Author: wahab Page 3 of 7

Introduction

In today’s fast-paced and ever-changing world, businesses need to be able to deliver new products and services quickly and reliably. This is where DevOps and CI/CD practices come in.

DevOps is a set of practices that combines software development (Dev) and IT operations (Ops) to shorten the systems development life cycle and provide continuous delivery with high quality. CI/CD, or continuous integration/continuous delivery, is a set of practices that automates the software development process, from building and testing to deploying to production.

Continuous delivery and continuous deployment are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same thing. Understanding the difference between these two approaches is essential for organizations looking to optimize their software delivery pipelines. In this blog post, we will explore the distinctions between continuous delivery and continuous deployment, providing clear definitions and examples of when each approach might be appropriate.

By the end of this article, you’ll have a solid understanding of continuous delivery and continuous deployment and be able to make informed decisions about which approach aligns best with your project’s requirements. So, let’s dive in and demystify the difference between these two critical aspects of modern software development practices.

What is continuous delivery?

Continuous delivery is a software development approach that focuses on ensuring that code changes can be reliably and efficiently delivered to production environments. It is characterized by a series of well-defined steps that enable frequent and automated deployments while maintaining high quality and minimizing risks.

The key steps involved in continuous delivery include:

1. Automated builds and tests: Continuous delivery relies on automated processes to build the application and run comprehensive tests, including unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests. These automated tests help ensure that changes to the codebase do not introduce regressions or break existing functionality.

2. Code integration and version control: Continuous delivery emphasizes the use of version control systems, such as Git, to manage code changes. Developers regularly integrate their code changes into a shared repository, enabling collaboration and reducing conflicts.

3. Continuous integration: Continuous integration involves automatically merging code changes from multiple developers into a central repository, triggering build and test processes. This ensures that the application remains in a continuously deployable state and helps identify and resolve integration issues early on.

4. Continuous testing and quality assurance: Continuous delivery places a strong emphasis on testing throughout the development process. Automated testing is performed at various stages, including unit testing, integration testing, performance testing, and security testing. By continuously testing the application, teams can identify and address issues promptly.

5. Packaging and deployment readiness: In continuous delivery, software artifacts are packaged in a consistent and reproducible manner, including all necessary dependencies. These artifacts are then prepared for deployment to various environments, such as staging or production. By automating the packaging and deployment processes, teams can ensure consistency and reduce the risk of errors during deployment.

To better understand continuous delivery, let’s consider an example. Imagine a large-scale enterprise application with a development team spread across different locations. With continuous delivery, developers can work on their respective features independently. Once the code changes are committed and integrated, the automated build and test processes kick in, ensuring that the changes are validated and do not introduce any critical issues. The application is packaged and made ready for deployment in a consistent manner. Deployment to staging or production environments can then be triggered with confidence, knowing that the application has undergone thorough testing and is in a deployable state.

Continuous delivery provides organizations with a systematic and reliable approach to software delivery, enabling faster release cycles and reducing the risk of human error. However, it’s important to note that continuous delivery does not necessarily mean that every code change is automatically deployed to production. This distinction brings us to the next section, where we explore continuous deployment.

What is continuous deployment?

Continuous deployment is an extension of continuous delivery that takes the automation and frequency of deployments to the next level. With continuous deployment, every code change that passes the necessary tests and quality checks is automatically deployed to production environments, making it immediately available to users.

The main characteristics of continuous deployment include:

1. Automation: Continuous deployment heavily relies on automation throughout the software delivery process. Automated build, test, and deployment pipelines ensure that code changes are seamlessly deployed to production environments without manual intervention. This automation minimizes the potential for human error and speeds up the delivery cycle.

2. Frequency of deployments: Continuous deployment enables organizations to deploy code changes frequently, sometimes multiple times a day. By automating the entire deployment process, organizations can push updates to production as soon as they are ready, delivering new features, bug fixes, and improvements to end-users rapidly.

3. While continuous delivery stops at preparing the application for deployment, continuous deployment goes a step further by automatically deploying the changes to production environments after passing all necessary tests and quality checks.

4. To better understand continuous deployment, let’s consider an example. Imagine a web application developed by a startup company. With continuous deployment, developers can work on new features or bug fixes and have their changes automatically deployed to the production environment once the necessary tests have passed. This enables the startup to iterate and release new updates rapidly, gaining valuable user feedback and addressing issues promptly.

5. Continuous deployment is particularly beneficial for web-based applications, where rapid release cycles and immediate user feedback are crucial for success. It allows organizations to continuously evolve their software, respond quickly to market demands, and deliver an exceptional user experience.

It’s important to note that continuous deployment may not be suitable for all organizations or projects. Factors such as the scale of the application, risk tolerance, and the need for manual approvals or compliance requirements may influence the decision to adopt continuous deployment.

Differences between continuous delivery and continuous deployment:

While continuous delivery and continuous deployment are closely related, there are distinct differences between the two approaches. Let’s delve into these differences by examining key aspects such as automation, testing, and deployment.

