How to Improve Drupal Performance?

by Mahesh Kukreja · 0 comments

in Blogging Tips, Tricks, Webmaster Tutorials


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Drupal’s scalability features allow websites to reach grand performance scales. This means it can handle server load levels with extraordinarily heavy incoming traffic very easily. In fact there are instances of some of the most popular Drupal websites handling millions of visitors per day. To optimize Drupal for speedy performance, it is important to take measures to keep Drupal at its peak performance levels. To achieve the most optimal speed, some technical knowledge is required. In addition, for many solutions, a shared hosting environment is not sufficient and additional software is sometimes required. The following options can speed up a Drupal website significantly.

Drupal

Memcache

Drupal 7 can optimize cache by in its core, although it is turned off by default. Turning this on will speed up your website. Although this is the not the most optimal form of caching. Using the Memcache module will make your website much faster, although a shared server will be sufficient and additional software is required to be installed on the server. Instructional material and support is provided in the documentation as well as the amazingly helpful Drupal community.

Boost

One of the most talked about caching modules is Boost. Boost can be used on a shared server. It is flexible and can significantly speed on Drupal websites. Although on the other hand there is some effort required to set it up. A lot of configuration work is required with htaccess and robots files. One point to note is that this will not work for registered users, only anonymous users.

Varnish HTTP Acceleration

Another option for anonymous users is Varnish HTTP Acceleration. It is a web application accelerator and proxy server that is focused solely on http. It can handle an extraordinary 3000 requests per second. It is extremely flexible and can seriously speed up to your website. It does require additional software, as well as the Varnish HTTP Accelerator module.

AuthCache

AuthCache is another module to consider for anonymous and authenticated users. It will use the “cache_page” table by default. It is recommended instead to use AuthCache in conjuction with Memcache or PressFlow. To get the most out of this module, you will need to be strong in Drupal development skills. The module has the potential retrieve a cached page in under 1 millisecond and to serve hundreds of pages per second.

There are many options available for optimizing Drupal’s performance. Drupal’s inbuilt caching feature should be activated at a minimum. Generally, for the majority of Drupal users, Boost would be the best option. This is because it works on a shared server, it is very flexible as well as being relatively easier to setup. There is no excuse for any Drupal website to lag, when these super fast options are available.

Author Bio

Mitchel Xavier is a specialist Drupal developer and produces Drupal web design and Drupal cms websites for businesses in Sydney Australia.

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