ScalaHosting has been using the LiteSpeed web server (LSWS) for quite some time. LiteSpeed is a proprietary web server solution dating back to 2003. Later releases have established LSWS as one of the fastest options on the market. An April 2020 survey by W3Techs put LiteSpeed firmly in the top 5, powering over 6.4% of online websites.
Unlike similar web server solutions, like Apache, for example, LiteSpeed does not come for free. Still, when you take into account all the performance benefits, it might be a cost well worth it.
Both cPanel and ScalaHosting’s SPanel fully support LSWS, which means that speeding up your website might be easier than you think.
But enough small talk – you are here for the facts. Let’s check the top 5 reasons why LiteSpeed might be a great replacement for Apache and other web servers.
1. LiteSpeed is a drop-in replacement of Apache
If you have Apache running on your web servers and want to boost your speeds, that’s very easy to do with the LiteSpeed web server. It is a drop-in replacement of Apache and is 100% compatible with the popular hosting solution. This means anything that works under Apache will work under your LSWS as well.
The transition is smooth and easy. There are no changes to your .htaccess or httpd.conf files. The switch to LiteSpeed web server takes no more than a few minutes, including all the re-configuration and setup.
If you are utilizing cPanel/WHM, there is even a free plugin you can use to administrate LiteSpeed from a graphic interface.
2. The LiteSpeed Web Server increases performance
LiteSpeed works very well when serving busy web sites, pages that accumulate thousands of visitors per second. The great thing is that it happens with minimal hardware resources such as memory and CPU.
Hands down, LiteSpeed serves static content faster than any other web server. It increases PHP performance due to its custom PHP LSAPI.
For example, if you have a busy WordPress website on a VPS Hosting Server, LiteSpeed can be a great helper. If you make a switch from Apache to LSWS, you will see your server load drop immediately, sometimes even up to 10 times.
Don’t believe it?
We could not believe it either until we saw it with our own eyes. ScalaHosting has been hosting a number of very busy websites for years, and once they made a switch to a LiteSpeed VPS server, they were able to accommodate 30%+ more visitors without losing out on performance.
3. LiteSpeed Web Server will increase security
There are some great security benefits of LSWS as well.
First of all, since it is 100% Apache compatible, you can use the mod_security module you normally use to block most of the web attacks. LiteSpeed works with all the known rules without any extra setup needed.
On top of that, LiteSpeed has its own security features that come in handy when your website is under a DoS or DDoS attack. LSWS has built-in anti-DDoS options such as bandwidth and connection throttling. LiteSpeed developers are also admirably quick in addressing DoS attacks. Following one of the most recent attacks, their team released a fix in less than 2 hours.
Naturally, ScalaHosting’s LiteSpeed web servers have been updated right away and currently secure as well.
4. LiteSpeed reduces hardware costs
Sure, LiteSpeed might be a paid solution, but compare the $30-40/mo in licensing fees to the hundreds and thousands of dollars spent in hardware, trying to make your servers fast and reliable enough.
Moreover, LSWS may also reduce your costs for systems administration as it comes with 24/7 technical support. You can always contact the LiteSpeed Team and get immediate assistance when facing issues.
5. Better SEO results and more profit
It’s almost 2021, so it’s not big news that website speed is a major factor involved in client satisfaction. But search engines seem to love fast loading pages just as much.
Google considers over 200 different components when ranking websites, but some still weigh more than others. Although Big G executives like to keep their cards close, speed is one of the factors they have publicly outlined as important.
You can see how LiteSpeed looks like a great option here. Being touted as the fastest web server technology at the moment, there is no better way to ensure optimized speeds and performance.
Conclusion
Websites have different goals, purposes, and target audiences. Whatever the niche, though, every web page can benefit from fast and reliable servers. LiteSpeed can easily replace Apache for many hosting providers and bring great performance and even cost benefits in the long run.
FAQ
Q: Is LiteSpeed better than Apache?
A: Even though it’s based on the technology behind Apache, LiteSpeed has far surpassed it in terms of performance, especially for HTTP/3 content. WordPress, Joomla, and other CMS websites have also seen significantly faster and get more security options. The only thing in favor of Apache is cost, as LSWS comes with a paid license.
Q: What is LiteSpeed Cache?
A: LiteSpeed Cache (or LSCache) is a built-in feature for LiteSpeed web servers. It allows for dynamic content caching and acceleration, an invaluable option as most websites today often serve dynamic elements. LS Cache can be operated through .htaccess rewrite rules.