1. Automation: Both continuous delivery and continuous deployment rely on automation to streamline the software delivery process. However, the level of automation differs. In continuous delivery, automation is focused on building, testing, and packaging the application, ensuring that it is ready for deployment. Continuous deployment takes automation a step further by automatically deploying code changes to production environments without manual intervention.

2. Testing: Continuous delivery emphasizes thorough testing at various stages of the software delivery pipeline. This includes unit testing, integration testing, and end-to-end testing to validate the application’s functionality and performance. Continuous deployment also incorporates comprehensive testing, but since deployments occur more frequently and automatically, there is an increased reliance on automated tests to ensure the stability and quality of the application.

3. Deployment: Continuous delivery prepares the application for deployment in a controlled and reproducible manner. However, the actual deployment to production environments is typically triggered manually, allowing teams to perform additional checks or obtain necessary approvals before release. On the other hand, continuous deployment automatically deploys code changes to production once they have passed all the required tests and quality checks, enabling rapid and frequent releases.

To illustrate the differences, let’s consider the previous examples. In the case of the large-scale enterprise application, continuous delivery ensures that code changes are thoroughly tested and packaged, ready for deployment. However, deployment to production may require manual intervention, allowing the organization to perform additional validations or meet compliance requirements. On the other hand, in the case of the web application developed by the startup, continuous deployment automates the entire deployment process, pushing code changes to production as soon as they pass the necessary tests. This enables rapid iteration and frequent releases, without the need for manual intervention.

It’s important to note that while continuous deployment offers the advantage of immediate updates and faster feedback loops, it also requires robust automated testing, monitoring, and rollback mechanisms to ensure the stability and reliability of the production environment. Organizations adopting continuous deployment must have a high level of confidence in their testing and deployment processes to minimize the risk of introducing bugs or issues into the live application.

Choosing between continuous delivery and continuous deployment

The choice between continuous delivery and continuous deployment depends on various factors, including the organization’s goals, the nature of the application, the level of risk tolerance, and compliance requirements. Here are some considerations to help guide your decision:

Release frequency: If your organization aims for rapid and frequent releases to quickly deliver new features or updates to users, continuous deployment provides the advantage of automating the deployment process and reducing time-to-market.

Risk tolerance: If your application has strict compliance requirements, necessitating manual approvals or additional validation steps before deploying to production, continuous delivery allows for greater control and ensures that the appropriate checks are in place before releasing changes.

Testing and quality assurance: Continuous delivery emphasizes comprehensive testing and quality assurance processes. If you have a complex application or require extensive testing to ensure stability and functionality, continuous delivery allows for thorough testing and review before deploying changes.

Team collaboration: Continuous delivery promotes collaboration and encourages developers to integrate their code changes frequently. This ensures that conflicts are identified and resolved early on. If your organization values close collaboration between team members, continuous delivery can be an effective choice.

Application scale and complexity: Consider the size and complexity of your application. For large-scale applications with multiple components and dependencies, continuous delivery provides an opportunity to ensure that all aspects of the application are properly tested and integrated before deploying to production.

When to use Continuous Delivery

Continuous delivery is a good choice for teams that want to improve the speed and quality of their software delivery. It is also a good choice for teams that want to be able to deploy changes to production quickly and easily.

Here are some examples of when continuous delivery might be a good choice:

A software company that wants to deliver new features to its customers on a monthly or even weekly basis.

A website that wants to deploy bug fixes and security updates as soon as they are available.

A mobile app that wants to deploy new features and bug fixes to its users as soon as they are available.

When to use Continuous Deployment

Continuous deployment is a good choice for teams that want to automate their software delivery process as much as possible. It is also a good choice for teams that want to be able to deploy changes to production automatically.

Here are some examples of when continuous deployment might be a good choice:

A software company that is releasing new software on a continuous basis.

A website that is constantly being updated with new content.

A mobile app that is constantly being updated with new features.

It’s worth noting that continuous delivery and continuous deployment are not mutually exclusive. Organizations can start with continuous delivery and, as they mature in their automation and testing processes, gradually transition to continuous deployment when it aligns with their goals and capabilities.

Conclusion

Continuous delivery and continuous deployment are two approaches that enhance software delivery by automating processes and ensuring frequent, reliable releases. Continuous delivery focuses on preparing code changes for deployment, while continuous deployment takes automation a step further by automatically deploying changes to production environments.

Understanding the differences between continuous delivery and continuous deployment is crucial for organizations seeking to optimize their software delivery pipelines. By considering factors such as release frequency, risk tolerance, testing requirements, and team collaboration, organizations can make informed decisions about which approach aligns best with their specific needs and goals.

Ultimately, whether you choose continuous delivery or continuous deployment, embracing DevOps practices and automation can significantly improve your software development processes, enabling faster delivery, higher quality, and increased customer satisfaction.

