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XOOPS Performance Optimization

Comprehensive guide to optimizing XOOPS for maximum speed and efficiency.

Performance Optimization Overview

graph TD
    A[Performance] --> B[Caching]
    A --> C[Database]
    A --> D[Web Server]
    A --> E[Frontend]
    A --> F[Code]
    B --> B1[Page Cache]
    B --> B2[Query Cache]
    B --> B3[Template Cache]
    C --> C1[Indexes]
    C --> C2[Queries]
    C --> C3[Optimization]
    D --> D1[Compression]
    D --> D2[Headers]
    D --> D3[Connection]
    E --> E1[Images]
    E --> E2[CSS/JS]
    E --> E3[Lazy Load]
    F --> F1[Modules]
    F --> F2[Queries]

Caching Configuration

Caching is the fastest way to improve performance.

Page-Level Caching

Enable full page caching in XOOPS:

Admin Panel > System > Preferences > Cache Settings

Enable Caching: Yes
Cache Type: File Cache (or APCu/Memcache)
Cache Lifetime: 3600 seconds (1 hour)
Cache Module Lists: Yes
Cache Configuration: Yes
Cache Search Results: Yes

File-Based Caching

Configure file cache location:

# Create cache directory outside web root (more secure)
mkdir -p /var/cache/xoops
chown www-data:www-data /var/cache/xoops
chmod 755 /var/cache/xoops

# Edit mainfile.php
define('XOOPS_CACHE_PATH', '/var/cache/xoops/');

APCu Caching

APCu provides in-memory caching (very fast):

# Install APCu
apt-get install php-apcu

# Verify installation
php -m | grep apcu

# Configure in php.ini
apc.enabled = 1
apc.memory_size = 128M
apc.ttl = 0
apc.user_ttl = 3600
apc.shm_size = 128

Enable in XOOPS:

Admin Panel > System > Preferences > Cache Settings

Cache Type: APCu

Memcache/Redis Caching

Distributed caching for high-traffic sites:

Install Memcache:

# Install Memcache server
apt-get install memcached

# Start service
systemctl start memcached
systemctl enable memcached

# Verify running
netstat -tlnp | grep memcached
# Should show listening on port 11211

Configure in XOOPS:

Edit mainfile.php:

// Memcache configuration
define('XOOPS_CACHE_TYPE', 'memcache');
define('XOOPS_CACHE_HOST', 'localhost');
define('XOOPS_CACHE_PORT', 11211);
define('XOOPS_CACHE_TIMEOUT', 0);

Or in admin panel:

Cache Type: Memcache
Memcache Host: localhost:11211

Template Caching

Compile and cache XOOPS templates:

# Ensure templates_c is writable
chmod 777 /var/www/html/xoops/templates_c/

# Clear old cached templates
rm -rf /var/www/html/xoops/templates_c/*

Configure in theme:

<!-- In theme xoops_version.php -->
{smarty.const.XOOPS_VAR_PATH|constant}
<{$xoops_meta}>

<!-- Templates use caching -->
{cache}
    [Cached content here]
{/cache}

Database Optimization

Add Database Indexes

Properly indexed databases query much faster.

-- Check current indexes
SHOW INDEXES FROM xoops_users;

-- Common indexes to add
ALTER TABLE xoops_users ADD INDEX idx_uname (uname);
ALTER TABLE xoops_users ADD INDEX idx_email (email);
ALTER TABLE xoops_users ADD INDEX idx_uid_active (uid, user_actkey);

-- Add indexes to posts/content tables
ALTER TABLE xoops_posts ADD INDEX idx_post_published (post_published);
ALTER TABLE xoops_posts ADD INDEX idx_post_uid (post_uid);
ALTER TABLE xoops_posts ADD INDEX idx_post_created (post_created);

-- Verify indexes created
SHOW INDEXES FROM xoops_users\G

Optimize Tables

Regular table optimization improves performance:

-- Optimize all tables
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_users;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_posts;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_config;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_comments;

-- Or optimize all at once
REPAIR TABLE xoops_users;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_users;
REPAIR TABLE xoops_posts;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_posts;

Create automated optimization script:

#!/bin/bash
# Database optimization script

echo "Optimizing XOOPS database..."

mysql -u xoops_user -p xoops_db << EOF
-- Optimize all tables
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_users;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_posts;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_config;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_comments;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_users_online;

-- Show database size
SELECT table_schema,
       ROUND(SUM(data_length + index_length) / 1024 / 1024, 2) as total_mb
FROM information_schema.tables
WHERE table_schema = 'xoops_db'
GROUP BY table_schema;
EOF

echo "Database optimization completed!"

