#cloudways digitalocean wordpress

[jcmarchi]

A Few Ways That Cloudways Makes Running This Site a Little Easier

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/a-few-ways-that-cloudways-makes-running-this-site-a-little-easier/

A Few Ways That Cloudways Makes Running This Site a Little Easier

It’s probably no surprise to you that CSS-Tricks is (proudly) hosted on Cloudways, DigitalOcean’s managed hosting arm. Given both CSS-Tricks and Cloudways are part of DigitalOcean, it was just a matter of time before we’d come together this way. And here we are!

We were previously hosted on Flywheel which was a fairly boutique WordPress hosting provider until WP Engine purchased it years back. And, to be very honest and up-front, Flywheel served us extremely well. There reached a point when it became pretty clear that CSS-Tricks was simply too big for Flywheel to scale along. That might’ve led us to try out WP Engine in the absence of Cloudways… but it’s probably good that never came to fruition considering recent events.

Anyway, moving hosts always means at least a smidge of contest-switching. Different server names with different configurations with different user accounts with different controls.

We’re a pretty low-maintenance operation around here, so being on a fully managed host is a benefit because I see very little of the day-to-day nuance that happens on our server. The Cloudways team took care of all the heavy lifting of migrating us and making sure we were set up with everything we needed, from SFTP accounts and database access to a staging environment and deployment points.

Our development flow used to go something like this:

Fire up Local (Flywheel’s local development app)

Futz around with local development

Push to main

Let a CI/CD pipeline publish the changes

I know, ridiculously simple. But it was also riddled with errors because we didn’t always want to publish changes on push. There was a real human margin of error in there, especially when handling WordPress updates. We could have (and should have) had some sort of staging environment rather than blindly trusting what was working locally. But again, we’re kinduva a ragtag team despite the big corporate backing.

The flow now looks like this:

Fire up Local (we still use it!)

Futz around with local development

Push to main

Publish to staging

Publish to production

This is something we could have set up in Flywheel but was trivial with Cloudways. I gave up some automation for quality assurance’s sake. Switching environments in Cloudways is a single click and I like a little manual friction to feel like I have some control in the process. That might not scale well for large teams on an enterprise project, but that’s not really what Cloudways is all about — that’s why we have DigitalOcean!

See that baseline-status-widget branch in the dropdown? That’s a little feature I’m playing with (and will post about later). I like that GitHub is integrated directly into the Cloudways UI so I can experiment with it in whatever environment I want, even before merging it with either the staging or master branches. It makes testing a whole lot easier and way less error-prone than triggering auto-deployments in every which way.

Here’s another nicety: I get a good snapshot of the differences between my environments through Cloudways monitoring. For example, I was attempting to update our copy of the Gravity Forms plugin just this morning. It worked locally but triggered a fatal in staging. I went in and tried to sniff out what was up with the staging environment, so I headed to the Vulnerability Scanner and saw that staging was running an older version of WordPress compared to what was running locally and in production. (We don’t version control WordPress core, so that was an easy miss.)

I hypothesized that the newer version of Gravity Forms had a conflict with the older version of WordPress, and this made it ridiculously easy to test my assertion. Turns out that was correct and I was confident that pushing to production was safe and sound — which it was.

That little incident inspired me to share a little about what I’ve liked about Cloudways so far. You’ll notice that we don’t push our products too hard around here. Anytime you experience something delightful — whatever it is — is a good time to blog about it and this was clearly one of those times.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Cloudways is ideal for any size or type of WordPress site. It’s one of the few hosts that will let you BOYO cloud, so to speak, where you can hold your work on a cloud server (like a DigitalOcean droplet, for instance) and let Cloudways manage the hosting, giving you all the freedom to scale when needed on top of the benefits of having a managed host. So, if you need a fully managed, autoscaling hosting solution for WordPress like we do here at CSS-Tricks, Cloudways has you covered.

[wizhope]

Top WordPress Hosting Services for 2025

Choosing the right WordPress hosting service is crucial for ensuring optimal website performance, security, and scalability. With advancements in technology, hosting providers in 2025 offer a range of features tailored for businesses, bloggers, and eCommerce store owners. Here’s a comprehensive guide to the top WordPress hosting services for 2025 and what makes them stand out.