Demystifying DevOps: How it Works in Real-world Scenarios

By wahab

On February 18, 2022

In Devops

DevOps is a software development practice that emphasizes collaboration, communication, and automation between software development teams and IT operations teams. Traditional software development methodologies often create a disconnect between development and operations which often leads to slower development, more errors, and increased downtime. DevOps aims to bridge the gap between development and operations, resulting in a more efficient, reliable, and scalable development process.

To achieve these goals, DevOps incorporates several key practices, including continuous development, continuous integration, continuous delivery, continuous deployment, continuous testing, and continuous monitoring. These practices are integrated into a single pipeline known as the CI/CD pipeline, which automates and streamlines the software development and delivery process.

In this article, we will provide a comprehensive guide to how DevOps works, including a detailed explanation of the six stages in the CI/CD pipeline.

1. Continuous Development:
Continuous development is the first stage in the CI/CD pipeline. This stage involves the continuous creation and updating of software code. Developers use version control tools, such as Git or SVN, to manage code changes and collaborate on code development. They work in small, iterative cycles to create code that can be easily tested and deployed. Continuous development also involves creating and maintaining documentation, such as code comments and user manuals.
Continuous development is a key aspect of DevOps, as it promotes collaboration and communication between developers and operations teams. By working together in small, iterative cycles, developers and operations teams can quickly identify and resolve issues, resulting in faster and more reliable software development.

Example: A software development team is working on a new feature for an e-commerce website. They use version control tools to manage code changes and collaborate on code development. The team works in small, iterative cycles, with each cycle consisting of creating and testing a new piece of code. This approach ensures that each piece of code is tested thoroughly before being deployed to the next stage in the CI/CD pipeline.

2. Continuous Integration:
The second stage in the CI/CD pipeline is continuous integration. This stage involves automatically building and testing code changes as soon as they are committed to the version control system. The purpose of continuous integration is to catch and fix errors early in the process, before they become more complex and difficult to resolve.
Continuous integration involves using automated tools, such as Jenkins or CircleCI, to build and test code changes. These tools can automatically compile code changes, run unit tests, and generate reports on code quality.

Example: After the software development team completes a cycle of code development, the code changes are automatically built and tested in the continuous integration stage. This stage involves using an automated tool, such as Jenkins, to build and test the code changes. If any errors are found, they are flagged and sent back to the development team for resolution.

3. Continuous Testing:
The third stage in the CI/CD pipeline is continuous testing. This stage involves automatically testing the code changes for functionality, performance, and security. The purpose of continuous testing is to ensure that the code changes are of high quality and meet the requirements of the end-users.
Continuous testing involves using automated testing tools, such as Selenium or Appium, to test the code changes. These tools can automatically run functional and performance tests on the code changes, generate reports on test results, and provide feedback to the development team.

Example: After the code changes pass the continuous integration tests, they are automatically sent to the continuous testing stage. This stage involves using an automated testing tool, such as Selenium, to test the code changes for functionality and performance. If any issues are found during testing, they are sent back to the development team for resolution. The continuous testing stage ensures that the code changes are thoroughly tested before being deployed to the next stage in the CI/CD pipeline.

4. Continuous Deployment:
The fourth stage in the pipeline is continuous deployment. In this stage, the code changes that have passed the continuous testing stage are automatically deployed to different environments, such as staging, pre-production, and production. Continuous deployment is the process of releasing software changes automatically to one or more environments, after they have passed automated tests and quality checks.

Deploying the changes to different environments allows the development and operations teams to test the software in different scenarios, ensuring that it is stable, reliable, and secure. In each environment, the software is tested again to confirm that it meets the requirements and works as expected. If any issues are found during the testing phase, they are sent back to the development team to be resolved.

Examples:

After the code changes pass the continuous testing stage, they are automatically deployed to the staging environment for further testing and validation. Once the changes have been validated in the staging environment, they are automatically deployed to the pre-production environment to conduct user acceptance testing.Finally, the changes are deployed to the production environment after they have been approved by the stakeholders and have passed all tests and quality checks in the pre-production environment.

5. Continuous Monitoring:
The final step in the DevOps process is Continuous Monitoring, which involves monitoring the production environment to identify and resolve any issues that may arise. This step involves using various monitoring tools to track the performance of the application, server, and other infrastructure components. The data collected from these tools is analyzed to identify any performance issues or potential risks to the system’s stability. This helps the DevOps team to proactively address any issues before they turn into critical problems that can negatively impact the users.
For example, let’s say that a company’s application is experiencing a high volume of traffic, and the servers are struggling to keep up with the demand. The DevOps team can use monitoring tools like Nagios, New relic, or Prometheus to identify the root cause of the performance issue. They may find that the servers are running low on memory or that there is a bottleneck in the application’s code. By identifying the issue early on, the team can take corrective action to optimize the application’s performance and prevent any downtime or service disruptions.