Schedule with cron:

# Weekly optimization
crontab -e
# Add: 0 3 * * 0 /usr/local/bin/optimize-xoops-db.sh

Query Optimization

Review slow queries:

-- Enable slow query log
SET GLOBAL slow_query_log = 'ON';
SET GLOBAL long_query_time = 2;

-- View slow queries
SELECT * FROM mysql.slow_log;

-- Or check slow log file
tail -100 /var/log/mysql/slow.log

Common optimization techniques:

// SLOW - Avoid unnecessary queries in loops
foreach ($users as $user) {
    $profile = getUserProfile($user['uid']);  // Query in loop!
    echo $profile['name'];
}

// FAST - Get all data at once
$profiles = getAllUserProfiles($user_ids);
foreach ($users as $user) {
    echo $profiles[$user['uid']]['name'];
}

Increase Buffer Pool

Configure MySQL for better caching:

Edit /etc/mysql/mysql.conf.d/mysqld.cnf:

# InnoDB Buffer Pool (50-80% of system RAM)
innodb_buffer_pool_size = 1G

# Query Cache (optional, can be disabled in MySQL 5.7+)
query_cache_size = 64M
query_cache_type = 1

# Max Connections
max_connections = 500

# Max Allowed Packet
max_allowed_packet = 256M

# Connection timeout
connect_timeout = 10

Restart MySQL:

systemctl restart mysql

Web Server Optimization

Enable Gzip Compression

Compress responses to reduce bandwidth:

Apache Configuration:

<IfModule mod_deflate.c>
    AddOutputFilterByType DEFLATE text/html text/plain text/xml text/css text/javascript application/javascript application/json

    # Don't compress images and already compressed files
    SetEnvIfNoCase Request_URI \.(jpg|jpeg|png|gif|zip|gzip)$ no-gzip dont-vary

    # Log compressed responses
    DeflateBufferSize 8096
</IfModule>

Nginx Configuration:

gzip on;
gzip_types text/html text/plain text/css text/javascript application/javascript application/json;
gzip_min_length 1000;
gzip_vary on;
gzip_comp_level 6;

# Don't compress already compressed formats
gzip_disable "msie6";

Verify compression:

# Check if response is gzipped
curl -I -H "Accept-Encoding: gzip" http://your-domain.com/xoops/

# Should show:
# Content-Encoding: gzip

Browser Caching Headers

Set cache expiration for static assets:

Apache:

<IfModule mod_expires.c>
    ExpiresActive On

    # Cache images for 30 days
    ExpiresByType image/jpeg "access plus 30 days"
    ExpiresByType image/gif "access plus 30 days"
    ExpiresByType image/png "access plus 30 days"
    ExpiresByType image/svg+xml "access plus 30 days"

    # Cache CSS/JS for 30 days
    ExpiresByType text/css "access plus 30 days"
    ExpiresByType application/javascript "access plus 30 days"
    ExpiresByType text/javascript "access plus 30 days"

    # Cache fonts for 1 year
    ExpiresByType font/eot "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/ttf "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/woff "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/woff2 "access plus 1 year"

    # Don't cache HTML
    ExpiresByType text/html "access plus 1 hour"
</IfModule>

Nginx:

location ~* \.(jpg|jpeg|png|gif|ico|svg|woff|woff2|ttf|eot)$ {
    expires 30d;
    add_header Cache-Control "public, immutable";
}

location ~* \.(css|js)$ {
    expires 30d;
    add_header Cache-Control "public";
}

location ~ \.html$ {
    expires 1h;
    add_header Cache-Control "public";
}

Connection Keep-Alive

Enable persistent HTTP connections:

Apache:

<IfModule mod_http.c>
    KeepAlive On
    KeepAliveTimeout 15
    MaxKeepAliveRequests 100
</IfModule>

Nginx:

keepalive_timeout 15s;
keepalive_requests 100;

Frontend Optimization

Optimize Images

Reduce image file sizes:

# Batch compress JPEG images
for img in *.jpg; do
    convert "$img" -quality 85 "optimized_$img"
done

# Batch compress PNG images
for img in *.png; do
    optipng -o2 "$img"
done

# Or use imagemin CLI
npm install -g imagemin-cli
imagemin images/ --out-dir=images-optimized

Minify CSS and JavaScript

Reduce CSS/JS file sizes:

Using Node.js tools:

# Install minifiers
npm install -g uglify-js clean-css-cli

# Minify JavaScript
uglifyjs script.js -o script.min.js

# Minify CSS
cleancss style.css -o style.min.css

Using online tools: - CSS Minifier: https://cssminifier.com/ - JavaScript Minifier: https://www.minifycode.com/javascript-minifier/

Lazy Load Images

Load images only when needed:

<!-- Add loading="lazy" attribute -->
<img src="image.jpg" alt="Description" loading="lazy">

<!-- Or use JavaScript library for older browsers -->
<img class="lazy" src="placeholder.jpg" data-src="image.jpg" alt="Description">

<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/vanilla-lazyload/17.1.2/lazyload.min.js"></script>
<script>
    var lazyLoad = new LazyLoad({
        elements_selector: ".lazy"
    });
</script>

Reduce Render-Blocking Resources

Load CSS/JS strategically:

<!-- Load critical CSS inline -->
<style>
    /* Critical styles for above-the-fold */
</style>

<!-- Defer non-critical CSS -->
<link rel="stylesheet" href="style.css" media="print" onload="this.media='all'">

<!-- Defer JavaScript -->
<script src="script.js" defer></script>

<!-- Or use async for non-critical scripts -->
<script src="analytics.js" async></script>

CDN Integration

Use a Content Delivery Network for faster global access.