1. SiteGround – Best for Customer Support & Security

Why Choose SiteGround?

Free daily backups and SSL certificates

Top-rated customer support available 24/7

Optimized for speed with Google Cloud integration

Free CDN (Content Delivery Network) for global reach

Best For: Small to medium-sized businesses and bloggers looking for reliable support and security.

2. Bluehost – Best for Beginners & Affordability

Why Choose Bluehost?

Officially recommended by WordPress.org

One-click WordPress installation

Free domain name for the first year

Affordable pricing with good performance

Best For: New website owners and small business owners needing a cost-effective hosting solution.

3. WP Engine – Best for Managed WordPress Hosting

Why Choose WP Engine?

Fully managed WordPress hosting

Automated updates & daily backups

Built-in caching for faster performance

Top-tier security with DDoS protection

Best For: High-traffic websites, eCommerce stores, and professional bloggers who need a hands-off hosting experience.

4. Kinsta – Best for Speed & Cloud-Powered Performance

Why Choose Kinsta?

Powered by Google Cloud for ultra-fast performance

Free staging environment for website testing

Automatic scaling to handle traffic surges

Excellent uptime reliability

Best For: Businesses and enterprises that require high-speed performance and scalability.

5. DreamHost – Best for Budget-Friendly Hosting

Why Choose DreamHost?

Unlimited bandwidth with no overage fees

Free WordPress migration tool

97-day money-back guarantee

Environmentally friendly green hosting

Best For: Budget-conscious users and those looking for a hassle-free experience.

6. A2 Hosting – Best for High-Speed Performance

Why Choose A2 Hosting?

Turbo servers for up to 20x faster speed

Free SSL & SSD storage for security & speed

Developer-friendly with SSH access & Git

Anytime money-back guarantee

Best For: Developers, agencies, and performance-driven websites needing ultra-fast speeds.

7. Hostinger – Best for Cost-Effective Cloud Hosting

Why Choose Hostinger?

Affordable cloud hosting solutions

Free domain & SSL certificate

AI-powered website optimization

Easy-to-use control panel

Best For: Freelancers, startups, and small businesses looking for a budget-friendly yet powerful hosting provider.

8. Cloudways – Best for Scalable Cloud Hosting

Why Choose Cloudways?

Cloud hosting on AWS, Google Cloud, and DigitalOcean

Pay-as-you-go pricing model

Free SSL & site migration

Advanced caching for speed optimization

Best For: Developers, businesses, and agencies needing a flexible and scalable hosting solution.

How to Choose the Best WordPress Hosting for Your Needs?

When selecting the best hosting provider, consider:

Speed & Performance – Look for fast servers and CDN integration.

Security Features – Ensure free SSL certificates, backups, and malware protection.

Scalability – Choose hosting that can handle traffic growth.

Customer Support – Reliable 24/7 support is essential.

Pricing – Balance features with affordability.

Conclusion

The right WordPress hosting service depends on your specific needs. Whether you prioritize affordability, speed, security, or scalability, the options above provide excellent solutions for bloggers, businesses, developers, and agencies in 2025.

If you’re looking for expert guidance on WordPress development and hosting, check out WizHope for top-tier website solutions!

[driftwp0]

The Need for Speed: Exploring the Fastest WordPress Hosting Services

In the competitive landscape of online businesses and content creation, website speed plays a pivotal role in attracting and retaining visitors. With attention spans dwindling and user expectations soaring, every second counts when it comes to website loading times. Among the myriad of factors influencing site speed, web hosting stands out as a crucial determinant. For WordPress users, opting for the fastest hosting service can significantly enhance website performance and user experience.

WordPress, powering over 40% of the web, offers a plethora of hosting options tailored to diverse needs and budgets. However, not all hosting services are created equal when it comes to speed. To ensure blazing-fast loading times and seamless browsing experiences, it's essential to choose a hosting provider optimized for WordPress performance.