In summary, DevOps is not just a set of tools and practices, but also a mindset that emphasizes collaboration, automation, and continuous improvement, and agility. By breaking down the silos between development and operations teams, organizations can achieve faster release cycles, better collaboration, and higher-quality software products. The five key steps in the DevOps process – Continuous Development, Continuous Integration, Continuous Testing, Continuous Delivery, Continuous Deployment, and Continuous Monitoring – are all critical to achieving these goals. By following these best practices, organizations can streamline their software development and deployment processes and deliver value to their customers faster and more efficiently.

6 Essential DevOps Best Practices for Success

By wahab

On February 10, 2022

In Devops

DevOps has become a key driver of software delivery in many organizations, as it promotes collaboration, automation, and continuous improvement across the entire software development lifecycle. However, implementing DevOps is not always easy, as it requires significant changes in culture, processes, and tooling. In this post, we will provide some tips and best practices for implementing DevOps in your organization and achieving success.

1. Foster a Culture of Collaboration
One of the key principles of DevOps is collaboration, which means breaking down silos and promoting teamwork between different teams, such as development, operations, and quality assurance. To foster a culture of collaboration, it is important to create cross-functional teams that have a shared goal and work towards it together. This can be achieved by organizing regular meetings, sharing information, and encouraging open communication.

2. Automate Everything You Can
Automation is another key principle of DevOps, as it helps to streamline processes, reduce errors, and speed up delivery. Automating everything you can, from building and testing to deployment and monitoring, is essential for achieving continuous delivery and improving efficiency. Some popular automation tools for DevOps include Jenkins, Ansible, and Puppet.

3. Continuously Improve Your Processes
Continuous improvement is a core DevOps principle, which means constantly looking for ways to optimize your processes and workflows. To achieve this, you should regularly assess your current practices, identify areas for improvement, and implement changes to address them. This can be done through regular retrospectives, feedback loops, and metrics tracking.

4. Use Containers and Microservices
Containers and microservices are becoming increasingly popular in DevOps, as they allow for greater scalability, flexibility, and agility. Containers provide a lightweight, portable way to package applications and their dependencies, while microservices break down applications into small, independent components that can be developed and deployed separately. Using these technologies can help you achieve faster delivery and more efficient resource utilization.

5. Implement Continuous Testing
Continuous testing is a critical component of DevOps, as it helps to ensure that your software is always of high quality and meets your customers’ needs. To implement continuous testing, you should integrate testing into every stage of the software development lifecycle, automate as much as possible, and use metrics to track and improve the quality of your tests.

6. Make Security a Priority
It is important to make security a top priority when implementing DevOps. Security threats are becoming increasingly common and sophisticated, and can result in costly data breaches and reputational damage. To ensure the security of your applications and infrastructure, you should adopt a security-first mindset, perform regular security assessments, and implement security controls and best practices throughout the software development lifecycle.

By making security a top priority and integrating it into your DevOps processes, you can reduce the risk of security threats and improve the overall quality and reliability of your software.

In conclusion, DevOps is a powerful approach to software delivery that can help organizations achieve faster delivery, higher quality, and greater customer satisfaction. By following these best practices, you can successfully implement DevOps in your organization and reap the benefits of this approach. Remember to foster a culture of collaboration, automate everything you can, continuously improve your processes, use containers and microservices, and implement continuous testing.

Do You Need DevOps? A Guide to Making the Right Decision

By wahab

On January 30, 2022

In Devops

DevOps has become a buzzword in the world of software development, and for good reason. It’s a methodology that emphasizes collaboration, communication, and automation between development and operations teams. But does your organization actually need DevOps? And if so, how can you make sure you’re implementing it effectively? In this post, we’ll explore these questions and provide some guidance on how to approach the decision.

The Benefits of DevOps

Before we dive into whether or not you need DevOps, it’s worth examining the benefits that it can provide. Some of the key advantages of DevOps include:

Faster and more frequent releases – DevOps can help teams to automate their release processes, allowing for more rapid iteration and feedback.

Increased collaboration – DevOps emphasizes communication and teamwork between development and operations teams, which can help to break down silos and improve overall efficiency.

Improved quality – By using automation to manage testing and deployment, DevOps can help to reduce the risk of errors and improve the quality of software products.

Better alignment with business goals – DevOps can help to ensure that development efforts are closely aligned with business objectives, leading to better outcomes and greater success.

Do You Need DevOps?

So, how do you know if your organization needs DevOps? The answer will depend on a variety of factors, including the size of your organization, the complexity of your software systems, and your overall development goals. Here are some questions to consider:

Are you experiencing bottlenecks or delays in your software development process?

Are you struggling to keep up with the pace of change in your industry?

Are you looking to improve the quality and reliability of your software products?

Are you seeking to increase collaboration and communication between your development and operations teams?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then DevOps may be worth exploring further.

Implementing DevOps Effectively

If you’ve decided that DevOps is the right approach for your organization, then it’s important to implement it effectively. Here are some tips to keep in mind:

Start small – DevOps can be a major shift in how your organization approaches software development, so it’s important to start small and scale up gradually.

