquia-cms-starter.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/y6fxdx3avg/web/cms_composer-why-not-with-acquia-cms-starter.png?w=480&v=b1c672e0-21da-410f-bff6-d317f33ef98d&itok=RaP4Q8a6)
    
    The message indicates that `drupal/acquia_cms_starter` restricts updating `acquia/acquia_cms` to the latest version.
    
2.  To check issues with the Drupal Starter Kits Starter module, run the following command:
    
        composer why-not drupal/acquia_cms_starter
    
    The system displays the following message:
    
    ![cms\_investigate-using-composer-command.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/kdm9jazdpk/web/cms_investigate-using-composer-command.png?w=480&v=1055b1ad-22c4-4468-afd9-2d01abf9bfbf&itok=ysV3wiO0)
    
3.  To check issues with all Drupal Starter Kits modules, run the `composer why-not` command for each module:
    
    ![cms\_investigation-with-why-not-command.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/uzfs4bvtvp/web/cms_investigation-with-why-not-command.png?w=480&v=104d252d-46c8-4283-a1bb-74a90d7d314e&itok=-aIunjdr)
    
    You can locate indirect dependencies in the `require` section of the root `composer.json` file.
    
    ![cms\_indirect-dependencies-added-to-root.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/ayfxnx6dh3/web/cms_indirect-dependencies-added-to-root.png?h=480&v=93898025-0c1f-4615-ab51-eb832dd6a3f0&itok=cJ7x3kqn)
    
    Warning
    
    The `require` section in the `composer.json` file might be different for different users. Therefore, you must use your commands accordingly.
    

To resolve this issue:

1.  Remove all the indirect dependencies from the root `composer.json` file and run the `composer install` command.
    
    Alternatively, you can remove the indirect dependencies by running the following command:
    
        composer remove drupal/entity_clone drupal/acquia_cms_article
        drupal/acquia_connector drupal/acquia_search drupal/ctools drupal/entity_clone drupal/facets
        drupal/geofield drupal/google_tag drupal/jsonapi_extras drupal/metatag drupal/scheduler_
        content_moderation_integration
    
    ![cms\_removing-dependencies-1.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/8bn6jp3jaf/web/cms_removing-dependencies-1.png?w=480&v=068b8ee5-ba16-4a24-9805-612d88bb6506&itok=1Ul28a_0)
    
    ![cms\_removing-dependencies-2.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/t5nrjt7xck/web/cms_removing-dependencies-2.png?h=480&v=606ac7f1-bbde-416b-b305-9feddeca2a1a&itok=HdlzWsmN)
    
    For example, `drupal/facets` is a dependency of the Drupal Starter Kit Search module. Therefore, you must not have them in the root `composer.json` file. If they are included in the file, remove them manually or by running the following command:
    
        composer remove drupal/facets
    
2.  After removing all the indirect dependencies, update Drupal Starter Kits by running the following command:
    
        composer update acquia/acquia_cms
    

### Minimum stability issues

If minimum stability blocks your Drupal Starter Kits upgrade, the system displays the following error message:

![cms\_minimum-stability-blocks-upgrade.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/lvhvi3j1vw/web/cms_minimum-stability-blocks-upgrade.png?w=480&v=fcacd2f4-db19-427c-b4c9-1d5a575af5f7&itok=lvsZDu4z)

To resolve this issue:

1.  Update your root `composer.json` file by running the command:
    
        composer config minimum-stability dev
    
2.  Update Drupal Starter Kits to the latest version.
    *   For Drupal Starter Kits 1.5.x or 2.x, run the following command:
        
            composer update acquia/acquia_cms -W
        
        ![cms\_upgrading-acms.png](https://acquia.widen.net/content/03gvc00h2b/web/cms_upgrading-acms.png?w=480&v=1ce05061-200a-4120-8fe6-19fcb90f8da4&itok=K7-ZMYHH)
        
    *   For Drupal Starter Kits composable architecture, run the following command:
        
            composer update drupal/acquia_cms* -W