Enter the realm of the fastest WordPress hosting services. These providers leverage cutting-edge technologies, robust infrastructure, and specialized optimizations to deliver unrivaled speed and reliability. Let's delve into some of the top contenders in this space:

Kinsta:

Renowned for its lightning-fast performance and top-notch support, Kinsta is a premium managed WordPress hosting provider. Powered by the Google Cloud Platform, Kinsta offers an array of performance-enhancing features, including server-level caching, PHP 8.0 support, and a global CDN (Content Delivery Network). With an emphasis on scalability and security, Kinsta ensures rapid loading times even under heavy traffic loads.

WP Engine:

As another industry leader in managed WordPress hosting, WP Engine boasts exceptional speed and reliability. Its finely-tuned infrastructure, powered by the EverCache system and built-in CDN, accelerates website performance across the globe. WP Engine's platform is optimized for WordPress, offering seamless integration with popular plugins and robust security features to safeguard against cyber threats.

SiteGround:

SiteGround is renowned for its fast and reliable hosting solutions tailored to Easy Wordpress Hosting Transfer. Leveraging SSD storage, NGINX servers, and proprietary caching technologies, SiteGround ensures swift loading times and optimal performance for WordPress websites. With data centers strategically located worldwide and a built-in CDN, SiteGround delivers content quickly to visitors regardless of their geographical location.

Flywheel:

Geared towards designers, developers, and agencies, Flywheel offers lightning-fast WordPress hosting optimized for creatives. With its user-friendly dashboard, robust caching mechanisms, and built-in performance optimizations, Flywheel streamlines the process of building and managing WordPress websites. Additionally, Flywheel's partnership with Google Cloud Platform ensures high availability and scalability for websites of all sizes.

Cloudways:

For users seeking flexibility and scalability, Cloudways provides managed cloud hosting solutions optimized for WordPress performance. With support for multiple cloud providers, including AWS, Google Cloud, and DigitalOcean, Cloudways offers unparalleled speed and reliability. Its advanced caching mechanisms, SSD-based infrastructure, and auto-scaling features ensure optimal performance even during traffic spikes.

[richtong1]

wp: Migrating to Cloudways from DigitalOcean

OK, I’ve been managing my WordPress instance on a DigitalOcean droplet for the past four years. It has been faster than my old Bluehost, but costs have been rising, so it is now $25/month up from a much lower number. And I’ve had my share of management issues like installing hand things like redist and other caching to get performance from 7 seconds a page to less than one. The last straw has…

[marketingtools-blog]

Exploring Compassionate Alternatives to Kinsta for Your Hosting Needs

In the ever-expanding universe of web hosting, Kinsta has emerged as a beacon for many seeking managed WordPress hosting. Launched in 2013, Kinsta has built its reputation on a foundation of high-performance hosting and attentive customer care. Yet, as with all services, it may not perfectly align with the unique needs, values, or budget of every single customer. Perhaps you’ve found yourself in this position—searching for a Kinsta alternative that feels just right for you.

When selecting a web hosting service, one embarks on a journey filled with a myriad of considerations such as performance, support, and cost-effectiveness. With an open heart and attentive ear, we shall explore hosting havens that stand as worthy alternatives to Kinsta. If you’ve had your eyes on Kinsta but find there’s something amiss for your particular scenario, the following options might serve as the sanctuary your website needs to flourish.

WP Engine - The Seasoned Specialist

[WP Engine](https://wpengine.com/) is often spoken of with a certain reverence in the WordPress community. With deep roots in the realm of managed WordPress hosting, WP Engine represents a reliable fortress for those seeking Kinsta parallels.

Empathetic to Your Performance Needs

Offering lightning-fast servers and robust scalability options, WP Engine is generous in extending its performance capabilities to your WordPress site. The company shares a bond with your desire for speed and stability, acknowledging that each second your website takes to load can be the difference between a visitor and a bounce.

Committed to Your Growth

Beyond performance, WP Engine is a supportive guide as you scale the heights of digital expansion. With staging environments, automated backups, and intuitive developer tools, this service empowers you with the resources to evolve gracefully and systematically.

SiteGround - The Nurturing Guardian

For those whose hearts are set on unwavering support and an approachable interface, [SiteGround](https://www.siteground.com/) may be the warm embrace for which you’ve been yearning. This hosting provider is renowned for its customer care, attentive to the anxieties and aspirations of each website owner who entrusts them with their digital dreams.

