FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload for Nginx

Hasan ÇALIŞIR

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This plugin allows WordPress users to manage Nginx Cache Purge and Preload operations directly from the WordPress admin dashboard, enhancing website performance and caching efficiency.

Important

Please read the full description (What you need?) and FAQ for fully functional Nginx cache purge and preload actions provided by this plugin:

Features

🚀Purge All Nginx Cache: Completely clear all cached data stored by Nginx.
🚀Preload All Nginx Cache: Populate the Nginx cache with the most recent data for the entire website.
🚀Auto Preload Nginx Cache: Automatically preload the cache after purging, ensuring fast page load times by caching content proactively. This feature is triggered when Auto Purge is enabled for a single POST/PAGE or when the Purge All cache action is used.
🚀Auto Purge Nginx Cache: Automatically purges the cached version of a POST/PAGE whenever it is updated, when new comments are approved, or when the comment status is changed. Additionally, if the Auto Preload option is enabled, the cache for this POST/PAGE will be automatically preloaded after the cached version is purged by Auto Purge.
🚀Schedule Cache Purge & Preload via WP Cron: Automate the purge and preload process using WordPress Cron jobs.
🚀Remote Nginx Cache Purge & Preload via REST API: Remotely trigger cache purging and preloading through REST API endpoints.
🚀Manual Nginx Cache Purge & Preload: Allow manual purging and preloading of cache through the table view in Advanced Tab.
🚀On-Page Nginx Cache Purge & Preload: Manually purge and preload Nginx cache for the currently visited page directly from the frontend.
🚀Optimized Nginx Cache Preload: Enhance Nginx cache preload performance with options to limit CPU usage, exclude endpoints, wait retrievals and rate limiting.
🚀Monitor Plugin and Nginx Cache Status: Monitor plugin status, cache status, and Nginx status from the Status tab.
🚀User-Friendly Interface: Easy-to-use AJAX-powered settings, integrated into the WordPress admin bar for quick access.
🚀Admin Notices and Logs: Receive handy notifications and view logs for plugin status and all cache-related actions within the WordPress admin area.
🚀Email Notifications: Receive email alerts upon completion of preload actions, with customizable templates to suit your needs.

What you need?

Technical Difficulties:

In properly configured Nginx servers, it is not strictly necessary to have separate PHP-FPM-USER (as a known WEBSITE-USER or PHP process owner) and WEBSERVER-USER (commonly, nginx or www-data), but there are scenarios where separating these users can enhance security and performance. Although this configuration is recommended as a standard, It leads to difficulties in purging and preloading the cache by the PHP process owner. When the PHP-FPM-USER and WEBSERVER-USER are different, the PHP process owner may not have the necessary permissions to manage cache files created by the WEBSERVER-USER, as the PHP process owner may be unable to read, write, or delete cache files owned by the WEBSERVER-USER.

Proposed Solution by NPP:

In case your current Nginx web server setup involves two distinct users, WEBSERVER-USER and PHP-FPM-USER, the solution proposed by NPP involves combining Linux server side tools inotifywait with setfacl to automatically grant read/write permissions to the PHP-FPM-USER for the corresponding Nginx Cache Paths (owned by WEBSERVER-USER), facilitated by server-side bash scripting. Users need to manage inotifywait and setfacl operations manually or use the provided below one liner basic automation bash script for fully functional purge and preload actions provided by this plugin.

bash <(curl -Ss https://psaux-it.github.io/install.sh)

**More in-depth Information””

Credits

This plugin is developed and maintained by Hasan ÇALIŞIR.

Support

For support and assistance, please contact Hasan ÇALIŞIR at [email protected].

License

This plugin is licensed under the GPLv2 or later.For more information, visit the plugin development page: FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload for Nginx

Is the plugin completely free?

Yes, the plugin is completely free to use.

Who is this plugin intended for?

For anyone who wants to use server side Nginx’s built-in caching mechanism to serve cached content directly. It is particularly beneficial for those who wish to manage purge and preload actions directly from the WordPress admin dashboard, WP Cron or REST API

Will this plugin slow my site down?

No, this plugin does not introduce any performance overhead to your website. It operates exclusively within the WordPress admin environment and does not affect the frontend or public-facing aspects of your site.

Will it work on my theme?

Sure! Works 100% with all themes.

Will it work with my plugins?

Sure! It works 100% with all plugins.

What changes will it make to my site?

None.

Is this plugin compatible with other WordPress cache plugins?

Certainly! Nginx FastCGI cache operates differently from traditional WordPress cache plugins, functioning at the server level by storing fully generated HTML pages. As such, it can be used alongside other WordPress cache plugins without any compatibility issues.

How do I configure the plugin settings?

Navigate to ‘Settings’ -> ‘FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload’ in the WordPress admin dashboard or navigate to ‘Admin Bar’ -> ‘FastCGI Cache’ to configure the options and use the actions.

Why plugin not functional on my environment?

This plugin is compatible exclusively with Nginx web servers running on Linux-powered systems. Additionally, the shell_exec function must be enabled and unrestricted. Consequently, the plugin may not operate fully on shared hosting environments where native Linux commands are blocked from running via PHP.

Moreover, a correctly configured PHP-FPM and Nginx setup is essential for the purge and preload operations to function properly. Otherwise, permission issues may arise.

If warnings appear, they may indicate permission issues, an unsupported environment, or missing dependencies required for cache operations. Please follow the warnings and refer to the plugin’s ‘Help’ tab for detailed guidance.

What Linux commands are required for the preload action?

For the preload action to work properly, the server needs to have the wget command installed. The plugin uses wget to preload cache by fetching pages. Additionally, it’s highly recommended to have the cpulimit command installed to manage server load effectively during the preload action.

