I’ve been working with WordPress for over two years now.
I’m not a WordPress developer, I’m more of an administrator.
I can build set up a basic WordPress website. I can also work with a few lines of code if needed. Hand me those DIY articles, and I’m good to go.
But WordPress web maintenance is a totally different ball game for me.
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To be honest, it’s good to be a little paranoid about full-fledged site maintenance. Because anything can go wrong, any minute!
Let’s assume you’re trying to edit and update your WordPress-based business website.
You successfully updated all the plugins. Some weren’t unfortunately supported by your PHP version. So, now your site has crashed
And this is not even the worst part yet…..
Your WordPress admin page has vanished too, and now there are zero entry points to access your website.
So, start thinking out of the box – Start thinking beyond updates for foolproof WordPress Web Maintenance.
How? Let’s find out in this article.
WordPress Web Maintenance: Why Simple Updates Won’t Protect Your Website?!
Keeping your website in top shape requires more than just updating plugins and themes. Imagine a single plugin update breaking key functionality or a database issue slowing down your site—these are situations that basic updates alone won’t address.
This section will cover the key WordPress web maintenance tips.
The first step towards maintaining your WordPress website is to update your theme, plugins, and WordPress core.
It’s what every article on WordPress web maintenance will tell you.
Yes, updates are essential! However, advanced WordPress web maintenance goes beyond updates, ensuring that your site is fast, secure, and scalable.
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Now, the actual process of updating files in WordPress is easy. If you can install a plugin, you can surely update it. And WordPress provides One-click Updates which makes the task pretty simple.
But, you must be aware that some plugins might not *behave* as expected. So, backing up your database should, in fact, be the first step.
Having regular backups in place is good practice. Also, don’t forget to keep the most recent copy of data before updating your files!
(And during your scheduled maintenance tasks, you must remember to put your website in maintenance mode, in case something goes wrong.)
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9 out of 10 times, updates won’t affect the functioning of your WordPress website. Surely, regular testing will tell you that. But then, in the worst-case scenario, you’ll need to restore the database backup to ensure everything’s working well…. and test again.
And even though it’s time-consuming, you can’t ignore updates.
After all, keeping your WordPress site up to date is needed to ensure that your website is clear of any security vulnerabilities.
But mind you, some updates might introduce new vulnerabilities through buggy code. Now most of these plugins do end up releasing a security patch sooner or later so it shouldn’t trigger major concern.
But what happens till then? What if a security patch is never released?
Let’s help you figure this out!
| If proactive advanced WordPress web maintenance isn’t your thing? It’s OK – We can help you! |
WordPress Web Maintenance Holy Grail: Backup, Monitor, Analyse, Optimize REPEAT
The thing is, updating WordPress core, plugins, and theme files is just a small part of WordPress web maintenance. This section will take you through what else should be on your top to-do list!
Site Backups
Regularly backing up your content (database) along with your files (plugin, theme), is an important part of maintaining your WordPress website.
Now, you might not need to backup all files; only those that have been changed (for example, functions.php) need a copy saved. But if that’s not something you’re aware of, then it’s better to back up all your files rather than none at all.
WordPress Security Scans
Security monitoring is an integral part of maintaining a WordPress website. Software vulnerabilities can be identified by regular security scans. Identifying vulnerabilities is the first step towards fixing any issues.
There are of course other steps you can follow, to make sure your WordPress website is secure so that maintenance becomes fairly easy to do. Sumit – our security expert, here at WisdmLabs- has listed some great points on ensuring WordPress website security.
Site Uptime Monitoring
Monitoring uptime is not a scheduled task, it’s a continuous process and is also an integral part of WordPress web maintenance. Monitoring uptime can help identify server issues, DNS problems, and software errors among others.
Database Optimization
Optimizing your database involves getting rid of spam comments, unused tables, images, and more. Your WordPress web maintenance involves keeping your database clutter-free. (If you’re up to doing this task yourself, this article on optimizing your WordPress database manually can make for a great read!)
Is that all? Of course not!! Now let’s help you find the right starter toolkit for basic WordPress Web Maintenance.
Essential Tools & Setup for Advanced WordPress Web Maintenance
This section will provide the recommended tool stack for effective WordPress Web Maintenance beyond updates.