Q: What is OpenLiteSpeed?
A: LSWS might be a paid server solution, but there is a way to benefit from its optimized performance without spending a dime. OpenLiteSpeed is the open-source version of LiteSpeed, allowing for advanced customizations and great speeds at no added cost.
What Is LiteSpeed Web Server? All You Need To Know
You may have heard of LiteSpeed Web Server or LSWS, which is among the most popular web servers in the world presently. What is a Web server? Web servers are essential and need to be considered by people looking to explore the web, whether it’s a commercial website or e-commerce site, hobby site, or any other. With a Web server, webmasters can manage websites and even design their websites.
Websites are more in control of blogs. The usage of websites is also more efficient and professional for specific needs. There are a variety of web server software programs that are available. Every existing web server has its advantages and drawbacks.
What is LiteSpeed Web Server?
Litespeed Web Server is one of the most popular web server programs worldwide. According to some sources, this server is ranked 4 as the most well-known and chosen web server of the present. LSWS is a product developed by LiteSpeed Technologies, which was released in 2003.
The software uses the same working system that Apache uses since its release is replacing Apache. This is the reason why LSWS is more popular. Websites prior to LSWS don’t need to be changed to achieve the same appearance when using LSWS.
LSWS comes with a control panel which is simpler to use than Apache. It also functions as an alternative to Apache programs and offers an event-driven method to run specific commands.
Utilizing the event-driven method, the format calibration system is not as complex as when you use Apache renowned for its various formats. Additionally, the format is easy to understand and use, even for those who are new to the field.
LiteSpeed Web Server Features
The web server of this company is believed to provide higher and more reliable performance compared to Apache. This server is suitable for utilizing various CMS like Drupal, WordPress, Joomla, and many more.
There are a variety of characteristics that make the performance very satisfactory for its users. Some of the features available:
Apache compatibility
The most prominent and important characteristic highlighted in the LSWS is its compatibility with the Apache webserver. It’s compatible with widely utilized Apache features like mod_rewrite .htaccess document, and mod_security. The web server can be configured to read Apache configuration files directly. It is an alternative to Apache using hosting control panels that replace Apache within just 15 mins. This does not cause any interruption in service. This means that there is no requirement to make any changes to the configuration or any other code that might have an adverse impact. This LSWS completely replaces every Apache function.
Performance and stability increase
The primary benefit that is the main strength of LSWS is its efficiency and stability. The LSWS is a simplified design that relies on events and therefore provides greater performance and stability. It can serve hundreds of clients at once, and it requires less memory and CPU. Most of the time, LSWS serves more users. Also, it’s able to handle spikes in traffic as well as neutralize DDOS attacks without the need for additional hardware. Apache is a process-based system, whereas LSWS is event-driven. This is the major distinction between both. Apache develops new processes to respond to every request, which uses more resources. In contrast, LSWS provides multiple connections through only a handful of processes.
Asynchronous I/O support
The Asynchronous I/O feature handles problems with performance in I/O operation. There are synchronous and asynchronous outputs and inputs. If asynchronous input or output request is sent to an operating system, the writing process is stopped until the writing process is completed before proceeding to the next step. In the case of synchronous input and output, processing continues even after the request is processed and submitted. This allows the user to bypass performance issues that arise from the input/output processes.
The best dynamic content performance
There is a server-side API named LSAPI to be used with the LSWS. It provides the best dynamic content performance optimized for communications between the server and third-party applications. The LSAPI is open source. The LSAPI is compatible with the following scripting languages: PHP, RUBY, and PYTHON.
PHP suEXEC performance
In the PHP, LSAPI 6.0 added a suEXEC Daemon mode. It was designed for hosting environments that share resources. It speeds up and improves PHP processing in a shared hosting environment. As we are aware, suEXEC permits all PHP processes to run under the account’s owner and not as a web server user. It offers high-level security, which means that in case one user on the webserver is compromised, PHP applications running on their accounts won’t be able to run operations on other users’ files. The suEXEC could cause performance issues since it has to start new processes each time. In LSWS, it is possible to use the suEXEC Daemon mode to solve this problem.
It is the suEXEC Daemon mode
The suEXEC Daemon mode protects the security of suEXEC and separates new processes from a continuously running parent process instead of creating a new process. Therefore, the performance of the process is not affected.