Build a strong culture of collaboration – DevOps relies heavily on teamwork and communication, so it’s important to create a culture that supports these values.

Use automation tools wisely – Automation can be a powerful tool for improving efficiency and quality, but it’s important to use it wisely and not rely on it exclusively.

Continuously measure and improve – DevOps is all about continuous improvement, so make sure you’re measuring key metrics and making changes as needed.

In conclusion, DevOps can provide significant benefits for organizations looking to improve their software development processes. However, it’s important to carefully consider whether it’s the right approach for your organization, and to implement it effectively if you decide to move forward. With the right approach, DevOps can help to drive greater efficiency, collaboration, and success in software development.

DevOps: A Brief Introduction

By wahab

On January 17, 2022

In Devops

DevOps: A Brief Introduction

In the world of software development, DevOps is a term that is often used to describe a methodology that emphasizes collaboration and communication between software developers and IT operations professionals. The goal of DevOps is to create a more streamlined and efficient development process that allows for faster and more reliable software releases.

At its core, DevOps is all about breaking down the barriers that exist between development and operations teams. Traditionally, these two teams have operated independently of one another, which can create bottlenecks and delays in the software development process. DevOps seeks to overcome these challenges by encouraging collaboration, sharing of knowledge, and the use of automation tools.

One of the key benefits of DevOps is that it allows for faster and more frequent software releases. By using automation tools to manage the software delivery pipeline, developers can quickly deploy new code changes to production environments, allowing for more rapid iteration and feedback. This can help to reduce the time-to-market for new features and products, which can be a critical competitive advantage in many industries.

Another important aspect of DevOps is the emphasis on continuous improvement. By constantly monitoring and measuring the performance of software systems, DevOps teams can identify areas for improvement and implement changes that lead to better outcomes. This iterative approach to development can help to create more reliable and stable software systems over time.

To be successful with DevOps, organizations must be willing to invest in the necessary infrastructure, tools, and processes. This includes things like automation tools for testing, deployment, and monitoring, as well as training and support for team members who are new to the DevOps methodology.

Overall, DevOps is a powerful approach to software development that can help organizations to create more efficient and effective development processes. By emphasizing collaboration, automation, and continuous improvement, DevOps teams can deliver higher-quality software products in less time, ultimately driving greater business success.

WordPress Migration: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

By wahab

On June 7, 2019

In WordPress

Migrating a WordPress site from one host to another can be a daunting task, but it’s sometimes necessary to ensure your website is running smoothly and securely. There are several reasons why you might consider migrating your WordPress site, such as poor website performance, unreliable hosting, or the need for more resources or features.

When it comes to migrating a WordPress site, there are two primary methods: manual migration and plugin migration. Manual migration involves transferring all of the files and database from one host to another manually, while plugin migration involves using a plugin to transfer the files and database.

Manual migration is generally preferred for larger or more complex sites that may not be easily migrated using a plugin, and it gives you more control over the migration process. On the other hand, plugin migration is usually faster and easier, making it a good option for smaller websites or those without a lot of technical expertise.

Regardless of the method you choose, it’s important to ensure that your website is fully backed up before migrating to avoid any potential data loss or other issues. Additionally, it’s a good idea to test your website thoroughly after the migration to ensure everything is working as expected.

How to Migrate Your WordPress Site Manually

It is advisable to have an understanding of the WordPress migration process, even if you are utilizing a plugin for the migration of your website. Following the steps for migrating a WordPress website manually from one host to another.

Step 1: Set up your new host

Selecting a trustworthy website host is essential. You can opt for a reputable shared hosting provider or choose to have your own server based on your needs. Shared hosting includes all necessary web hosting tools and software already installed, while for VPS or Dedicated servers, you will need to install and set up WordPress hosting on the server.

Step 2: Backup your website files and database
Before starting the migration process, it’s important to make a backup of your website files and database. This will ensure that you have a copy of your website in case anything goes wrong during the migration process.

To create a backup of your website, you can use a plugin like UpdraftPlus or manually download your website files via FTP or file manager, and your database using phpMyAdmin. If you possess SSH access to the host, you can also utilize zip or tar to compile the files and download them. Furthermore, you can utilize the mysqldump command to create backups of your database.

Step 3: Transfer your website files

After setting up your new host, you can transfer your website files from your old host to your new host. To do this, connect to your old host using an FTP client and download your website files. Then, connect to your new host using the same FTP client and upload your website files to the appropriate folder.

Step 4: import your database

Next, you’ll need to export your website database from your old host and import it into your new host. To do this, log in to your new host’s phpMyAdmin, select your new database, and choose the “Import” option. Upload the exported database file from your computer and import it into your new database. If you have SSH access to the new host, then you may use “mysql” command line utility to import the database backup sql files.

