Hosting and Deploying your Headless WordPress Website

Modern websites are being developed using the decoupled approach with Static Site Generators like Gatsby and headless CMS like headless WordPress. Similarly, they are deployed differently and hosted via modern technology and serverless architecture.

Time and again we have talked about building a website using a modern stack, its benefits, and processes. We also have mentioned Netlify and Vercel during our discussions, but we will be elaborating on headless WordPress hosting and deployment in this article. 

Just to remind you, the Decoupled approach is a modern web development architecture wherein the frontend is separated from the backend using the APIs and this microservice architecture greatly improves the performance. When you refer to the headless CMS website, you are mentioning a static site generator for frontends like Gatsby, NextJS, etc, headless CMS like headless WordPress, Contentful, etc, and GraphQL APIs. 

Hosting Solutions for Headless WordPress

The options of headless WP website hosting use the serverless concept which is an architecture or a system of managing websites and web apps without infrastructure administration.           

This is being dependent upon the third-party cloud-hosted services, like Google Cloud, AWS, etc. The hosts carry out all server management.

CDNs Vs other Hosting Solutions

Web hosting is used to host your website on a server and let users access it over the internet. A content delivery network(CDN) is speeding up the access/delivery of your website's assets to those users.

Traditional web hosting would deliver 100% of your content to the user. If they're set across the planet, the user still should sit up for the information to be retrieved from wherever your web server is found. A CDN takes a majority of your static and dynamic content and serves it from across the world, decreasing transfer times. Most times, the nearer the CDN server is to the net traveler, the quicker assets can load for them.

Web hosting usually refers to a server while on the other hand, a content delivery network refers to a worldwide network of servers that distributes your content from a multi-host atmosphere.

This difference offers several services and basis on the serverless concept that is cost-efficient and more productive for application deployment. The hosting service providers are now moving to the serverless concept and implementing the CDN concept. 

Some of the most trending CDNs that have been preferred by several modern stack web development agencies and platforms 

Netlify

Netlify is the most famous and commonly known name in the modern stack development industry by being a cloud computing company that provides hosting and serverless backend services for static websites. The greatest benefit of using Netlify for a headless CMS website is that it excludes the hustle of managing the infrastructure, authorizing you and your team to specialize in secret writing. Another major reason for using Netlify is that it offers free hosting until you grow, you can say for a year.  

Netlify works by connecting to your GitHub repository to pull your text file, then it usually runs a build method to pre-render all of your pages in a static HTML file. Netlify creates its own repository that pushes each to a Github repository and its own microservices.

Vercel

Vercel is also a cloud platform for static front-ends and serverless functions just as needed in modern web development products. It is a worldwide preparation network designed on high of all existing cloud service providers.

Basically, it authorizes you to write down code in your most popular language or framework and Vercel is capable of reworking your code into static files or serverless functions. advantages square measure obvious i.e. hosting with instant deploy, token to none configuration, and skill to scale automatically.

They have also declared one command to run it all on localhost currently dev permitting you to run a neighborhood development surroundings. Just as the primary choice is higher than, Vercel too offers an incredible free tier setup.

​Vercel can be referred to as a preparation and collaboration platform for frontend developers. ... ​Vercel allows developers to host applications and websites and web services that deploy instantly and scale mechanically – all with no configuration. 

AWS

AWS (Amazon internet Services) could be a cloud service supplier that provides developers opportunities to create just about something they'll imagine within the cloud.

Though their services extend on the far side the likes of machine learning and computing, we’re about to persist with the entry-level services for the aim of this guide that may permit the North American nation to simply host an HTML website.

Traditional build of headless WP website 

A typical headless WordPress website you’ll have to be compelled to use; 

• A JavaScript framework of your alternative.
• A static website generator. Associate in SSG could be a tool that builds static hypertext mark-up language pages out of the input content, whether or not it’s taken from a CMS or an inherent guide. There’s a large variety of SSGs appropriate for nearly any programing language like Gatsby, Next, etc
• A Headless CMS. They function as your content keepers. The amazing factor regarding headless CMSs is that they decouple content management from your front end. You just will deliver your content on the far side websites and apps and repurpose it from many various frontends.

Installation 

Now that you’ve started developing, the terminal goes to be your supporter. There'll be user interface choices, however, familiarity with the terminal can prevent headaches and brokenheartedness in each short and long-standing time. operating within the command may be discouraging. 

Build 

Most of the JAM stack-friendly apps area unit engineered with one amongst 3 tools: NodeJS, Ruby, or Python.

Then version management systems like Git are used as repository systems for building and deploying the application. Git permits multiple folks to contribute changes to files or comes by the pursuit of completely different versions, scrutiny changes, and permitting individual developers to propose changes while not breaking things via pull requests.

Deployment and hosting

Netlify is the best choice for hosting you'll be able to create. Connect to your crumb repo, and any time you push changes, we’ll build your website. Currently, you don’t get to worry concerning hours-long setup, you'll be able to simply specialize in building the things that are necessary to you, and we’ll look out for the remainder.

Stackground build of headless WordPress website

Does all this sound complicated? Do you believe you are not technical enough to create and manage your own headless CMS website?  There are several agencies that are working for non-technical people to manage and build a modern stack website using static site generators and headless CMS using REST APIs. While Stackground is a platform that has developed pre-built templates for modern website lovers. 

Installation

Saving you from the most technical and tricky job of installation of the website template, the environment, and connecting the necessary tools for website management. Since stackground is using headless WordPress as their preferred backend platform hence, WP needs to be installed for setting up the pre-built website template using Gatsby or NextJS as a front-end static site generator.  

Publishing

The headless CMS websites are published using a CDN like Netlify or vercel. Stackground is also preferring Netlify, Gatsby Cloud, and vercel, however, if you have any specifications on the hosting service providers you can use your own and still get things installed. 

Publishing a decoupled website has become as easy as a traditional WP website using pre-built headless WordPress templates. A hassle-free modern deployment and publishing of the website have been developed using no-code technology so that anyone can create a website using headless WordPress and Gatsby or Next.