How to create a CDN?

Speed, speed, speed! We all want our sites and applications to load as fast as possible. Each moment of delay might make your visitors go away. So one of the most common approaches to increase the speed of a website is to use a Content delivery network (CDN). But how to create a CDN?

What is CDN?

Why is CDN important?

The content delivery network is what the CDN abbreviation is. It is a complex solution that focuses on delivering content to visitors faster by using routing and cache methods.

There are DNS servers that server that will check the origin of the request and redirect to the closest cache server shortening the length and time of each request.

How does CDN work?

The idea is simple, there are DNS resolvers on the way that analyze the DNS request, and based on the origin of the request, they will provide the IP address of the closest cache server (called delivery nodes by some service providers).

Those DNS servers are strategically located. Depending on your DNS provider, you can have many and put more in your most important region.

Instead of having Anycast DNS, where all of the DNS servers have the same IP address, here you can use a service called GeoDNS or Traffic Director (depending on your provider) and set different IP addresses for the different regions.

That way, you won’t send all of the traffic to the same origin. You can have a second or third web hosting located in those important places for you.

You will use those servers as cache servers, and you will put their IP addresses for the DNS server nearby.

That way, the DNS request will go very fast to the first DNS resolver that can provide an answer, and after that, it will redirect to the cache server and saves a ton of time.

How to create CDN?

Choose a CDN provider or check a combination between GeoDNS and web hosting.

You can go straight to the big could like MS Azure or Amazon’s AWS and get a CDN from them. It will probably work fine, but it could be a lot more expensive.

Another option is to get a Managed DNS service and a few web hosting services at the locations that best suits you. That will save some money, and you can be less dependent on a single provider.

Set up your web hosting servers.

No matter which option you have chosen, you will need to decide where you want to have your data. Make it closer to your users so they can load your content fast.

You will need to get the IP addresses of the servers you have chosen and later use them with your DNS settings.

In your DNS, you will need to create a DNS load balancer. You must choose points of presence, where you will have a DNS server with DNS records. You will need to add the appropriate DNS records, use the server from before, and redirect the traffic to the closest server.

Most of the CDN DNS providers will have so-called Pull Zones. A pull zone will be your cache where images, CSS, and JavaScript will be saved automatically. You can create one and go to the next step.

WordPress settings for the cache plugin

Now that you have set up your CDN, you need to adjust your WordPress site. Use a cache plugin. In it, you need to enable page cache, stop minifying, enable database cache, stop object cache, enable browser cache. And the last step is the most important, enable CDN and choose the CDN type.

Conclusion

It is not really hard to create a CDN. Based on your provider, you will have different steps, but the basic idea is the same. Create one and enjoy the benefits.

5 Best WordPress caching plugins

Is your WordPress website experiencing a slow performance? It can be due to poor hosting service, but also, every new addition to make your site more attractive (images, content, etc.), and the traffic growth can slow it down.

Slow loading directly affects users’ experience and search engine position, so speeding the site is critical. WordPress caching plugins is an easy way to do it!

What’s a caching plugin?

Caching means storing website data in a provisional storage area (cache) to get them faster every time a user requests your site through a browser.

A caching plugin is a software that creates a static version of your site (HTML), faster to load than the dynamic, heavier version.

Now, check out the features of the best 5 WordPress caching plugins!

WP Rocket

Easy to use for experts and beginners.
Installing and caching through one-click.
It’s a paid plugin. For caching, one site $49, three sites $99, and an unlimited number of sites $249. Anual prices.
Page cache, cache preloading, gzip compression.
Lazy loading, for images to be loaded only when users scroll them.
Concatenation, minification (JavaScript, HTML, CSS files), DNS pre-fetching, CDN support.
It optimizes the site’s database to remove unnecessary data.
Page and browser caching.
CloudFare and multisite compatible.
It works smoothly on the demanding e-commerce sites.

To consider:

There’s no free trial or free version. It offers a 14-day money refund guarantee.

WP Super Cache

Free and open-source of Automattic, the venture behind WordPress.
Three modes for caching. Simple, for regular users, without editing PHP files. Expert allows advanced users to modify the .htaccess file. Super caching, to cache pages for known users (regularly logged into the site, commentators, etc.).
Simple caching and cache rebuilding (cache on the site isn’t deleted every time that a comment is posted. Instead, it rebuilds the cache and shows the old page to other users).
CDN support, page cache, gzip compression, advanced-cache preload.
Removes old, useless files to optimize.

To consider:

It might be hard to set up fully.

W3 Total Cache

It’s free and open-source.
It’s integrated with a CDN.
Well suited for regular desktop and mobile sites.
Minification, feed optimization, HTTP compression.
Gzip compression, page cache, object cache.
Database cache.
Support for Google AMP.
Compatible with different hosting solutions (shared hosting, clusters, dedicated servers).
CDN linked to the media library to see the optimization of your images.

To consider:

Beginners can find this plugin hard to use.

Comet Cache

Easy to install, friendly dashboard.
Free and paid versions are available. One-site license costs $39, three-sites license $99, and unlimited sites license $139. They’re one-time rates!
It uses WordPress browser caching with Apache server to avoid multiple roundtrips server-browser.
You can choose the CDN (CloudFront, MaxCDN, or another).
It caches tags, categories, pages, posts, RSS feeds.
It generates site statistics about cache status.