A Nurturing Environment for Beginners and Veterans Alike

SiteGround is imbued with a penchant for understanding – offering a spectrum of hosting plans to accommodate the journey from fledgling sites to authoritative web portals. With an easy-to-navigate cPanel and a suite of auto-installers, even those making their first foray into website ownership will find repose here.

A Guardian of Your Online Presence

With a robust security posture, SiteGround vigilantly shields your digital abode against the multitudes of online threats. Daily backups, free SSL certificates, and cutting-edge technologies like AI anti-bot systems are just a few measures they employ to keep your site safe and sound.

Cloudways - The Adventurous Trailblazer

The yearning for freedom and control can be formidable, and for those who seek a Kinsta alternative with an adventurous spirit, [Cloudways](https://www.cloudways.com/) might be the companion you’re looking for.

Freedom to Choose Your Path

Cloudways stands unique in the landscape of managed hosting by offering a choice of five cloud infrastructure providers: DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr, AWS, and Google Cloud. This trail-blazing approach endows you with the liberty to select the platform that resonates most with your performance needs and budget.

Tools for the Intrepid Explorer

Equipping you with a cache of powerful tools, Cloudways ensures you have everything you need to blaze your own trail. From easy staging and cloning to server-level caching and a bespoke CloudwaysCDN, this service amplifies your agility and autonomy in the digital wilderness.

A2 Hosting - The Resilient Ally

If it’s resilience you seek in your web hosting journey, then [A2 Hosting](https://www.a2hosting.com/) emerges as a steadfast ally. Recognized for its commitment to high-speed hosting and resilient infrastructure, A2 Hosting stands ready to accommodate those hoping for an alternative to Kinsta’s offerings.

Companionship on the Road to Rapid Load Times

A2 Hosting’s Turbo servers promise up to 20x faster page loads—a godsend for those whose online ventures are sensitive to the swift currents of user experience and SEO rankings. Their commitment to speed is unwavering, offering a robust backbone for your site’s continued success.

A True Ally in Times of Trouble

Support is more than just a service at A2 Hosting—it’s a promise. Their support team, dubbed the “Guru Crew”, is available 24/7 to assist you with any hiccups you might encounter on your journey. This round-the-clock companionship ensures you never feel alone when navigating the landscape of web hosting.

Conclusion

Seeking out a Kinsta alternative is not about finding a perfect match for everyone. Instead, it’s about discovering the companion that speaks to your heart, the service that understands your needs, the ally that will walk beside you through thick and thin, or the trailblazer that encourages you to carve your

[bloggershojib]

Cloudways Review 2023 : Pros and Cons

Introduction

In the rapidly evolving landscape of web hosting, Cloudways has emerged as a beacon of innovation and user-centricity. This introduction invites you to explore the nuanced world of Cloudway, a managed cloud server service that bridges the gap between users and top-tier cloud providers. With a focus on simplicity, flexibility, and affordability, Cloudways beckons those seeking a refined hosting experience. Join us on a journey through this Cloudways review to uncover the intricacies of its unique approach to web hosting.

Cloudways Overview

In the realm of web hosting solutions, selecting a provider that elicits no regrets proves challenging. Amidst the array of choices, Cloudways stands out with its distinctive yet streamlined approach to web hosting.

Primarily based in Malta, Cloudways collaborates with five leading cloud providers—DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Google Cloud. These providers constitute the underlying infrastructure, yet users need not establish a direct account; Cloudways orchestrates the setup. Functioning as a managed hosting platform, Cloudways expedites website deployment with just a few clicks, regardless of the chosen open-source tool, be it WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, Larvel, Magento, PHP, or others.

Cloudways further differentiates itself with a flexible pricing model. Operating on a “pay-as-you-go” structure, it emerges as an appealing choice for small-to-medium-sized enterprises and budget-conscious users. Delve into this Cloudways review for a comprehensive understanding of this cloud-based hosting provider.

