What WP Super Cache do is that it takes your Dynamic WordPress PHP files of your blog and convert them to static HTML files. The benefit of this file is that it is less heavier than the actual PHP file and increase the page load speed which ultimately makes the visitor happy as no one like to wait. With increased page load speed search engines are more likely to index your pages and show them to the potential visitors. Well most of the above is true but there is a catch, the static HTML file will be served to most of the users except the ones who are logged into your website or has left a comment on your blog. This partiality is because when the user is logged in or has posted a comment on your blog is displayed with their name rather than the static file hence they are handled by legacy caching engine. Feature os WP Super Cache:
Allow you to use Content Delivery Network (CDN) along with the caching system. Compressed web pages to reduce loading time. Caching available for PHP pages also Caching also available for mobile devices and tablets.
How to use WP Super Cache on WordPress blog
In order to use WP Super Cache on WordPress blog, you need to first install the plugin. Let’s see how to do that, go to your admin account and from Plugin > Add New, search for WP Super Cache then install and activate the plugin.
How to use WP Super Cache on WordPress blog Configure WP Super Cache Caching Miscellaneous Advanced Cache Location Expiry Time & Garbage Collection Enable CDN Support Content Preload
Once the plugin is installed it will show the following message:
You need to enable WP Super Cache plugin before you can use it, just click on “plugin admin page” and you be directed towards the WP Super Cache Settings.
Configure WP Super Cache
Check the box next to Caching On (Recommended) to enable WP Super Cache and click Update Status button to save your changes.
Now let’s check whether the plugin is working or not by clicking the Test Cache button under Cache Tester. If everything goes accordingly then you would see something like this:
If for some reason you want to delete the cached pages then just click the Delete Cache button and you are good to go.
In Advanced Options you will these 4 settings:
Caching Miscellaneous Advanced Cache Location
Let’s just talk about each one of them and see how to you use Wp Super Cache settings to its maximum potential.
Caching
Check mark the box Cache hits to this website for quick access (Recommended) to turn on caching.
Next, there are three options available for caching and by default PHP will be used to serve the cache files but we don’t want to involve PHP as this will increase page load time. So click the radio button next to “Use mod_rewrite to serve cache files” which is the fastest method for delivering your HTML files without involving PHP engine.
Miscellaneous
In Miscellaneous enable Compress pages options as by default this option is disabled. This option helps in reducing the total page load time.
Enable 304 not Modified browser caching which indicates whether a page has been modified or not since the last request.Enable Don’t cache pages for known users as this allow administrator and users to see the actual pages without any caching. Enable Don’t cache with GET parameters because these requests are processed through PHP engines and next enable Cache rebuild option.
Advanced
Enable Mobile device support which obviously make Wp Super Cache compatible on mobile devices. Next, enable Clear all cache files when a post or page is published option if you have long cache expiration date other leave this option as it is.
Enable Extra homepage checks so that homepage caching is stop unexpectedly to check if it’s functioning properly. Also, enable Only refresh current page when comments made option in order to again show the PHP page to the user when they comment.
Cache Location
Good news you don’t even need to touch this option, leave it as it is. Once you are done with all the above settings just click on Update status button. After the page refreshes you will see some mode rewrites rules just below the advanced settings like this:
Just click the Update Mod_rewrite Rules and once its completed you will see something like this:
Well, I guess you have learned all about the advanced settings and can teach others on how to use WP Super Cache plugin efficiently. But there are still some more settings which you need to know about before you leave.
Expiry Time & Garbage Collection
Here you set the time and frequency of validity of the cached data on your server. By default, the cache timeout is set to 1800 seconds but if you have a large number of articles on your site then set lower time.
Next is Accepted Filenames & Rejected URIs, here you can disable the following types of pages for caching according to your need:
Single Posts Search Pages Author Pages Front Page Category Archives Pages Feeds Home Tags
Well, you don’t need to mess with this setting so moving right along.
Enable CDN Support
In order to enable CDN support with WP Super Cache plugin, you need to tick mark Enable CDN support (Make sure you have selected the CDN tab next to advanced settings).
Next, enter your local URL or Offsite URL like http://cdn.test.adityafarrad.com/wp-includes/js/prototype.js and click on Save changes.
Content
Next tab is Content which is adjacent to CDN. Here you can regenerate the cached stats as they are not generated automatically. Also, you can delete expired pages and cache.
Preload
Preload option caches all your website pages and posts and then serves the static version to all the visitors. This option is by default set to 0 which actually is a disabled state. The minimum time requires is 30 minutes and you also have to enable all the preload options to actually take benefit of this plugin.
Next click on Update Settings and after your page refreshes, click Preload Cache Now button. You will see a drastic improve in your page load speed once the cache starts building for your site. We hope this article was helpful to you and you have successfully learned how to use WP Super Cache plugin on WordPress blog. Once you have implemented the above settings, your site load speed will increase drastically.If you still have any queries regarding this post feel free to ask them in comments. Have any suggestions to add here? Do you any secret trick to increase your page load speed? Suggestions are always welcome here!
