Further Hetzner VPS Optimizations and Benchmarks

In a follow-up to my previous post, I shall go through new benchmarks, configuration, and optimizations for my VPS server. This is all in an attempt to squeeze the maximum performance out of my Hetzner CPX11 (2 cores, 2GB) VPS server that I use for web hosting. $5/month hosted in Ashburn, VA

Server Configuration

Keeping everything up-to-date is one of the best ways to ensure the best performance and security. Below is my server configuration and changes vs the last benchmarks.

Ubuntu 20.04
Nginx 1.20.1
PHP 8.1.2 -> 8.1.3
MariaDB 10.6.5 -> 10.7.3
Redis 5.0.7 -> 6.2.6
WordPress 5.9.1 -> 5.9.2
PhpRedis 5.2.x -> 5.3.6

Most notably in these changes is the upgrade from Redis 5 to 6. As you will see in the benchmarks, there is a noticeable improvement in object caching.

WordPress Plugins

Last benchmarks were run on a mostly unoptimized WordPress install. Besides Redis Object Cache to take advantage of object caching, that was it for plugins. While this will have played little effect in the server benchmarks, any WordPress benchmarks and speed tests took a hit from the lack of optimization.

This time around, after extensive testing, I have come up with a new set of plugins.

Redis Object Cache

A must to take advantage of Redis. Don’t notice much of a difference on a static website, but any dynamic content greatly benefits from Redis.

Autoptimize

Optimizes, combines, and minifies CSS, JS, and HTML. Also compresses and reformats images. Many plugins have this functionality and would work in place of Autoptimize. That being said, I find Autoptimize to be one of the best and most stable.

Super Page Cache for Cloudflare

There is no excuse for not having some kind of caching plugin. Super Page Cache for Cloudflare is simple yet powerful from my testing. While WP Rocket would outperform this, you will have trouble finding a free WordPress plugin any better than Super Page Cache for Cloudflare.

That being said, the main reason I use this plugin is due to the built in Cloudflare integration. The free tier of Cloudflare allows me to pass basically all of my server load to Cloudflare CDN servers. In return, my website loads much faster globally and handle exponentially more concurrent visitors (from ~100/s to >10000/s).

WordPress Themes

GeneratePress. That is it. Free version is great, paid version is amazing. I’m not one to like to spend money on stuff like this, but the Pro version of GeneratePress is worth every penny.

Benchmarks

WPPerformanceTester

noticed a decent increase in everything, with a significate increase in Queries Per Second

WordPress Hosting Benchmark Tool

object cache with a huge performance gain, everything else with slight or no performance improvement

KeyCDN

Cloudflare with caching greatly improved real-time speed of the WordPress website

Conclusion

With enough optimizations and knowledge, a $5/month VPS can indeed be a hosting powerhouse. This type of performance rivals most high-end WordPress web hosting while providing endlessly more functionality and customization.

One of the main issues with such a setup is the time required for setup. Because of this, I am starting to design and test an install script to replicate this configuration on other VPS servers. Stay tuned for that.