<<<< View More Details >>>>>

[ananovareviews]

Latest News And Web Hosting Review CloudWays

CloudWays: Company Overview Visit Cloudways CloudWays is a Managed Cloud Hosting Platform with a 1-click deployment for 15+ web applications on multiple cloud infrastructures-namely DigitalOcean, Vultr, Amazon Web Services, and Google Compute Engine. It offers a straightforward way to monitor, manage and deploy high-performance applications, which help you to focus on developing your web…

[webiatorstechnologies]

5 Best PHP Hosting Providers

Many websites on the web are powered by PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor), a popular scripting language. Choosing the best host is essential for getting the most out of your PHP-based online apps and sites. Let's explore the best 5 PHP hosting providers. 

Why PHP Hosting Is Crucial

PHP is a server-side scripting language that makes it simple to produce dynamic content like animations and interactive forms; it is typically included in Linux-based web hosting plans. CMSs like WordPress, Joomla!, and Drupal would only exist with PHP's ability to support dynamic data and user interaction. 

If you want your PHP-based website to perform properly and effectively, you need a PHP hosting service that has the right infrastructure and features. Important features include the quickness of servers, the flexibility to add more users, safety, and help desk support. 

Top 5 PHP Hosting Providers

#1 Cloudways

Cloudways is a PHP host with an unconventional methodology. Cloudways is not your typical hosting service; rather, it is a managed cloud platform that allows you to host PHP applications with the likes of Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and DigitalOcean. The following features distinguish Cloudways as a leading PHP host:

Capacity to Grow and Change

The scalability of Cloudways is unrivaled. As the number of visitors to your site rises and falls, so too does the amount of resources allocated to your PHP installation. It can accommodate any website, from a personal blog to a busy online store. The cost-effectiveness stems from the fact that you only have to pay for the resources you employ.

Cloud Service Provider Options

Cloudways allows you to use the services of any cloud infrastructure provider of your choosing. It is revolutionary because it allows you to host your data in a facility geographically closer to your users. You have the flexibility to choose the best hosting solution for your needs by switching between providers whenever you choose.

Extremely Rapid Action

Performance is a top priority for Cloudways. You can rest assured that your PHP-based site will load swiftly and efficiently thanks to their SSD-based hosting, extensive caching, PHP 7 support, and in-built CDN integration. Cloudways satisfies both the user experience and search engine optimization needs for rapid page loading times.

Superior Assistance to Customers

Cloudways' support team is available around the clock via various methods like ticketing and live chat. Their knowledgeable support staff can help you with any questions or issues you have with your PHP hosting. Cloudways customers often praise the quality of the company's help desk.

Highly Managed Security 

Protect your PHP apps with the help of Cloudways' powerful security features. They provide complimentary SSL certificates, updates, backups, and firewalls. Since Cloudways handles security, you're free to concentrate on the site's content and features.

Friendly User Experience

Cloudways's intuitive interface is one of its best qualities. Its user-friendly interface makes it ideal for both technical and non-technical users to control their PHP hosting. Easy application deployment, database administration, and performance tracking are all possible.

Cost-Efficiency

The combination of Cloudways' affordable costs and high quality of service is unbeatable. They have a system where you only pay for the resources you really use, which they call "pay as you go." Costs can be optimized effectively because of the availability of multiple cloud service providers and this pricing structure.

#2 Bluehost

When it comes to PHP hosting, Bluehost is among the best-recognized and most trusted companies in the industry. They provide a variety of hosting options, from shared to dedicated servers, that are well-suited for PHP-based websites. Some of Bluehost's most notable characteristics as a PHP host are as follows:

Installing WordPress with a single click: The best choice for WordPress and other PHP-based CMS.

Shared hosting plans are priced competitively so that even a tight budget may afford them.

Guaranteed help whenever you need it, thanks to round-the-clock customer service.

Maximum availability with minimum downtime, also known as high uptime.

#3 SiteGround

Another popular PHP host, SiteGround, is renowned for its speed and dedicated support staff. Because of how well their hosting plans work with PHP-based apps, they are a great option for web designers and owners. Some of the more notable features are:

Technology like SuperCacher makes websites faster and more efficient.

Free, regular backups ensure that your data is safe in the event of a disaster.

A quick and educated help desk staff provided extraordinary customer service.