Step 5: Update your website configuration

After transferring your website files and database, you’ll need to update your website configuration to point to your new host. To do this, open your wp-config.php file on your new host and update the database settings with your new database name, username, and password. Here are the three lines you’ll normally need to update:

define(‘DB_NAME, ‘db_name’);
define(‘DB_USER, ‘db_user’);
define(‘DB_PASSWORD, ‘db_pass’);

If your new databases are hosted on another host, you will have to update the “DB_HOST” section also.

If you are changing the WordPress domain url, you may also need to update your website URLs in your WordPress database using a tool such as the Better Search Replace plugin. This will ensure that your website links and URLs are updated to point to your new host.

Step 6: Test your website and Change DNS.

Finally, you’ll need to make sure your Domain Name Server (DNS) is pointed toward the correct host. It’s important to test your website on your new host to ensure everything is working correctly. Check your website’s pages, posts, media files, and any other features make sure they’re all functioning properly.

If you encounter any issues, refer to your backup files and try to troubleshoot the issue. Once you’ve confirmed that everything is working correctly, you can cancel your old hosting account.

How to Migrate Your WordPress Site With a Plugin

Using a migration plugin can save you a significant amount of time and effort, as it automates many of the technical steps involved in migrating your site. With a good migration plugin, you can quickly and easily move your entire website to a new server or domain without worrying about the complexities of manually transferring files and databases.

Overall, migrating a WordPress site can be a complex process, but with the right preparation and tools, you can ensure a successful migration that keeps your website running smoothly and securely.

Step 1: Choose a migration plugin

There are many migration plugins available for WordPress, both free and paid. Some of the popular ones include Duplicator, All-in-One WP Migration, and WPvivid Backup Plugin. For this tutorial, we’ll be using the All-in-One WP Migration plugin.

Step 2: Install the plugin

To install the All-in-One WP Migration plugin, log in to your WordPress dashboard and go to Plugins > Add New. Search for “All-in-One WP Migration”, install and activate the plugin.

Step 3: Export your WordPress site

Once you’ve installed and activated the plugin, go to All-in-One WP Migration > Export. This will create a backup of your WordPress site, including all your posts, pages, media files, plugins, themes, and the database. The backup will be saved as a downloadable file.

Step 4: Import your WordPress site

Next, you install fresh WordPress on your new hosting provider. You’ll need to import the backup file to your new WordPress site. Install and activate the All-in-One WP Migration plugin on your new site, and go to All-in-One WP Migration > Import. Upload the backup file you created in Step 3.

The plugin will then import all the data from the backup file, including the database, plugins, themes, posts, pages, and media files. Once the import is complete, you’ll have a fully functional WordPress site on your new server.

Step 5: Update your website URL

After migrating your WordPress site, you’ll need to update your website URL to reflect your new domain. Go to Settings > General in your WordPress dashboard and update the WordPress Address (URL) and Site Address (URL) fields to your new domain.

Step 6: Test your website

Finally, test your website to make sure everything is working properly. Check all the pages and posts, and make sure all the links are working. You may also want to check your website’s performance and ensure that it’s running smoothly.

Best plugins for WordPress migration

There are several great migration plugins available for WordPress. Here are some of the most popular ones:

1. Duplicator: Duplicator is a free migration plugin that allows you to backup, transfer, and migrate your WordPress site. It’s easy to use and has a user-friendly interface.

2. All-in-One WP Migration: All-in-One WP Migration is another popular migration plugin that lets you export your entire WordPress site, including the database, plugins, themes, and media files, and import it to a new server or domain.

3. WPvivid Backup Plugin: WPvivid Backup Plugin is a comprehensive backup and migration plugin that allows you to backup and restore your WordPress site, as well as transfer it to a new server or domain.

4. UpdraftPlus: UpdraftPlus is a backup and migration plugin that allows you to backup your WordPress site and transfer it to a new server or domain. It also has a paid version with additional features.

5. Jetpack: Jetpack is a popular WordPress plugin that offers a suite of features, including backup and migration tools. It’s an all-in-one solution that includes security, performance, and marketing tools, making it a great choice for website owners who want an all-in-one solution.

These are just a few examples of the many great migration plugins available for WordPress. The best migration plugin for you will depend on your specific needs and budget. It’s always a good idea to research different plugins and read reviews before choosing one to ensure it meets your requirements.

In summary, migrating a WordPress site from one host to another can be necessary for a variety of reasons, such as poor website performance or unreliable hosting. There are two primary methods for migrating a WordPress site: manual migration and plugin migration. Manual migration is preferred for larger or more complex sites, while plugin migration is usually faster and easier for smaller sites or those without a lot of technical expertise. Regardless of the method chosen, it’s important to backup the website fully before migrating and to thoroughly test the website after the migration to ensure everything is working as expected. With the right preparation and tools, a successful migration can ensure a website runs smoothly and securely on a new host.

How to remove or compress huge MySQL general and query log table

By wahab

On June 6, 2018

In Cpanel and WHM, Linux server, Plesk

How to remove or compress huge MySQL general and query log table

If you have enabled MySQL general or slow logging, it can create quite big log, depending upon your MySQL usage/queries.
So we may have to periodically clear them to save space.