3 different PHP suEXEC configurations meet different requirements and capabilities
The LSWS provides three PHP suEXEC configurations to meet different needs. The three configurations and their descriptions are provided below.
suEXEC Worker
This is the typical suEXEC PHP that uses LSAPI. It can create new processes as required. This configuration is ideal for hosting shared environments with only a few resources and require the creation of custom php.ini files.
suEXEC Daemon
In this scenario, the processes are forked from a parent process rather than creating a new process. This is a configuration intended for shared hosting environments which do not require customized php.ini files.
suEXEC Process Group
This configuration is ideal for hosting shared environments that want to make use of extra RAM for more efficient opcode caching and consequently more efficient PHP performance. Each user account has its own process group in this setup, which has a continually running parent process that can fork child processes as required.
Event-Driven Architecture (EDA)
The event-driven architectural pattern is a software architecture pattern. It encourages the creation and consumption, detection, and reactions to events. A term used to describe an event is a change in status. When you open the latest email you receive in your inbox, its status changes from ‘Unread’ and ‘Read.’ This is referred to as an event. An event-driven architecture is composed of event creators as well as event users. It is the creator who acts as the creator and the cause of an event. The creator only knows about the happening of an event. The customers are the ones who must be aware that the event took place.
Security for servers is improved
The LSWS can improve the server’s security over Apache. LiteSpeed Web Server can be used with mod_security, and it includes a range of anti-DDoS built-in (Distributed Denial-of-Service) capabilities. This LSWS is also compatible with Atomicorp’s Realtime ModSecurity rules and Atomic Secured Linux. Security updates are made whenever new threats are discovered.
The LSWS helps reduce hardware and support costs
The LSWS lowers support and hardware costs since the software’s licensing cost is lower than the hardware expense needed to upgrade a server using Apache to achieve similar results. Support costs are also reduced by changing to LSWS. CPanel also is supported by LSWS.
Advantages of LiteSpeed Web Server
There are many benefits users will gain by making use of this server. In summary, here are a few advantages to be considered:
The hardware needed isn’t too large
This is due to lighter and more efficient resources that are employed. Due to fewer hardware requirements, naturally, the costs for web-based requirements can be reduced and concentrated on other requirements on the site.
Easy to master
The server is based on the standard Apache format, but also the control panel is very simple to use. The interface is simpler to identify in terms of design, and panel functions will be remembered more quickly than using Apache.
Offer excellent customer service and a community
If you are having issues working with problems with the LiteSpeed website server, the customer support representative can reach out to you to get the necessary information. The support provided is quick and efficient and is right on target.
If you find your customer Support difficult to reach, there are a variety of LSWS communities that are the ideal solution.
Transactions are more straightforward than Apache format
As mentioned earlier, the simplicity of the transition process is the primary purpose of this LSWS release. It allows users to use panels and other software features without any hassle of converting the formats already in use. Some users experience a smooth transition after 15 minutes of switching from Apache.
More guaranteed safety quality
The LSWS you’ve decided to install earlier is equipped with a specific LiteSpeed Security Mode. It’s not difficult to include modifications to prevent DDos or connection speed throttling. This is essential for the user’s convenience.
Utilizing LiteSpeed as a web server could be a viable alternative for those who are unable to create a website in Apache. The only issue is that in order to use this type of server, you must spend a significant amount of money compared to Apache.
LiteSpeed Web Server Pricing
LiteSpeed Web Server can be classified into two categories of Web Host. Each package includes a domain limit, amount of workers, as well as RAM limit. The limit for domains differs by package. However, subdomains are not limited. The error 403 results due to an over-limit within the limit specified.
The number of employees indicates the number of processes that the general server work will generate. RAM limit, similar to the Domain limit, is different for each package. Any overage could cause an error in the system.
A free trial of 15 days known as Free Starter is available for those who would like to test the features of LiteSpeed prior to fully obtaining a license. The package comes with one domain and one Worker and two GB of memory and LSCache.
Site owner’s package
There are two kinds of Site Owner plans. The first is the Site Owner, which costs just $10 per month. It gives the ability to access five domains, a worker, and a maximum of 8GB of memory and LSCache.
The other can be Site Owner Plus, which offers everything Site Owner offers and unlimited memory. It costs $16 per month.
Conclusion
LiteSpeed Web Server can be described as an effective alternative to Apache giving Apache users, web hosts, database administrators, and developers speedier and more efficient web hosting features and functions. The security feature effectively protects users and WordPress hosting hosts from cyberattacks since it can detect dangers before they get into the servers. The program is easy on your pocket thanks to its support staff available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