Features helpful to programmers, such as a staging area, SSH access, and GIT integration.

#4 A2Hosting

Fast page loads are especially important for PHP-based websites, and A2 Hosting takes pride in providing such solutions. Some of A2 Hosting's best qualities include the following:

Transferring an existing PHP site is a breeze, and they do it for free.

Lightning-fast performance, up to 20x faster page loading and turbo servers. 

Programmer-friendly surroundings: All the way up to PHP 8.x are supported.

They are so confident in the quality of their service that they offer a money-back guarantee at any time.

#5 HostGator

HostGator is well-liked because of its user-friendly interface and extensive selection of PHP hosting options. They provide hosting options ranging from shared to VPS to dedicated. HostGator's main features are:

Plenty of time to evaluate their offerings with a 45-day money-back guarantee.

The availability of your website is ensured with a 99.9 percent uptime guarantee.

Ideal for rapidly expanding PHP websites with no limits on storage or bandwidth.

Simple website administration is made easier with a straightforward control panel.

PHP Development Hosting\

Aside from running a PHP-powered CMS (content management system), PHP hosting is also useful for creating your software, whether it be a standalone program or an add-on for another program. 

The ability to use the file transfer protocol (FTP) is crucial for successfully transferring your code to the server. While all hosts provide this feature, you should feel free to use only a control panel. You may require further regulation if you collaborate with others.

Provided you have SSH access, working on your server is as easy as if you were sitting in front of it. It may be possible to write code directly on the server and skip the uploading step. If you require SSH access, verify that your prospective host offers it before signing up with them.

The nature of your task will dictate a variety of other considerations. Depending on the nature of your project, SSD storage, an SSL certificate (for encryption), and access to a CDN are all helpful. Other languages, such as Python and Ruby, may also be useful.

When And Why Would You Need PHP Hosting?

Using the PHP programming language, PHP hosting facilitates websites. You may make dynamic websites and web apps with a scripting language called PHP. PHP hosting comes in a wide variety of flavors, but some of the most frequent include shared hosting, 

VPS hosting, cloud hosting, and dedicated server hosting. Shared hosting is a fantastic alternative for new businesses because it is inexpensive and simple to set up. VPS or dedicated server hosting, on the other hand, is the way to go if you anticipate a high volume of traffic or require granular administrative access.

People whose websites, whether commercial or personal blogs rely on a CMS will find PHP hosting to their liking. Popular CMSs like WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal are all built in PHP, making them compatible with PHP hosting. 

Similarly, this hosting option is helpful for web or application developers who must encrypt their code and their users' sensitive data. PHP is used to create a wide variety of websites and social media sites. Web developers favor PHP because it is accessible, flexible, and free.

Original Source:- https://store.webiators.com/blog/post/5-best-php-hosting-providers

[jcmarchi]

Catching Up on the WordPress 🚫 WP Engine Sitch

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/catching-up-on-the-wordpress-wp-engine-sitch/

Catching Up on the WordPress 🚫 WP Engine Sitch

Many of you — perhaps most of you — have been sitting on the sidelines while WordPress and WP Engine trade legal attacks on one another. It’s been widely covered as we watch it unfold in the open; ironically, in a sense.

These things can take twists and turns and it doesn’t help that this just so happens to be an emotionally charged topic in certain circles. WordPress is still the leading CMS after all these years and by a long shot. Many developers make their living in the WordPress ecosystem. All of those developers need hosting. WP Engine is still the leading WordPress-flavored host after many years. Many developers host their agencies there and use it to administrate their clients’ sites.

And I haven’t even gotten to the drama. That’s not really the point. The point is that there’s a bunch of heated words flying around and it can be difficult to know where they’re coming from, who they are aimed at, and most importantly, why they’re being said in the first place. So, I’m going to round up a few key voices contributing to the discussion for the sake of context and to help catch up.

Editor’s Note: Even though CSS-Tricks has no involvement with either company, I think it’s mentioning that Automattic was a looooooong time sponsor. This site was also once hosted by Flywheel, a company acquired by WP Engine before we moved to Cloudways following the DigitalOcean acquisition. Me? My personal site runs on WP Engine, but I’m not precious about it having only been there one year.

