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It goes without saying-but not for everyone, it seems!<\/em> – that a site’s speed<\/strong> is a key requirement<\/strong> foracquiring<\/strong> and retaining<\/strong> visitors(read also “buyers”<\/em>).<\/p>\n

WP Rocket<\/strong><\/a> is a widely used commercial solution for managing part of the optimization parameters of a WordPress<\/strong> site.<\/p>\n

In this article – the first in a series – we will focus on the basic functionality of the plugin<\/em>, initiated when it is first activated.
\nWe can distinguish them into automatic<\/strong> (not visible in configuration) and default<\/strong> (easily manageable). <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\tWP Rocket and the server<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
It is highly recommended that you inquire about the integration between WP Rocket <\/strong>and your server<\/em><\/strong>!
Take the case of Kinsta<\/a>, which we use extensively: since version 3.0 of WP Rocket, GZIP compression <\/strong>and page caching <\/strong>are automatically disabled <\/strong>on plugins and managed by the <\/strong>server<\/em><\/strong>.
Features such as cache duration<\/strong> may be irrelevant<\/strong>. Others, such as cache preloading<\/strong>, may even be discouraged<\/strong>!
Specifically, please refer to this update<\/a> (dated January 2022).
We do not rule out addressing this topic in one of the next articles.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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1 – Automatic features<\/h2>\n
When WP Rocket<\/strong> is activated, some features are started automatically, without being visible in configuration.
\nThe most important ones are: <\/p>\n
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Pagecaches<\/em><\/b>,<\/li>\n
Configuring browser-side<\/em>cache<\/em><\/b> deadlines,<\/li>\n
GZIP<\/b> compression.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
The complete list is given in this article<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Let us look in detail at the 3 mentioned.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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1.1 – Page Cache<\/h3>\n
Trivially, it consists of storing the code of a page<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
When first viewed<\/strong> by any user (or when being preloading<\/strong><\/a>, as we shall see), WordPress<\/strong> generates the HTML code.<\/strong>\nThis will be available for all subsequent views, by any user, until it expires. <\/p>\n
It goes without saying that the use of static HTML results in reduced stress on the server<\/strong> (both PHP and MySQL sides) and increased speed<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
The cache is totally or partially cleared:<\/p>\n
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At its own deadline;<\/li>\n
To publishing\/updating a piece of content (along with home<\/em> and archive pages<\/em> of the taxonomies to which the page belongs);<\/li>\n
By changing the settings of WP Rocket.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
1.2 – Configuring browser-side cache<\/em> deadlines<\/h3>\n
The browser cache<\/em> is the classic storage of files in the<\/strong> browser<\/em><\/strong> of the user<\/strong>.\nIt is normally always active (unless inhibited) for any static content on the network. <\/p>\n
Site content<\/strong> may need to be updated at different cadences<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
For example, the company logo will not be changed frequently.\nIt may be stored on the user’s browser<\/em>, with expiration set at one week.\nIf the file changes, it would take a maximum of one week to be downloaded again. <\/p>\n
This is where WP Rocket<\/strong> comes in, which adjusts expiration times by optimizing them based on content. It should be mentioned that configuration on Apache, being able to take advantage of .htaccess editing, will be more complete. It is also possible to take manual action<\/a> to achieve the same results on NGINX.<\/p>\n
Therefore, in case the user visits several pages, or visits the same page several times, it will reduce bandwidth, HTTP requests<\/strong> and increase speed<\/strong>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Browser caching <\/em>only affects content served by the domain<\/strong>; NOT third-party content<\/strong>(Google, Facebook, etc.).<\/p>\n<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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1.3 – GZIP Compression<\/h3>\n
GZIP<\/strong> is a compression format<\/strong> that can be applied to network-served content (pages, style sheets, JavaScript), thus reducing transfer times.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\tGZIP and domains<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
GZIP compression can only be applied to content served by the domain<\/strong>; not to third-party content (Google, Facebook, etc.). <\/p>\n<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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WP Rocket enables GZIP compression only on Apache<\/b>, by modification of .htaccess. For NGINX<\/b> and IIS<\/b>, you will need to contact the vendor directly<\/b>.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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2 – Default features<\/h2>\n
