Migration of WordPress to a dedicated VPS

To connect to the server for data uploads, you can use either SFTP on port 22 or the traditional FTP server on ports 20 and 21. I used VSFTPD for FTP connection to the server. In the article below, you can find not only the installation and configuration steps but also instructions on securing the transmission using certificates and restricting the user to their own directory using chroot local. Restricting the user is important to ensure that the FTP user does not have access to any other location on the server and can only navigate within the designated folder. You can find the installation and configuration guide for VSFTPD here: https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-set-up-vsftpd-for-a-user-s-directory-on-ubuntu-20-04

PHP 8

For my WordPress, I have chosen PHP version 8.26. It is one of the latest versions, which ensures that I will be well-equipped for future updates of both PHP itself and its modules. You can find a very comprehensive guide for installation and configuration here: https://medium.com/@laraveltuts/how-to-install-and-run-php-8-x-on-ubuntu-20-04-8f18e7565c41

After installing PHP on the server, you can make any necessary adjustments to the php.ini file, where you can modify:

• max_execution_time: the time in seconds that a script can run before it is forcibly terminated.
• memory_limit: the amount of memory allocated to the web hosting.
• upload_max_filesize: the maximum size for file uploads using PHP.
• post_max_size: the maximum size for data sent via POST requests using PHP.
• max_file_uploads: the maximum number of files that can be uploaded simultaneously using PHP.

In addition to PHP, I have also installed caching modules on the server. Specifically, Memcached, OPCache, and Redis server. These modules will greatly assist you in caching data and speeding up WordPress. To clear OPCache, you can use a PHP script. If necessary, you can clear Memcached on the server using Telnet on port 11211 and the “flush_all” command.

Memcached: https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-install-and-secure-memcached-on-ubuntu-20-04
OPCache: https://linuxways.net/ubuntu/how-to-install-php-opcache-module-on-ubuntu-20-04/
Redis server: https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-install-and-secure-redis-on-ubuntu-20-04

SSL certificate Let’s Encrypt

Installing and configuring an SSL certificate from Let’s Encrypt will be significantly simplified, including the renewal process, thanks to Certbot. There’s no need for a lengthy discussion here, so you can directly refer to the procedure outlined here: https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-secure-apache-with-let-s-encrypt-on-ubuntu-20-04

If you, like me, use CloudFlare DNS, don’t forget to enable the Full Strict mode for SSL communication. This mode assumes that the SSL certificate is present on the server side. As a result, CloudFlare knows that the communication between itself and your server will be encrypted using your Let’s Encrypt certificate, and the communication between CloudFlare and the user’s browser will be encrypted using their certificate. I have already written about this specifically here: How to set up SSL for WordPress with Cloudflare DNS

Webmin

You can use Webmin as a cherry on top. It is a graphical interface that runs on port 10000. Thanks to Webmin, you have a better overview of the server directly from your web browser, including basic graphs of CPU usage, memory, network, and disk.