Please note that MySQL can save logs to either table or files. This document assumes you are using table as log output.

Files: slow_log.CSV and general_log.CSV (The location and the name of the file can be different)

By default, logging is to CSF file.

MYSQL supports run time clearing of these logs. So no need to restart the MySQL service.
Never delete the CSV file directly. It can crash MySQL.

Slow query log

SET GLOBAL slow_query_log='OFF';
DROP TABLE IF EXISTS slow_log2;
CREATE TABLE slow_log2 LIKE slow_log;
RENAME TABLE slow_log TO slow_log_backup, slow_log2 TO slow_log;
gzip /var/db/mysql/mysql/slow_log_backup.CSV 
DROP TABLE  slow_log_backup;
SET GLOBAL slow_query_log = 'ON';

General log

USE mysql;
SET GLOBAL general_log = 'OFF';
DROP TABLE IF EXISTS general_log2;
CREATE TABLE general_log2 LIKE general_log;
RENAME TABLE general_log TO general_log_backup, general_log2 TO general_log;
gzip /var/db/mysql/mysql/general_log_backup.CSV 
DROP TABLE  general_log_backup;

What we did is create new log table, move current log file to a backup copy and compress the backup and remove it.

Password protect phpMyAdmin through CentOS Web panel(CWP)

By wahab

On May 16, 2018

In Linux server

phpMyAdmin is installed with CentOS Web Panel. By default, it is not protected and there is only MySQL user authentication. This can put your server vulnerable. So it is recommended to add additional layer protection.

phpMyAdmin is available through the following url in a CWP based server.

http:/hostname/phpmyadmin
http:/hostname:2030/pma

CWP panel runs its core services through its own version of Nginx. So normal htaccess based password protection will not work.

Create the Password File

You can do this by using the OpenSSL utilities that may already be available on your server. Alternatively, you can use the purpose-made htpasswd utility included in the apache2-utils package(Debian/ubuntu) or httpd-tools(Redhat/Centos).

Using OpenSSL Utilities

We will create a hidden file called .pma_pass /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services/ folder. You can use any username. I am using dbadmin here as an example

sudo sh -c "echo -n 'dbadmin:' >> /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services/.pma_pass"

Next, add an encrypted password entry for the username by typing:

sudo sh -c "openssl passwd -apr1 >> /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services/.pma_pass"

Using Apache Utilities

This tool is already installed and available on all CWP servers.

/usr/local/apache/bin/htpasswd -c /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services/.pma_pass dbadmin

Configure Nginx Password Authentication

We will need to configure Nginx to read this file before serving our protected content.
CWP Service Nginx configuration file: /usr/local/cwpsrv/conf/cwp_services.conf

Open the above file add the following to the location block of phpMyAdmin.

auth_basic “Admin Login”;
auth_basic_user_file /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services/pma_pass;

So the full block should look like this now.

location /pma {
    root /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services;
    index  index.html index.htm index.php;
    ModSecurityEnabled off;
    ModSecurityConfig /usr/local/cwpsrv/conf/security/conf/pma_rules.conf;

    location ~ \.php$ {
        try_files $uri =404;
        fastcgi_split_path_info ^(.+\.php)(/.+)$;
        fastcgi_read_timeout 600;
        fastcgi_pass    unix:/usr/local/cwp/php71/var/sockets/cwpsvc.sock;
        fastcgi_index   index.php;
        fastcgi_param   SCRIPT_FILENAME  $document_root$fastcgi_script_name;
        fastcgi_param   SCRIPT_NAME   $fastcgi_script_name;
        include                 fastcgi_params;
    }

    location ~* \.(js|css|png|jpg|jpeg|gif|ico)$ {
        access_log    off;
        log_not_found    off;
        expires 1M;
    }

       auth_basic "Admin Login";
       auth_basic_user_file /usr/local/cwpsrv/var/services/.pma_pass;
}

Restart CWP nginx service by below commands

systemctl restart cwpsrv.service

Confirm the Password Authentication

To confirm that your content is protected, try to access your restricted content in a web browser. You should be presented with a username and password prompt

How to block Outgoing Port 25 for all VPS/Containers of SolusVM

By wahab

On December 5, 2017

In Linux server

How to block Outgoing Port 25 for all VPS/Containers of SolusVM(Both OpenVZ/KVM)

Sometimes,when providing VPS service, it is necessary to block mailing service for VPS. Otherwise your IP ranges will be blocked by RBLs and other common mail providers like Gmail, Hotmail, AOL, etc. It is recommended to open ports by case by case for your customers, after establishing trust with your client.

Normally we block the port using the “OUTPUT” chain. However, SolusVM uses the chain “FORWARD” for routing traffic from containers/VPSs.