Some features, which are basically active, can be managed in configuration<\/strong>.
\nThese include: <\/p>\n
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Mobile cache<\/strong>;<\/li>\n
Cache expiration of<\/strong> 10 hours<\/strong>;<\/li>\n
Cache preloading<\/strong>;<\/li>\n
Preloading<\/strong> of links<\/strong>;<\/li>\n
API Activity Reduction<\/strong> Heartbeat<\/em><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Let’s look at them in a roundup.<\/p>\n
2.1 – Mobile Cache<\/h3>\n
Simply, it is the application of the<\/strong> cache<\/em><\/strong> on “mobile” devices<\/strong>, where by that term WP Rocket exclusively<\/strong> identifies phones<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
As a rule, it is always recommended to enable it, as long as the site is responsive<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
$\"\"$ <\/p>\n
2.2 – Cache expiration<\/h3>\n
The 10-hour duration of<\/strong> the cache<\/em><\/strong> of page<\/strong> is a starting point.<\/p>\n
In the face of frequent updates, it may be reasonable to lower the time<\/strong>, acting gradually.<\/p>\n
$\"\"$ <\/p>\n
2.3 – Cache preloading<\/h3>\n
The preloading of the<\/strong> page cache<\/em><\/strong> results in it being generated<\/strong> independently by WP Rocket, regardless of user interactions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
If preloading is turned off, each page will require at least one visit<\/strong> to be cached<\/em>.
\nTherefore, the first user will view it slower and slower. <\/p>\n
$\"\"$ <\/p>\n
2.4 – Link Preloading<\/h3>\n
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The <\/span>preloading of links<\/span> improves the <\/span>perceived interaction time<\/span> by the user browsing the site.<\/span><\/p>\n
If the user clicks or scrolls on a link<\/span> for more than 100ms<\/span>, the HTML content of the related page will be preloaded in the background<\/span>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\tBrowser<\/i> limitation<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Feature active only on Chrome and Chromium browsers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPreloading links and scores<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
The option does not result in improvements in PageSpeed, Pingdom, GT Metrix scores, but it does provide smoother navigation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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2.5 – Reducing the activity of the Heartbeat<\/em> API.<\/h3>\n
THEAPI<\/strong> Heartbeat<\/em><\/strong> is a WordPress default.
\nIt provides a connection for real-time information transfer between<\/strong> server<\/em><\/strong> e<\/strong> browser<\/em><\/strong>. For example, it is involved in automatic saves, administrator notifications, blocking of <\/span>posts<\/em> during editing by a user, and more.<\/span> <\/p>\n
In an interval on the order of seconds, the API launches a series of commands by exploiting the admin-ajax.php<\/em> file for external communication.<\/p>\n
Although critical, it can lead to high CPU utilization.<\/p>\n
WP Rocket basic reduces its activity<\/strong> by limiting its startup every 2 minutes<\/strong>(Reduce activity<\/i>).<\/p>\n
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3 – Two words about user cache<\/em><\/h2>\n
This is a basic disabled<\/strong> feature, but it deserves mention.<\/p>\n
It consists of creating a separate cache for each user accessing the site.
\nThe option has no effect on external visitors. <\/p>\n
It is therefore useful with sites that integrate restricted areas.<\/p>\n
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4 – It is only the beginning<\/h2>\n
We have addressed only the basic functionality of WP Rocket<\/strong>, without going into too much detail.
\nWe will soon address aspects such as media<\/strong>, preloading<\/strong>, external content<\/strong>, and more. <\/p>\n
Stay tuned in the coming weeks; new articles are coming soon!<\/i><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It goes without saying-but not for everyone, it seems! – that a site’s speed is a key requirement foracquiring and retaining visitors(read also “buyers”). WP Rocket is a widely used commercial solution for managing part of the optimization parameters of a WordPress site. In this article – the first in a series – we will […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3451,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-performance-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7715"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7715\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7716,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7715\/revisions\/7716"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3451"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/f.technology\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

1 – Automatic features<\/h2>\nWhen WP Rocket<\/strong> is activated, some features are started automatically, without being visible in configuration.\nThe most important ones are: <\/p>\n

1.1 – Page Cache<\/h3>\nTrivially, it consists of storing the code of a page<\/strong>.<\/p>\n