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Having supported (from an infra/ops point of view) several places that insisted on using Wordpress, I don't understand why Varnish in front of <choose your web

Having supported (from an infra/ops point of view) several places that insisted on using Wordpress, I don't understand why Varnish in front of <choose your web server[1]> isn't the standard 'recommended' way of hosting it. 1: it isn't going to matter. When the WP PHP is doing 30 different SQL queries just to load the front page of the site, your web server is no longer the bottleneck, even if it's Pre-Fork Apache with mod_php.

zener79 9y ago
Using Varnishis a huge boost in performance for sure, but it doesn't solve vulnerability and maintenance problems
- stephenr 9y ago
  While a 'static' export of the site does solve the vulnerability issue (assuming it is a static export, and not just exporting to something else which could be vulnerable), I imagine lots of organisations would choose not to use it, specifically because some dynamic functionality won't work then. For those who aren't able/willing to use a fully static version of the site, Varnish (or Apache Traffic Server, Squid, or Apache or Nginx's Cache mode) can provide a huge improvement in performance, and (definitely with Varnish and a custom VCL, possibly not as easy with others) can even handle stuff like grace mode (i.e. return cached, expired results if the origin is offline) and purging cached objects when they're updated in the WP DB (via a plugin which communicates with Varnish). Im not sure what you mean about maintenance problems?
  - zener79 9y ago
    As Steffoz said below: "Most WordPress websites are just "brochure websites": they don't expose anything dynamic to their visitors excluding comments, contact forms and search functionality. We already handle these scenarios out-of-the box. Also, every plugin you use that does not have any front-facing components, it's perfectly fine. It's not a hosting solution for every possible WordPress website out there, but it can handle a huge slice of the market, with big benefits for agencies/freelances." Maintenance problems are those you have when you need to update your installation but you can not because the update break stuff around. I had lots of these :-)
    - stephenr 9y ago
      > Most WordPress websites are just "brochure websites" Thats possible for the overall majority of WP users, it just isn't what I've seen it used for. > Maintenance problems are those you have when you need to update your installation but you can not because the update break stuff around. How does this service solve that problem? Or do you mean, it allows you to not update immediately to patch a vulnerability, because the site is not the one publicly accessed?
      - zener79 9y ago
        > it allows you to not update immediately to patch a vulnerability, because the site is not the one publicly accessed? Exactly. You can never update a vulnerable plugin if you don't want to.
        stephenr 9y ago
        Right. Doesn't this just make your "admin" site the target then?
        zener79 9y ago
        The "admin" lives in a random-generated subdomain, is basic-auth protected and is alive only for the time needed for the editor to make the changes through the dashboard. For the rest of the time WordPress simply doesn't exist.
        spleenteo 9y ago
        brilliant
        deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]

zener79 9y ago

Using Varnishis a huge boost in performance for sure, but it doesn't solve vulnerability and maintenance problems

stephenr 9y ago
While a 'static' export of the site does solve the vulnerability issue (assuming it is a static export, and not just exporting to something else which could be vulnerable), I imagine lots of organisations would choose not to use it, specifically because some dynamic functionality won't work then. For those who aren't able/willing to use a fully static version of the site, Varnish (or Apache Traffic Server, Squid, or Apache or Nginx's Cache mode) can provide a huge improvement in performance, and (definitely with Varnish and a custom VCL, possibly not as easy with others) can even handle stuff like grace mode (i.e. return cached, expired results if the origin is offline) and purging cached objects when they're updated in the WP DB (via a plugin which communicates with Varnish). Im not sure what you mean about maintenance problems?
- zener79 9y ago
  As Steffoz said below: "Most WordPress websites are just "brochure websites": they don't expose anything dynamic to their visitors excluding comments, contact forms and search functionality. We already handle these scenarios out-of-the box. Also, every plugin you use that does not have any front-facing components, it's perfectly fine. It's not a hosting solution for every possible WordPress website out there, but it can handle a huge slice of the market, with big benefits for agencies/freelances." Maintenance problems are those you have when you need to update your installation but you can not because the update break stuff around. I had lots of these :-)
  - stephenr 9y ago
    > Most WordPress websites are just "brochure websites" Thats possible for the overall majority of WP users, it just isn't what I've seen it used for. > Maintenance problems are those you have when you need to update your installation but you can not because the update break stuff around. How does this service solve that problem? Or do you mean, it allows you to not update immediately to patch a vulnerability, because the site is not the one publicly accessed?
    - zener79 9y ago
      > it allows you to not update immediately to patch a vulnerability, because the site is not the one publicly accessed? Exactly. You can never update a vulnerable plugin if you don't want to.
      - stephenr 9y ago
        Right. Doesn't this just make your "admin" site the target then?
        zener79 9y ago
        The "admin" lives in a random-generated subdomain, is basic-auth protected and is alive only for the time needed for the editor to make the changes through the dashboard. For the rest of the time WordPress simply doesn't exist.
        spleenteo 9y ago
        brilliant
      - deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]