How a PHP Web Development Company Can Improve Website Performance and Security

Is your website loading fast enough to keep the users retained? In PHP website performance is the key to building reliable websites. It ensures a smoother customer experience and results in a higher conversion rate. 

But what is PHP in website performance? 

• PHP is a server-side scripting language, which doesn’t need a compiler. 
• It supports databases like SQLite, Oracle, and MySQL. 
• PHP codes run on the server, which reduces the load on the client side and improves the overall speed of a website. 
• PHP is an open-source language, widely used in modern programming. 
• Some of the most popular PHP apps include WordPress, Wikipedia, and Yahoo. 
• PHP powers 75% of all websites. 

So how do you measure PHP web performance? Using the metrics.

Some of the most important website performance metrics are: 

• Speed Index– checks how speedily webpage content appears on a screen.
• Error Rate– tracks the overall percentage of request issues you have in relation to the number of requests. 
• Time to First Byte– measures the time a website takes to render the content on the end-user devices. 
• Time to Interact– measures how much time passes before a web page becomes fully interactive. 

How to Boost and Optimize Web Performance in PHP?

1) Use Native PHP Functions: PHP boasts about 1000+ built-in functions that you can use to improve the efficiency of a website and minimize performance bugs. Additionally, the native functions let you write codes faster to improve the application speed. These functions also avoid the need for custom app development.

2) Minify Static Assets and Caching: Reduce the size of assets like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript by removing comments, spaces, or line breaks. This may speed up the load time of a web page. You can also pair this strategy with a content delivery network to spread resources across servers. Also, tools like Redis or Memcached keep your application’s performance stable during heavy incoming traffic. 

3) Look for Performance Bottlenecks: Slow queries or unnoticed code can cause performance bottlenecks and slow down an app’s performance. Tools like Tideways or Blackfire can help you profile your PHP codes and find bugs. You may check the following terms for performance bottlenecks: 

• Network Capacity: The low bandwidth of any network can slow down data transfers. So check if your server can handle the surge in traffic.
• Memory Utilization: Running short of memory impacts the performance. So ensure your server has enough memory for doing the regular tasks.
• Unnecessary Background Links: Unwanted links or processes running in the background may affect the speed of your app. So stop the tasks that are not needed anymore to free up some space.
• CPU Performance: Heavy usage of CPU causes delays in loading the application. So keep monitoring the CPU load during busy times.
• Fragmented File System: A fragmented file system may slow down the file access, so keep a check on the storage to maintain its efficiency.

4) Upgrade to the Latest PHP Version: Upgrade to the latest version of PHP to gain access to better features and performance. Currently, PHP 8 is the latest, which introduced the just-in-time compiler. This compiler translates PHP code directly into machine code, reducing the processing time and improving execution speed. Moreover, hire dedicated PHP developers to know in detail about the latest and advanced versions.

5) Write Cleaner Codes: While coding, developers should make it a habit to write codes on a page or on the screen. This way you can simply read the code and understand whether it is concise and clear, for both the developer and compiler. Code which is easy for the compiler to understand is also easy to optimize for an improved PHP performance. 

6) Use a Content Delivery Network: A CDN is a distributed network of servers capable of functioning across different geographic locations. By storing the static content on these servers, you can reduce the time your content takes to reach the users, as well as reduce the extra load on your own server. 

Our company excels in providing PHP web development services. 

What’s New in PHP 8?

1) Just-in-time Compilation: JIT compiles PHP code into machine code and it runs faster without relying on an interpreter at runtime. 

Impact-

• Better performance in CPU-intensive tasks like image processing
• Less improvement for traditional applications since PHP is often I/O bound.

2) Union Types: Using this, a variable can hold multiple data types. Developers have better control over how the data is managed. 

Impact-

• More flexibility in function definitions
• Reduced need for unnecessary type-checking inside functions.

3) The Null-safe Operator: The null-safe operator in PHP 8 simplifies handling the null values. It also allows developers to write cleaner codes. 

Impact-

• Codes become much cleaner and easier to read
• Reduces excessive “if” conditions for null checks.

4) Named Arguments: This feature allows developers to name the arguments, which improves readability and makes functions easier to understand. 

Impact-

• Since the arguments are named, developers don’t need to remember the order of parameters
• Helps in the creation of more maintainable PHP codes, making functions easier to handle.

5) Attributes: Attributes provide a structured way to add metadata to objects, classes, methods, or files. Additionally, they make defining various classes, functions, and interfaces simpler.

Impact-

• Easy to read during runtime
• Keeps metadata structured and well-organized
• Developers can annotate different parts of code.

6) Match Expression: The match expression is an improved alternative to the traditional “switch” statement, making it easier to return values directly. This feature allows developers to make more simpler, and concise comparisons while also supporting strict type comparisons.  

Impact-

• Reduces errors
• Supports multiple conditions in a single case
• Better than “switch”

Final Thoughts

From development costs to user experience, a PHP web development company can ultimately decide success or failure for many web products. While we have explained a good number of ways and strategies to improve the website performance here, it’s just a starting point. Constantly monitoring and improving your website’s security, and finding different ways to for performance optimization needs to be a priority. If you feel overwhelmed about where to start and need help, Brain Inventory offers custom web development services that can get you on the right track.