Useful WordPress Web Maintenance Plugins
WordPress provides several plugins that can be used to automate maintenance tasks or to monitor uptime and security.
Picking the right plugins is key. At times services could prove to be better alternatives.
For example, in the case of automated backups, a plugin I’d recommend is BackupBuddy or UpdraftPlus (if you’re on a budget). But for uptime monitoring, I’d recommend a service like Uptrends.
DIY Maintenance Tip: Here’s a fair warning by someone who’s burnt their fingers on automated maintenance plugins that use the WordPress cron – Do not rely on a WordPress cron! Pick a plugin that allows you to set up a server cron.
Performance Monitoring:
- Query Monitor
- New Relic (for deep server insights)
- GTmetrix Pro
Security Tools:
| Primary: Wordfence Premium Backup: Sucuri Additional: SSL Manager |
Backup Solutions:
| Files: UpdraftPlus Premium Database: BackupBuddy Version Control: Git |
Performance Optimization:
| Caching: WP Rocket Image Optimization: ShortPixel Database: WP-Optimize |
Advanced WordPress Web Maintenance Troubleshooting Tips
In this section, we’ll comprehensively cover some code-based solutions to address commonly encountered advanced WordPress web maintenance issues.
#1 Resolving Common Database Issues
Slow Queries
| SQL: — Find slow queries (add to wp-config.php) define(‘SAVEQUERIES’, true); — Then use this PHP code to log slow queries <?php add_action(‘shutdown’, function() { global $wpdb; if(defined(‘SAVEQUERIES’) && SAVEQUERIES) { $log = fopen(ABSPATH . ‘/slow-queries.log’, ‘a’); foreach($wpdb->queries as $q) { if($q[1] > 0.05) { // Queries taking more than 0.05 seconds fwrite($log, date(‘Y-m-d H:i:s’) . “: $q[0] – {$q[1]} seconds\n”); } } fclose($log); } }); ?> |
Database Optimization
| SQL: — Safe queries to optimize database DELETE FROM wp_options WHERE autoload=‘yes’ AND option_name LIKE ‘_transient_%’; DELETE FROM wp_posts WHERE post_type = ‘revision’; DELETE FROM wp_postmeta WHERE meta_key LIKE ‘_wp_trash_%’; |
#2 Memory Issues Resolution
Increase PHP Memory
| Add to wp-config.php: PHP: define(‘WP_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘256M’); define(‘WP_MAX_MEMORY_LIMIT’, ‘512M’); |
Debug Memory Usage
| Add this code to your theme’s functions.php: PHP: function check_memory_usage() { $memory_usage = memory_get_usage() / 1024 / 1024; error_log(“Memory Usage: “ . round($memory_usage, 2) . “MB”); } add_action(‘init’, ‘check_memory_usage’); add_action(‘admin_init’, ‘check_memory_usage’); |
#3 Performance Optimization Examples
Optimize WordPress Heartbeat
| PHP: // Add to functions.php function optimize_heartbeat_settings($settings) { $settings[‘interval’] = 60; // Adjust heartbeat to 60 seconds return $settings; } add_filter(‘heartbeat_settings’, ‘optimize_heartbeat_settings’); |
Lazy Load Images
| PHP: // Modern way to lazy load images function add_lazy_loading($content) { return str_replace(‘<img’, ‘<img loading=”lazy”‘, $content); } add_filter(‘the_content’, ‘add_lazy_loading’); |
WordPress Web Maintenance Technical Solutions for Specific Use Cases
This section will walk you through major WordPress web maintenance problems and their technical solutions (involving code) related to different use cases so you’ll know which one applies to your particular scenario.
Case 1: A High-Traffic Blog
Problem: Assume there are 500k monthly visitors, but frequent website crashes are ruining the business
Solution Implementation:
- Implement object caching with Redis
- Set up CloudFlare Enterprise
- Optimize database queries
Expected Result: Estimated 40% reduction in server load, 99.9% uptime
Case 2: A WooCommerce Store
Problem: Slow checkout process, cart abandonment
Solution Implementation:
| PHP: // Optimize WooCommerce Sessions function custom_wc_session_expiring() { return 60 * 60 * 24; // 24 hours } add_filter(‘wc_session_expiring’, ‘custom_wc_session_expiring’); |
Expected Result: Estimated 15% reduction in cart abandonment
Case 3: A Membership Site
Problem: Login issues during peak hours
Solution Implementation:
- Implement Redis user sessions
- Add load balancing
- Cache membership checks
Expected Result: You could effortlessly handle 3x more concurrent users
What is Your WordPress Web Maintenance Emergency Response Plan?