To consider:

Both versions include kind of the same features. The main difference is, the paid one does all the job automatically.

WP Fastest Cache

Easy installation.
Free and paid versions. One site license is $49.99, for 3, $125, and for five, $175—one-time fees.
.htaccess file is changed automatically.
Blocking cache for specific posts or pages (Short Code).
CDN, SSL, Cloudflare support.
Cache for mobile devices and for logged-in users.
An automatic preload, or create a cache of the whole site.
Auto-clean cache (Cache Timeout).
WP-CLI cache clearing.
The paid version includes disable emoji, minification (HTML, CSS), Gzip compression, adds expires headers, combine (JS, CSS), leverage browser caching, mobile cache, widget cache, lazy load, etc.

To consider:

The free version has limited functionality.

Conclusion

There’s a wide variety of WordPress caching plugins. Paid and free, less or more complex. The decision is yours!

5 Best E-commerce hosting providers

So, have you decided to jump on the e-Commerce wave?

To start well, you need to build a reliable and fast loading e-shop. And that’s directly connected with having an efficient, fast, and secure hosting provider.

There are many! Check until you find the one that best fits your business objectives. Consider e-Commerce websites demand more resources than a blog or a corporate site.

Here you have a reliable starting point, our top five E-commerce hosting providers.

A2 Hosting advantages:

Different plans (VPS, dedicated server, shared and reseller hosting) focused on e-commerce.

Turbo servers, *twenty times faster than regular ones.

Unlimited disk space (SSD).

Datacenter locations in America, Europe, and Asia.

Free SSL certificate.

It has “Perpetual Security” –dual hosting firewall for stopping users without permission, free HackScan to prevent threats, and DDoS protection.

Free automatic backups.

Free migration for new users or upgrade a plan.

Prices from $2.99 monthly (shared hosting) to $99.59 monthly (dedicated server).

A2 Hosting disadvantages:

Its uptime is competitive but not the highest.

Migration cost if you downgrade or change location.

Bluehost advantages:

Mid-level plans with a robust set of features to build new e-commerce.

High uptime.

It includes free standard security: SSL certificate, Secure Shell Access (SSH), hotlink, and Spam Assassin protection.

From 100 GB SSD to unlimited SSD storage, depending on the plan.

Unlimited bandwidth.

For WordPress site owners, it offers integration with WooCommerce plug-in.

You can pay a month, a year or three years.

The standard plan costs $19.95 (monthly for a year contract). The Premium plan for $32.95 (monthly for a year contract).

Bluehost disadvantages:

Speed is good, but nothing remarkable.

Migration is free for just one site.

It has servers in the USA only.

Renewal rates can go expensive.

Siteground advantages:

Auto-install feature for e-commerce applications.

Cloudflare CDN and SuperCacher tech for quicker loading.

Six own data centers in North America (1), Europe (3), Asia (1), and Australia (1).

Free e-commerce transfer, shopping carts with installation, and an optimized e-commerce server.

High uptime with a guarantee (compensations for downtime).

Daily and free backups.

Unlimited bandwidth.

Free SSL certificate, own in-house system to monitor servers.

Free advanced spam protection for incoming/outgoing messages.

Rates from $6.99 monthly (StartUp plan) to $14.99 monthly (GoGeek plan).

Siteground disadvantages:

There’s no automatic site setup.

Low storage space (starts at 10GB). Not really suitable for image/video-heavy websites.

Its entry-level plan (StartUp) only hosts one website.

InMotion advantages:

Two levels of e-Commerce plans. SSD shared e-commerce hosting for beginners and SSD VPS e-commerce hosting for already high-traffic shops.

Good uptime, not the highest.

One-click install (Softaculous tool) for paid apps. It’s free on shared hosting, not on VPS plans.

SSD storage, from 10GB (Lite plan) to 200GB (Pro and VPS-3000HA-S plans).

Unlimited bandwidth.

UltraStack servers to optimized website performance (load time, speed…).

Free SSL and malware protection.

InMotion disadvantages:

Not the fastest.

Servers located just in the USA.

No free backups.

Hostinger advantages:

It provides a Cloudflare DNS.

Data centers in North America, Europe, and Asia.

Solid uptime.

Fast servers and speed.

Unlimited bandwidth and from 10GB to 100GB SSD.

Free SSL certificate, BitNinja security, an email spam filter included.

Free daily or weekly backups.

Affordable. Pricing from a $0.99 monthly plan (if you sign for 48 months), and on.

Hostinger disadvantages:

Limited services in some plans (basic plan: 1 email, just 1 FTP Account, 100GB bandwidth).

No free backups.

Renewal prices can go high.

CONCLUSION

There are hosting providers for all size e-shops. The best way not to get lost is to know your real business needs. Read the terms and conditions of their policies carefully. Be sure you clearly understand the included features in your plan, money-back-guarantee conditions, the real limits of “unlimited” features, introductory and regular pricing, etc.

Now, amaze the world and when you become a billion-dollar company, just tag us!