Web Server Settings

In your website’s web server settings, you can configure options related to the PHP version and nonexistent assets on your site. This guide will explain each setting you can use to fine-tune how the web server runs your website.

Access your web server settings

To access the web server settings:

1. Visit your site’s wp-admin dashboard and navigate to Hosting → Overview (or Settings → Hosting Configuration if using the default interface style).
2. Click the Setting tab.
3. Click Server in the sidebar.

WordPress version

Websites hosted on WordPress.com always run the latest version of WordPress automatically, so you never need to handle updates yourself.

You can try the beta version of the next release (if available) on a staging site. Follow the steps here to try a beta version of WordPress on a staging site.

PHP version

PHP is the programming language that primarily powers WordPress. Newer versions of PHP often come with performance improvements that make your site more speedy. Older versions of PHP stop receiving security updates.

WordPress.com strives to ensure sites have access to the latest compatible versions of PHP. The versions we currently support can be found by visiting the PHP environment support page.

You don’t need to switch your PHP version. In the event an update to your site’s PHP version is required, this will happen automatically. However, it’s possible that a plugin or theme might require a newer version of PHP. Therefore, we provide the option for you to change the PHP version your site uses.

We always recommend using the latest stable version of PHP for the best performance and security. However, some older or poorly maintained plugins and themes may not be compatible with the latest version, which can lead to unexpected errors or functionality issues.

If you change your PHP version and find that it causes issues, you can return to the previous version while we still support it. Still, we recommend contacting the plugin or theme developer to ensure they will update their PHP version support in the future, as the plugin may become fully incompatible otherwise.

There may be issues if a plugin or theme is not updated to work with the recommended PHP version. In this case, we recommend you downgrade your PHP version to the previous version, resolving the immediate issue. Then, reach out to the developer of the plugin or theme that isn’t working to let them know they need to update their plugin/theme for the current PHP version so you can upgrade to the recommended version as soon as possible.

Handling requests for nonexistent assets

This setting allows you to specify how requests for assets (like images, fonts, JavaScript, and CSS files) are treated when a requested resource no longer exists on your website.

There are 3 options to choose from:

• Default: Use the setting the platform has decided as the best option.
• Sent a lightweight File-Not-Found page: Let the server handle static file 404 requests. This option is more performant than the others because it doesn’t load the WordPress core code when handling nonexistent assets.
• Delegate request to WordPress: Let WordPress handle static file 404 requests.

Defensive mode

WordPress.com offers a built-in “defensive mode” feature to protect your site from spam bots and DDoS attacks. The feature is powered by our global edge network, but it can still be enabled independently of our global edge cache feature. 

You can learn more about Defensive Mode on its dedicated documentation page.

Downtime monitoring

WordPress.com includes downtime monitoring powered by Jetpack. It continuously checks your site and alerts you as soon as any downtime is detected. You can customize your notification preferences on the Server settings page.

You can learn more about Downtime Monitoring on its dedicated documentation page.