In this section, you’ll learn how to ace unexpected crisis management. Some technical expertise would be required to understand these solutions.
When Your Site Goes Down
#1 Check error logs:
| Bash: tail -f /var/log/php-errors.log tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log |
#2 Enable WordPress Debug:
| PHP: // Add to wp-config.php define(‘WP_DEBUG’, true); define(‘WP_DEBUG_LOG’, true); define(‘WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY’, false); |
#3 Check Server Resources:
| Bash: top -c mysqladmin status |
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Bonus: WordPress Web Maintenance Quick Fixes for Common Issues
Slow Admin Dashboard
| PHP: // Add to functions.php function disable_dashboard_widgets() { remove_meta_box(‘dashboard_incoming_links’, ‘dashboard’, ‘normal’); remove_meta_box(‘dashboard_plugins’, ‘dashboard’, ‘normal’); remove_meta_box(‘dashboard_primary’, ‘dashboard’, ‘normal’); remove_meta_box(‘dashboard_secondary’, ‘dashboard’, ‘normal’); } add_action(‘admin_init’, ‘disable_dashboard_widgets’); |
Fix for Common 504 Errors
| PHP: // Add to .htaccess <IfModule mod_fastcgi.c> FastCgiConfig –idle–timeout 300 FastCgiConfig –processLifeTime 3600 </IfModule> |
Remember, while these solutions are powerful, always back up before making ANY changes – Major or Minor!
Not quite confident? Our team of experts is just a click away
What About Using WordPress Web Maintenance Services??
Let’s understand if opting for paid WordPress web maintenance makes sense or if just winging it every time is ideal.
Now, when working with plugins or with automated services, you need to know corrective measures that need to be undertaken for security breach notifications, white screens, failed updates, downtime notifications, and other maintenance-related issues that can crop up.
Here’s where website web maintenance services play a key role.
“WordPress Web Maintenance Services boldly go where no Plugin has gone before”
If you do not have a team or a dedicated developer handling the maintenance of your website, you’ll have to go hunt for one and ask them to investigate the root cause of any uncalled-for issues.
This can take up quite a bit of your time, and your website might be affected or at continued risk till the issue is resolved.
A WordPress maintenance service team or developer can quickly address such concerns and ensure the smooth functioning of your website. In fact, our clients have reported a 79% reduction in maintenance efforts by employing our maintenance services.
How do You Handle WordPress Web Maintenance?
The way I see it, handling WordPress web maintenance on your own might not be for everyone. You can employ plugins, and go with a free or premium maintenance service based on your requirements, or the volume of business of your website.
Plugins can provide a temporary, low-cost solution, but there’s still effort involved. A maintenance service comes at a higher cost but it is absolutely stress-free!
If you have a lot of functionality on your website, high traffic, or your website being down for a minute could cost you hundreds of dollars, undoubtedly go for a WordPress web maintenance service.
If it’s a personal blog or a WordPress website with limited functionality and plugins, go for plugins that can automate your maintenance tasks.
Conclusion
Let’s quickly compare DIY and Professional WordPress Web Maintenance for you. Where do you see more value?
DIY WordPress Web Maintenance
- Time Investment: 15-20 hours/month
- Learning Curve: Steep
- Cost: $200-500/year in tools
- Risk: Higher
Professional WordPress Maintenance Services
- Time Investment: 1-2 hours/month
- Learning Curve: Minimal
- Cost: From $99/month
- Risk: Lower
So, don’t wait for problems to arise! Start your free WordPress web maintenance trial today or book a Free consultation call with us 🎯
Our team takes care of EVERYTHING – plugin audits, compatibility checks, tailored security & constant upkeep. Our 30-day free trial lets you experience it firsthand!
Once you schedule a free consultation call with us, you’ll learn how we go about meticulously managing WordPress web maintenance for you.
