What is LiteSpeed Web Server Hosting: Everything You Need to Know about LiteSpeed Hosting
By Ryan Bradman
Do you think DDoS attacks are the only reason that can cause your website to suffer from downtime? Well, think again.
Picture this. You have a stunning website on the Apache server. And the website drives a lot of traffic. But with each new visitor on the site, a new process chain is opened on your server. And this is irrespective of whether the visitor requested the resources or not.
These concurrent visitors on your website (and the new process chains that are created) eat up your server resources. The result? Your site crashes.
Some Apache modules can definitely prevent this, but they come with several inconsistencies. You might not realize that right away. But it will cause issues later, and you might not be able to update your website. And without updates, your site remains exposed to hack attacks.
Now that seems like too many problems and no solution at all. However, there is a solution – LiteSpeed Web Server Hosting.
What is LiteSpeed Web Server Hosting?
LiteSpeed Web Server (LSWS) is a relatively new but dynamic web server. It has an extremely streamlined architecture. And it’s efficiency is much more than other web servers in the market.
Simply put, it can handle thousands of clients simultaneously without consuming a lot of server resources. This saves your CPU and memory while still letting you serve multiple clients together.
Features of LiteSpeed Web Server
- Using LiteSpeed with an SSL certificate makes it three times faster than Apache.
- LiteSpeed improves PHP performance by up to 50%.
- LiteSpeed uses the same mod_security feature as Apache. Plus, it has some more anti-DDoS features too. This makes it a safe server.
- LiteSpeed is a drop-in replacement for Apache. It is compatible with Apache functions like mod_rewrite, htaccess, and mod_security. This makes switching from Apache to LiteSpeed quick and easy.
- If you have a WordPress website, you can also use LiteSpeed cache, a server-side cache plugin that makes your website load even faster.
- LiteSpeed supports both full HTTP/2 and HTTP/3. Also, it is the first server to extend support for HTTP/3.
How Does LiteSpeed Server Cache Work?
You can increase your website’s load speed on the LiteSpeed web server with the LiteSpeed server cache plugin. The plugin is available for WordPress websites, and you can install and activate it from the WordPress plugin directory.
What does the plugin do to increase page load speed?
Your WordPress website has pages built with PHP. And these dynamic pages are not stored anywhere. They are generated on demand. When a visitor comes to your site and requests to see a certain page, that page will then be generated and shown. This takes time. But your visitors don’t want to wait. Internet users expect a website to load in less than 2 seconds.
The LiteSpeed server cache plugin helps you quickly show the desired results. With the plugin, the snapshots of the generated pages are conveniently stored on your LiteSpeed server. And these snapshots are rendered from the server itself when the request arises. This eliminates the need for generating the pages again and again. And thus, reduces page load time.
And a faster loading website not just impresses visitors but is also rewarded by Google in rankings.
How to Install LiteSpeed Web Server?
Installing the LiteSpeed web server is easy if you know what needs to be done. To make your task simpler, here is a step-by-step installation guide.
- Decompress the package in an appropriate folder.
- Go to cd lsws-xxxx (this is the installation directory) and run the ./install.sh command.
Note – Only root users can run the command for installation in the system directory. - When the LiteSpeed installer opens the ‘Terms and Conditions’ dialogue box, read it carefully. And then type ‘Yes’ as a mark of your agreement.
- By default, /usr/local/lsws is the driver where the server will be installed. You can specify this as your choice or select another option.
- Follow the instructions that appear on the screen. You will have to select the control panel that you wish to use. And enter username and password, among other details. The final question will be if you want to install the AWStats add-on or not.
Once you are done with all this, the server will start.
If you face any questions during the installation procedure, you can contact our team of experts. We are available 24/7 and will make sure your queries and concerns are addressed at the earliest.
How to Uninstall LiteSpeed Web Server?
If you ever find yourself in a position where you need uninstall your LiteSpeed web server, here is what to do –
- Run the following command – [your_install_dir]/admin/misc/uninstall.sh.
- Step-by-step instructions will start appearing on your screen in the form of a dialogue box.
