Module Overview
This module focuses on the crucial aspects of deploying and maintaining WordPress websites in production environments, with special emphasis on Docker-based deployments. You'll learn server configuration, containerization strategies, security hardening, performance optimization, and ongoing maintenance strategies. By the end of this module, you'll be able to confidently deploy, secure, and maintain WordPress websites in professional environments using both traditional and container-based approaches.
Duration: 1 week (5 sessions of 3 hours each)
Prerequisites: Modules 1-7, particularly Advanced WordPress Development
Week 1: Deployment, Security, and Maintenance
Session 1: WordPress Hosting and Docker Production Environments
- WordPress hosting options comparison
- Shared hosting
- Managed WordPress hosting
- VPS (Virtual Private Server)
- Dedicated servers
- Cloud hosting (AWS, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean)
- Container-based hosting platforms
- Traditional vs. containerized hosting
- Benefits of Docker in production
- Common Docker architectures for WordPress
- Container orchestration options (basic overview)
- Server requirements for WordPress
- LAMP/LEMP stack configuration
- Docker host requirements and setup
- Homework: Compare hosting options and create both traditional server configuration files and Docker compose files
Session 2: Docker for WordPress Production
- Docker architecture for production WordPress
- Multi-container setups (Nginx, PHP-FPM, MySQL, Redis)
- Docker network configuration
- Volume management for persistent data
- Docker Compose for production
- Production Docker configuration best practices
- Environment variables and secrets
- Resource constraints and optimization
- Image tagging strategies
- Security considerations
- WordPress-specific Docker configurations
- Custom wp-config.php for containers
- Custom Dockerfiles for WordPress
- Plugin and theme management in containers
- Deployment workflows with Docker
- CI/CD for containerized WordPress
- Container orchestration introduction
- Zero-downtime deployments
- Homework: Create a production-ready Docker Compose setup for WordPress
Session 3: Deployment Workflows and Migration
- Staging to production workflows
- Database migration strategies
- Content migration techniques
- Using migration plugins
- Manual migration process
- Handling large sites and media libraries
- Deployment automation
- Git-based deployment
- CI/CD pipelines
- Deployment tools (Deployer, Capistrano)
- Docker-based deployment workflow
- Homework: Create deployment scripts for both traditional and Docker-based WordPress sites
Session 4: WordPress Security with Docker
- Common WordPress vulnerabilities
- Server-level security
- Firewall configuration
- SSL/TLS implementation
- Secure file permissions
- SSH hardening
- Docker-specific security considerations
- Container isolation
- Docker daemon security
- Image security and scanning
- Secrets management in containers
- Limiting container privileges
- WordPress security hardening
- wp-config.php security in containers
- Securing wp-admin
- User authentication hardening
- File integrity monitoring
- Security plugins and tools
- Regular security audits
- Vulnerability scanning
- Homework: Perform a security audit and hardening on both traditional and Docker-based WordPress installations
Session 5: Performance Optimization in Docker Production
- Performance benchmarking tools for containers
- Container-level performance optimization
- Resource allocation (CPU, memory)
- Docker networking performance
- Volume mount performance considerations
- Docker image optimization
- Traditional server-level performance optimization
- PHP-FPM configuration
- MySQL query optimization
- Web server caching
- WordPress caching strategies in containers
- Page caching
- Object caching with Redis/Memcached containers
- Database query caching
- Shared caching between containers
- CDN implementation and configuration
- Image and asset optimization
- Plugin performance considerations
- Monitoring container performance
- Homework: Optimize both traditional and Docker-based WordPress sites for maximum performance
Session 6: Maintenance and Update Strategies with Docker
- WordPress update approaches in containers
- Immutable infrastructure approach (rebuilding containers)
- In-place updates within containers
- Image tagging and versioning strategies
- Traditional WordPress update best practices
- Core updates
- Theme updates
- Plugin updates
- Testing updates before deployment
- Testing in container environments
- Blue-green deployments with containers
- Automated update strategies
- Backup systems and strategies for containers
- Volume backups
- Database container backups
- Docker registry backups
- Scheduled automated backups
- Backup storage solutions
- Disaster recovery planning with containers
- Ongoing maintenance tasks and schedules
- Monitoring Docker containers and WordPress
- Troubleshooting common container issues
- Final Project: Create a complete WordPress deployment and maintenance plan that includes both traditional and Docker-based approaches
Learning Resources
Required Materials
- Access to a VPS or cloud hosting account (DigitalOcean, AWS, etc.)
- Docker and Docker Compose installed locally
- SSH client
- Command line experience
- FTP/SFTP client
- GitHub account for version control
Recommended Reading
- WordPress: Pushing the Limits by Rachel McCollin
- High Performance WordPress by Jeff Starr
- WordPress Security by Tony Perez and Dre Armeda
- Docker for WordPress: Up and Running by Ahmad Awais
- Docker in Practice by Ian Miell and Aidan Hobson Sayers
- Online resources: WordPress Codex on Hardening, Docker Hub WordPress documentation, DigitalOcean WordPress and Docker tutorials