So by adding following rules, you can block all outgoing mails ports completely for all VPSs.
iptables -I FORWARD -d 0.0.0.0/0 -p tcp -m tcp --dport 25 -j DROP iptables -I FORWARD -d 0.0.0.0/0 -p tcp -m tcp --dport 465 -j DROP iptables -I FORWARD -d 0.0.0.0/0 -p tcp -m tcp --dport 587 -j DROP

Then save the iptables by running

service iptables save

NRPE installation Ubuntu

By wahab

On March 18, 2017

In Linux server, Nagios

NRPE installation installation Ubuntu

Tested: Ubuntu 14.04 64 bit

#Install necessary packages
apt-get install gettext autoconf gcc libc6 libmcrypt-dev make libssl-dev wget automake libtool bc gawk dc build-essential snmp libnet-snmp-perl

#Add icinga user and group
groupadd -g 9000 icinga useradd -u 9000 -g icinga -d /usr/local/nagios -c "Nagios NRPE" icinga

# Install latest NRPE

cd /usr/local/src/ wget --no-check-certificate -O nrpe.tar.gz https://github.com/NagiosEnterprises/nrpe/archive/nrpe-3.2.0.tar.gz tar xvf nrpe.tar.gz cd nrpe-nrpe-3.2.0 ./tools/setup ./configure --enable-command-args --with-ssl-lib=/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/ --with-nrpe-user=icinga --with-nrpe-group=icinga --with-nagios-user=icinga --with-nagios-group=icinga #Ubuntu x86_x64 #For Ubuntu i386 #./configure --enable-command-args --with-ssl-lib=/usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/ --with-nrpe-user=icinga --with-nrpe-group=icinga --with-nagios-user=icinga --with-nagios-group=icinga make all make install make install-config

#Update Services File
echo “Adding nrpe to running services”
echo “nrpe 5666/tcp # Nagios NRPE” >>/etc/services

#Install Service / Daemon make install-init #Ubuntu 13.x / 14.x

#systemctl enable nrpe.service #Ubuntu 15.x / 16.x / 17.x

#Open the incoming TCP port 5666 on your firewall. You will have to do this using firewall software, like firewall ufw.

#Update Configuration File The file nrpe.cfg is where the following settings will be defined. It is located:

/usr/local/nagios/etc/nrpe.cfg

allowed_hosts=

At this point NRPE will only listen to requests from itself (127.0.0.1). If you wanted your nagios server to be able to connect, add it's IP address after a comma (in this example it's 10.25.5.2):

allowed_hosts=127.0.0.1,10.25.5.2

The following commands make the configuration changes described above.

sudo sh -c "sed -i '/^allowed_hosts=/s/$/,10.25.5.2/' /usr/local/nagios/etc/nrpe.cfg" sudo sh -c "sed -i 's/^dont_blame_nrpe=.*/dont_blame_nrpe=1/g' /usr/local/nagios/etc/nrpe.cfg"

#Start Service / Daemon

Different Linux distributions have different methods of starting NRPE.

Ubuntu 13.x / 14.x

sudo start nrpe

Ubuntu 15.x / 16.x / 17.x

sudo systemctl start nrpe.service

Test NRPE

Now check that NRPE is listening and responding to requests.

/usr/local/nagios/libexec/check_nrpe -H 127.0.0.1

You should see the output similar to the following:
NRPE v3.2.0

If you get the NRPE version number (as shown above), NRPE is installed and configured correctly.

You can also test from your Nagios host by executing the same command above, but instead of 127.0.0.1 you will need to replace that with the IP Address / DNS name of the machine with NRPE running.

Service / Daemon Commands

Different Linux distributions have different methods of starting / stopping / restarting / status NRPE.

Ubuntu 13.x / 14.x

sudo start nrpe sudo stop nrpe sudo restart nrpe sudo status nrpe

Ubuntu 15.x / 16.x / 17.x

sudo systemctl start nrpe.service
sudo systemctl stop nrpe.service
sudo systemctl restart nrpe.service
sudo systemctl status nrpe.service

Installing The Nagios Plugins

NRPE needs plugins to monitor different parameters. T

#Install Latest Nagios plugins

cd /usr/local/src/ wget --no-check-certificate -O nagios-plugins.tar.gz https://github.com/nagios-plugins/nagios-plugins/archive/release-2.2.1.tar.gz tar zxf nagios-plugins.tar.gz cd nagios-plugins-release-2.2.1/ ./tools/setup ./configure --enable-perl-modules make make install

#Test NRPE + Plugins

Using the check_load command to test NRPE:
/usr/local/nagios/libexec/check_nrpe -H 127.0.0.1 -c check_load

You should see the output similar to the following: OK - load average: 0.01, 0.13, 0.12|load1=0.010;15.000;30.000;0; load5=0.130;10.000;25.000;0; load15=0.120;5.000;20.000;0;

You can also test from your Nagios host by executing the same command above, but instead of 127.0.0.1 you will need to replace that with the IP Address / DNS name of the machine with NRPE running.

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NRPE installation Ubuntu