- You can either choose to delete the log and configuration directories or keep them as it is.
- Once the uninstall process is complete, all the files in your installer directory will be removed. However, user-generated files will not be affected.
Before you uninstall your LiteSpeed web server, you can get in touch with our experts. We might be able to fix the issue that is forcing you to uninstall the server.
LiteSpeed Web Server vs. Nginx vs. Apache
LiteSpeed is a great web server. The growing number of websites and applications using it is proof of that fact.
However, you should still compare the options before making the final call. LiteSpeed is often compared to Apache as it is designed to be a drop-in alternative for it. However, it is much more similar to Nginx when you look at the details.
LiteSpeed vs. Apache
Studies have shown that LiteSpeed HTTP/2 has a 78 times faster performance as compared to Apache. Also, Apache’s architecture is process-based. And LiteSpeed’s architecture is event-driven. This makes sure that the latter is faster and makes use of minimal resources.
LiteSpeed vs. Nginx
While Nginx also has an event-driven architecture, LiteSpeed outperforms it on other grounds. LiteSpeed is designed to understand the rules of Apache and is compatible with its functions. This is not the case with Nginx. This makes using LiteSpeed easier. Another point to be considered here is that LiteSpeed supports all control panels (cPanel, Plesk, and others). LiteSpeed also stores the cache files in a compressed format as opposed to the uncompressed files stored by Nginx.
LiteSpeed – The Best of Both Worlds
While Apache has the advantage of being a familiar server, Nginx offers better and faster performance.
LiteSpeed, on the other hand, offers you both. It is indeed the best of both worlds when it comes to web servers.
Litespeed Web Server Exploit
System and software bugs are a pain. And when it comes to web servers, these bugs, called exploits, can cause several issues.
However, LiteSpeed is immune to PHP exploits, and you don’t need to worry about anything.
With little to no vulnerabilities, LiteSpeed is among the safest servers.
But, older versions and cross-site scripting can still cause vulnerabilities in the server. If you face an issue and think it can be a LiteSpeed web server exploit, immediately get in touch with us. We’ll look into the matter and make sure your hosting isn’t affected in any way.
What are the Advantages of LiteSpeed?
The top benefits of using LiteSpeed include –
- In-built cache.
- Migration from Apache to LiteSpeed is easy as the latter is compatible with the former’s functions.
- xmlrpc.php and wp-login.php are vulnerable files susceptible to attacks. LiteSpeed protects them. And it also moves the CAPTCHA to the server level. With this, all unwanted login attempts are blocked.
- LiteSpeed is faster than Apache and Nginx and delivers better performance.
What are the Disadvantages of LiteSpeed?
There is hardly anything to dislike in LiteSpeed. And that’s why it has amassed an almost cult-like following.
The only visible downside, however, is the expected cost. Being a proprietary offering, it is obvious to expect that hosting it would be expensive.
But that is not the case with SeekaHost LiteSpeed hosting…
SeekaHost LiteSpeed Hosting - Your One-Stop Solution
It is tough to find the right hosting providers that offer reliable service and round-the-clock support while fitting your budget.
But you don’t need to worry anymore because you have found SeekaHost.
LiteSpeed server hosting comes with its advantages, as we have discussed before. But LiteSpeed hosting with SeekaHost comes with even more benefits in tow.
SeekaHost Advantages include –
- We offer free website migration.
If you had previously partnered with a random hosting service provider, migrating to another hosting could be a cumbersome process. But when you choose to migrate to SeekaHost, our migration team will be right by your side. We will make sure the migration process is completed without any hassles. And we provide this service at no additional cost to you. - Ours is a CMS-friendly hosting.
- Along with LiteSpeed, our servers come with SSD storage as well. The storage disk allows for quick execution and powerful data transfer.
- We are always at your service. With our 24/7 live support, you get an active resolution of your concerns and quick answers to all your questions.
You can check out our LiteSpeed web server hosting plans and then select the plan that best fits your budget and needs.
Harness the potential of LiteSpeed with SeekaHost.