Prelude to a tweet

We had fair warning that something was coming up when WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg sent this out over X:

I know private equity and investors can be brutal (read the book Barbarians at the Gate). Please let me know if any employee faces firing or retaliation for speaking up about their company’s participation (or lack thereof) in WordPress. We’ll make sure it’s a big public deal and…

— Matt Mullenweg (@photomatt) September 19, 2024

There’s the ammo: Don’t let private equity bully you into speaking up against the company you work for when its contributions to WordPress are on the slim side of things.

Private equity. Lack of participation in the WordPress community. Making a big public deal of it. Remember these things because this is one day before…

WordCamp US 2024

Matt spoke at WordCamp US (WCUS) 2024 in Portland, OR, last week. September 20 to be exact. Making big, bold statements at WCUS isn’t a new thing for Matt, as many of us still have “Learn JavaScript deeply” tattooed on the brain from 2016.

Matt’s statements this year were less inspirational (instructional?) as they took direct aim at WP Engine as part of a presentation on the merits of open-source collaboration. You can watch and listen to where the first jab was thrown roughly around the 10:05 marker of the recording.

Let’s break down the deal. Matt begins by comparing the open-source contributions to WordPress from his company, Automattic, to those of WP Engine. These things are tracked on WordPress.org as part of a campaign called “Five for the Future” that’s designed to give organizations an influential seat at the table to form the future of WordPress in exchange for open-source contributions back to the WordPress project. Automattic has a page totaling its contributions. So does WP Engine.

Before Matt reveals the numbers, he goes out of his way to call out the fact that both Automattic and WP Engine are large players in the neighborhood of $500 million dollars. That’s the setup for Matt to demonstrate how relatively little WP Engine contributes to WordPress against Matt’s own company. Granted, I have absolutely no clue what factors into contributions, nor how the pages are administrated or updated. But here’s what they show…

Quite the discrepancy! I’d imagine Automattic dwarfs every other company that’s pledged to the campaign. Maybe it would be better to compare the contributions of another non-Automattic pledge that has a fairly strong reputation for participating in WordPress community. 10up is one of the companies that comes straight to my mind and they are showing up for 191 hours per week, or roughly five times WP Engine’s reported time. I get conflicting info on 10up’s revenue, valuation, and size, so maybe the comparison isn’t fair. Or maybe it is fair because 10up is certainly smaller than WP Engine, and no estimate I saw was even close to the $500 million mark.

Whatever the case, bottom line: Matt calls out WP Engine for its lack of effort on a very public stage — maybe the largest — in WordPress Land. He doesn’t stop there, going on to namecheck Silver Lake, a ginormous private equity firm bankrolling the company. The insinuation is clear: there’s plenty of money and resources, so pony up.

That’s bad enough for attendees to raise eyebrows, but it doesn’t end there. Matt encourages users and developers alike to vote with money by not purchasing hosting from WP Engine (11:31) and seems to suggest (23:05) that he’ll provide financial support to any WP Engine employees who lose their jobs from speaking up against their employer.

I think I can get behind the general idea that some companies need a little prodding to pull their weight to something like the Five for the Future campaign. Encouraging developers to pull their projects from a company and employees to jeopardize their careers? Eek.

“WP Engine is not WordPress”

This is when I believe things got noisy. It’s one thing to strong-arm a company (or its investors) into doing more for the community. But in a post on his personal blog the day after WCUS, Matt ups the ante alleging that “WP Engine isn’t WordPress.” You’d think this is part of the tough-guy stance he had from the stage, but his argument is much different in this post. Notice it’s about how WP Engine uses WordPress in its business rather than how much the company invests in it:

WordPress is a content management system, and the content is sacred. Every change you make to every page, every post, is tracked in a revision system, just like the Wikipedia. This means if you make a mistake, you can always undo it. It also means if you’re trying to figure out why something is on a page, you can see precisely the history and edits that led to it. These revisions are stored in our database. This is very important, it’s at the core of the user promise of protecting your data, and it’s why WordPress is architected and designed to never lose anything.