CDN Cost Features
Cloudflare Free/Paid DDoS, DNS, Cache, Analytics
AWS CloudFront Paid High performance, global
Bunny CDN Affordable Storage, video, cache
jsDelivr Free JavaScript libraries
cdnjs Free Popular libraries

Cloudflare Setup

  1. Sign up at https://www.cloudflare.com/
  2. Add your domain
  3. Update nameservers with Cloudflare's
  4. Enable caching options:
  5. Cache Level: Aggressive
  6. Caching on everything: On

  7. Browser Caching TTL: 1 month

  8. In XOOPS, update your domain to use Cloudflare DNS

Configure CDN in XOOPS

Update image URLs to CDN:

Edit theme template:

<!-- Original -->
<img src="{$xoops_url}/uploads/image.jpg" alt="">

<!-- With CDN -->
<img src="https://cdn.your-domain.com/uploads/image.jpg" alt="">

Or set in PHP:

// In mainfile.php or config
define('XOOPS_CDN_URL', 'https://cdn.your-domain.com');

// In template
<img src="{$smarty.const.XOOPS_CDN_URL}/uploads/image.jpg" alt="">

Performance Monitoring

PageSpeed Insights Testing

Test your site performance:

  1. Visit Google PageSpeed Insights: https://pagespeed.web.dev/
  2. Enter your XOOPS URL
  3. Review recommendations
  4. Implement suggested improvements

Server Performance Monitoring

Monitor real-time server metrics:

# Install monitoring tools
apt-get install htop iotop nethogs

# Monitor CPU and memory
htop

# Monitor disk I/O
iotop

# Monitor network
nethogs

PHP Performance Profiling

Identify slow PHP code:

<?php
// Use Xdebug for profiling
xdebug_start_trace('profile');

// Your code here
$result = someExpensiveFunction();

xdebug_stop_trace();
?>

MySQL Query Monitoring

Track slow queries:

# Enable query logging
mysql -u root -p

SET GLOBAL general_log = 'ON';
SET GLOBAL log_output = 'FILE';
SET GLOBAL general_log_file = '/var/log/mysql/query.log';

# Review slow queries
tail -f /var/log/mysql/slow.log

# Analyze query with EXPLAIN
EXPLAIN SELECT * FROM xoops_users WHERE uid = 1\G

Performance Optimization Checklist

Implement these for best performance:

  • Caching: Enable file/APCu/Memcache caching
  • Database: Add indexes, optimize tables
  • Compression: Enable Gzip compression
  • Browser Cache: Set cache headers
  • Images: Optimize and compress
  • CSS/JS: Minify files
  • Lazy Loading: Implement for images
  • CDN: Use for static assets
  • Keep-Alive: Enable persistent connections
  • Modules: Disable unused modules
  • Themes: Use lightweight, optimized themes
  • Monitoring: Track performance metrics
  • Regular Maintenance: Clear cache, optimize DB

Performance Optimization Script

Automated optimization:

#!/bin/bash
# Performance optimization script

echo "=== XOOPS Performance Optimization ==="

# Clear cache
echo "Clearing cache..."
rm -rf /var/www/html/xoops/cache/*
rm -rf /var/www/html/xoops/templates_c/*

# Optimize database
echo "Optimizing database..."
mysql -u xoops_user -p xoops_db << EOF
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_users;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_posts;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_config;
OPTIMIZE TABLE xoops_comments;
EOF

# Check file permissions
echo "Verifying file permissions..."
find /var/www/html/xoops -type f -exec chmod 644 {} \;
find /var/www/html/xoops -type d -exec chmod 755 {} \;
chmod 777 /var/www/html/xoops/cache
chmod 777 /var/www/html/xoops/templates_c
chmod 777 /var/www/html/xoops/uploads
chmod 777 /var/www/html/xoops/var

# Generate performance report
echo "Performance Optimization Complete!"
echo ""
echo "Next steps:"
echo "1. Test site at https://pagespeed.web.dev/"
echo "2. Monitor performance in admin panel"
echo "3. Consider CDN for static assets"
echo "4. Review slow queries in MySQL"

Before and After Metrics

Track improvements:

Before Optimization:
- Page Load Time: 3.5 seconds
- Database Queries: 45
- Cache Hit Rate: 0%
- Database Size: 250MB

After Optimization:
- Page Load Time: 0.8 seconds (77% faster)
- Database Queries: 8 (cached)
- Cache Hit Rate: 85%
- Database Size: 120MB (optimized)

Next Steps

  1. Review basic configuration
  2. Ensure security measures
  3. Implement [[#Caching-Configuration|caching]]
  4. Monitor performance with tools
  5. Adjust based on metrics

Tags: #performance #optimization #caching #database #cdn

Related Articles: - Basic-Configuration - System-Settings - Security-Configuration - Server-Requirements