Why am I encountering a permission error?

Encountering a permission error when attempting to purge cache from client side in Nginx environments is a common issue, especially when two distinct users, namely the WEBSERVER-USER and PHP-FPM-USER, are involved. This occurs due to differences in permissions between these users, often leading to access restrictions when trying to manipulate cache files. For detailed guidance on resolving this issue and automating server-side tasks using a bash script, please refer to the plugin settings Help tab.

Why can’t I use my preferred path for the Nginx Cache Directory?

The Nginx Cache Directory option has restrictions on the paths you can use to prevent accidental deletions or harm to critical system files. By default, certain paths, like ‘/home’ and other vital system directories, are blocked to safeguard your system’s stability and prevent data loss.

While this might limit your options, it ensures your system’s security. Recommended directories to choose from, such as ‘/dev/shm/’ or ‘/var/cache/’, which are commonly used for caching purposes and are generally safer.

What is different about this plugin compared to other Nginx Cache Plugins?

NPP offers a more direct solution without any external NGINX module such as Cache Purge module. This plugin directly traverses the cache directory and clears cache if PHP-FPM and WEBSERVER user permissions are adjusted properly. To automate and fix these permission issues, there is a pre-made bash script that needs to be run manually on host server under the root user.

bash <(curl -Ss https://psaux-it.github.io/install.sh)

Note that, NPP also supports Nginx cache preloading with a simple direct approach, with the help of wget. This feature is missing in other Nginx Cache plugins.

There are many cases where the external Nginx modules works fine for cache purge operations, but integrating the module with Nginx can be challenging for non-technical or regular WordPress users. Not every Linux distro packages this module or has outdated module versions, so users may need to follow extra steps to integrate it, which becomes more complicated.

Also, there are other cases where even bleeding-edge module versions are easily installed and integrated with Nginx by users, but purge operations do not work as expected.

I am still encountering difficulties. Do you provide server-side integration services?

Yes, please refer to the plugin settings Help tab.

2.0.3

Release date: 2024-08-09

Add support for Auto-Purging the Nginx cache based on comment events, such as comment approval or comment status changes
Optimized Status Tab, handling of finding active Nginx Cache Paths, PHP process owners and other metrics
Enhanced performance by caching results of recursive permission checks and reducing expensive directory traversals
Add support for restarting systemd services and managing systemd-related tasks directly from front-end
Made numerous improvements to the core plugin code to enhance UI/UX and performance
Version bumps for external assets
Tested up to: 6.6.1

2.0.2

Release date: 2024-06-30

Add support on Auto Purge (POST/PAGE whenever its content is updated)
Add support on new –wait option (Manage server load while cache preloading)
Auto Preload now supports also single POST/PAGE cache preloading when Auto Purge enabled
Improve Nginx cache preload performance (–no-check-certificate)
Improve UI/UX (regroup plugin settings, add notification for saving AJAX-powered plugin options)
Improve Help tab informations
Globally prevent purging cache while cache preloading is in progress (Onpage Purge & Auto Purge & Manual Purge)
Improve Help tab informations
Improve plugin settings descriptions
Enhance handling of disable functionality in unsupported environments
Version bumps for assets
Style and typo fixes
Tested up to: 6.5.5

2.0.1

Release date: 2024-05-24

Fix Generic function/class/define/namespace/option names
Fix Not permitted files
Fix properly enqueue inline js
Fix Internationalization
Fix Calling files remotely
Fix Out of Date Libraries
Fix Sanitize, Escape, and Validate

2.0.0

Release date: 2024-04-24

Add support on Auto Preload
Add support on WP Cron Scheduled Preload
Add support on REST API remote Purge and Preload
Add support on front-end on-page Purge and Preload
Add support on manual Purge and Preload actions in Advanced tab
New e-mail template for mail notifications
Improved status tab checks, added Nginx status summary, cache summary
Style and typo fixes
Security optimizations
Tested up to WordPress 6.5.3

1.0.3

Release date: 2024-03-28

Re-organize code structer for better readability
Security optimizations
Change plugin icon
Add admin bar icon
Fix nonce verification issue
Fix styling & typo
Improve plugin status tab, now also checks PHP-FPM user and setup
Tested up to WordPress 6.5

1.0.2

Release date: 2024-03-20

Code optimizations
Security optimizations
Fix styling & typo
Add support on new plugin status tab
Add important note for purge operation
Better handle purge operations
Better handle ACLs checks
Use WP Filesystem to purge cache instead of shell find +delete
Remove temporary downloaded content after purge & preload operation
Escape shell commands properly
Better handle wp filesystem

1.0.1

Release date: 2024-03-15

Fix logs handling
Tested up to WordPress 6.4

1.0.0

Release date: 2024-03-14

Initial release.

Manual Installation

Upload the ‘fastcgi-cache-purge-and-preload-nginx’ folder to the ‘/wp-content/plugins/’ directory.
Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in the WordPress admin dashboard.
Configure plugin settings under ‘Settings’ -> ‘FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload’ in the WordPress admin dashboard.
Access FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload operations from the WordPress admin bar(both frontend,backend) and Plugin settings page.

Automatic Installation

Log in to your WordPress admin panel, navigate to the Plugins menu and click Add New.
In the search field type “FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload Nginx” and click Search Plugins. From the search results, pick “FastCGI Cache Purge and Preload for Nginx” and click Install Now. WordPress will ask you to confirm to complete the installation.

Version: 2.0.3
Last updated: 1 month ago
Active installations: 10
WordPress version: 6.3
Tested up to: 6.6.2
PHP version: 7.4