What Cloudflare Does for a WordPress Website
By George Nicolaou
Cloudflare can sit between visitors and your website to provide DNS services, traffic filtering and caching. It complements your hosting; it does not replace the server or a tested backup.
Before you change nameservers
Record your existing DNS entries, including mail records. Confirm which company controls the domain and which hosts the website. Copy the required records accurately into Cloudflare before changing nameservers at the registrar. A missing mail record can break email even when the website looks fine.
Configure HTTPS carefully
Keep a valid certificate on the origin server. Cloudflare’s Full (strict) mode checks that certificate as well as encrypting the origin connection. Test the configuration before forcing all visitors onto HTTPS, particularly if redirects already exist at the host.
Check caching against real tasks
Cache public content where appropriate, but do not treat account pages, baskets or personalised responses as ordinary static pages. After changing settings, check a logged-out page, submit a test form and complete a test shopping journey if you run a store. Watch for stale content after edits.
The video below introduces the service. Its dashboard reflects the recording period, so use the current account interface for the exact controls. Begin with settings you can explain and measure rather than switching on every optimisation at once.
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