WP Engine turns this off. They disable revisions because it costs them more money to store the history of the changes in the database, and they don’t want to spend that to protect your content. It strikes to the very heart of what WordPress does, and they shatter it, the integrity of your content.

OK, gloves off. This is more personal. It’s no longer about community contributions but community trust and how WP Engine erodes trust by preventing WordPress users from accessing core WordPress features for their own profit.

Required reading

That’s where I’d like to end this, at least for now. Several days have elapsed since Matt’s blog post and there are many, many more words flying around from him, community members, other companies, and maybe even your Great Aunt. But if you’re looking for more signal than noise, I’ve rounded up a few choice selections that I feel contribute to the (heated) discussion.

Reddit: Matt Mullenweg needs to step down from WordPress.org leadership ASAP

Matt responds to the requisite calls for him to step down, starting with:

To be very clear, I was 100% cordial and polite to everyone at the booth, my message was:

* I know this isn’t about them, it’s happening several levels above, it’s even above their CEO, it’s coming from their owner, Silver Lake and particularly their board member Lee Wittlinger.

* Several people inside WP Engine have been anonymously leaking information to me about their bad behavior, and I wanted to let them know if they were caught or faced retaliation that I would support them in every way possible, including covering their salaries until they found a new job.

* That *if* we had to take down the WP Engine booth and ban WP Engine that evening, my colleague Chloé could print them all new personal badges if they still wanted to attend the conference personally, as they are community members, not just their company.

This was delivered calmly, and they said thank you, and their head of comms, Lauren Cox, who was there asked that they have time to regroup and discuss.

Automattic’s Actionable Misconduct Directed to WP Engine

WP Engine issues a cease and desist letter designed to stop Matt from disparaging them publicly. But hold up, because there’s another juicy claim in there:

In the days leading up to Mr. Mullenweg’s September 20th keynote address at the WordCamp US Convention, Automattic suddenly began demanding that WP Engine pay Automattic large sums of money, and if it didn’t, Automattic would wage a war against WP Engine.

And yes, they did issue it from their own site’s /wp-content directory. That’s easy to lose, so I’ve downloaded it to link it for posterity.

Open Source, Trademarks, and WP Engine

Just today, Matt published a cease and desist letter to the Auttomatic blog where he alleges that WP Engine’s commercial modifications to WordPress Core violate the WordPress trademark. Again, this has become about licensing, not contributions:

WP Engine’s business model is based on extensive and unauthorized use of these trademarks in ways that mislead consumers into believing that WP Engine is synonymous with WordPress. It’s not.

This is trademark abuse, not fair competition.

This is no longer WordPress vs. WP Engine. It’s more like Automattic vs. WP Engine. But with Matt’s name quite literally in the name Automattic, let’s be real and call this Matt Mullenweg vs. WP Engine.

WP Tavern coverage

WP Tavern is still the closest thing we have to an official WordPress news outlet. Nevermind that it’s funded and hired by Automattic (among others). I respect it, though I honestly have been less attentive to it since the team turned over earlier this year. It’s still a great spot to catch up on the post-event coverage:

There’s another more recent WP Tavern article I want to call out because it’s a huge development in this saga…

WP Engine Banned from Using WordPress.org Resources

Dang. This is the point of no return. It not only affects WP Engine proper, but the Flywheel hosting it also owns.

WordPress.org has blocked WP Engine customers from updating and installing plugins and themes via WP Admin. 

I was able to update plugins on my site as recently as yesterday, but let’s see as of this morning.

Aww, biscuits.

Maybe I can still see details about my installed plugins…

Double biscuits!

This is a bad, bad situation. I have thoughts about it and neither side looks good. Using real people with no dog in the fight to make a point is never gonna be a good look. Then again, both sides have valid points and I can see where they’re coming from. I just hate to see it come to a head like this.

[thishostingrocks]

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host wordpress on digitalocean

host wordpress on digitalocean

WordPress hosted on DigitalOcean servers is already a great match. WordPress is one of the most popular CMSes out there, and DigitalOcean enjoys a reputation for being the industry’s top provider. Cloudways is the perfect addition to a great match. You are on the right track when you ask “How do I host WordPress on DigitalOcean?” This article will show you how to install WordPress in DigitalOcean…