Object Cache can be described as the caching of data that is initially retrieved from the database. For example, your site's title on the index page or an article remains the same as long as there are no updates. When a visitor accesses your site, this title is constantly retrieved from the database, resulting in additional processing and load, even for a simple query. This can cause performance issues, especially for sites with 100 or more concurrent visitors.

So, how can you protect your site from this issue? If you're using WordPress as your infrastructure, it can be challenging. However, there is good news for WordPress users, as you can use the APCU Object Cache to handle caching. In this regard, you might wonder why site owners who already use Redis or Memcache would consider using APCU, and I'd like to address that as well.

Configurations like Redis and Memcache are preferred on dedicated servers, but many hosting providers avoid them on shared hosting due to their high resource usage and potential drawbacks.

APCU, on the other hand, is a simpler solution that can still make a noticeable difference. We can provide some graphics and data from our own site to support this. To activate APCU, you need to ask your hosting provider to enable the APCU module and, additionally, the Memcache and Memcached modules. APCU relies on Memcache modules because it's a derivative of Memcache.

It's important not to confuse PHP's module with Memcache and Redis applications. The PHP module simply provides the necessary libraries for these applications to be used. Understanding the difference is essential.

So, when you activate APCU, how do you use it? Firstly, it's important to note that when you activate APCU in WordPress, it won't be used directly. You need to add the "define('WP_CACHE', true)" command in your wp-config.php file. Once this is done, WordPress will start caching.

To fully support this, you have two options. If you're using LiteSpeed Cache to keep your pages in cache, you'll need to install their APCU Manager plugin to use APCU for caching.

Alternatively, if you're using the W3 Total Cache plugin, you're in luck. This plugin directly supports the APCU module and application in the database cache settings. It's worth mentioning that in some translations and plugins, this is referred to as Object Caching.

Now, what kind of results can you expect from using APCU? We'll show you the difference in page load times between having Object Cache and not having it.

Without Object Cache, our site had an average page load time of 2.2 seconds in the best-case scenario. This is a relatively short time, and it's partly because we use Turhost infrastructure. However, with Object Cache, this time decreased to approximately 1 second, providing our site with faster response times and quicker page load speeds.

If your site is an e-commerce site with a constant stream of visitors, this is a highly recommended feature. Constant requests are sent to the database due to the high number of visitors, potentially slowing down your site and negatively impacting your visitors. By implementing these improvements yourself, you can enhance and speed up your site.

Even without extensive knowledge of this subject, you can simply follow the steps to set up the caching. Once the process is complete, you'll notice the rapid response on your site. If you're not seeing the desired performance improvements on your site, it might be because your site doesn't actually need this feature. If it has no additional impact on your site, you can choose not to use it and revisit it later.

In our tests, on a shared hosting package that can support up to 1000 concurrent visitors, we achieved an increase of up to 1600 visitors without any significant slowdown compared to the previous limit of 1000. This feature allows you to provide a better experience for your visitors or customers, especially on e-commerce sites with constant traffic.

If you're not satisfied with your current hosting package, we highly recommend using the Turhost company. Their recent technological advancements and server configurations enable high performance on shared servers. Subsequently, you can easily monitor the increase in visitors and traffic on your site.

By implementing these changes on your site, you can reduce resource consumption and host your site at a lower cost without upgrading to higher packages. As your visitor count grows significantly, you can consider capacity expansion by exploring different alternatives.

By sharing this information, you can help other webmasters learn and contribute to the growth of knowledge in the community.