Forem: Serhii Kolodych

Nginx Configuration Guide: From Zero to Production Ready 🚀

Serhii Kolodych — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 11:07:22 +0000

Just updated a comprehensive guide on nginx performance optimization and best practices! Here's what you'll learn:

🗂️ Complete Roadmap

Infrastructure (Step 1)

nginx sizing guide: minimum requirements, VPS selection criteria, budget hosting recommendations

Core Setup (Step 2)

nginx installation, nginx.conf optimization (worker_connections, SSL protocols, gzip, logging)

Virtual Hosts (Step 3)

nginx domain configuration: server blocks, SSL/TLS setup, HTTP/2, redirects (www, IPv4/IPv6)

Upload Handling (Step 3*)

client_max_body_size configuration for file uploads

Performance Layer (Step 4)

.htaccess: compression, cache control, security headers, HSTS

SEO Layer (Steps 5-6)

robots.txt and sitemap.xml configuration

📊 Performance Metrics

nginx market share data (18.98%)
FAQ section answering common nginx questions
nginx best practices for security
nginx performance optimization strategies
Copy-paste ready configuration files

Read the technical guide →

Includes FAQ and real nginx config examples! 💻

Finally. Common sense. Commits are noise, not signal. Real work often leaves no public trace.

Serhii Kolodych — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 08:45:17 +0000

Your GitHub Contribution Graph Means Absolutely Nothing - And Here’s Why

Sylwia Laskowska ・ Jan 13

#github #discuss #programming

This kind of content is what WordPress documentation lacks.

Serhii Kolodych — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 13:47:54 +0000

Navin Rao ✍️

Nov 11 '25

WordPress Common Errors (And How to Fix Them Like a Pro) ⚠️

#help #wordpress #troubleshooting #webdev

Comments 3

5 min read

Looking forward to participating and seeing useful projects of others

Serhii Kolodych — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 13:46:54 +0000

Jess Lee for The DEV Team

Dec 3 '25

DEV's Worldwide Show and Tell Challenge Presented by Mux: Pitch Your Projects! $3,000 in Prizes. 🎥

#showdev #devchallenge #muxchallenge #webdev

213

Comments 61

4 min read

Your WordPress Site Will Fail. Be Ready.

Serhii Kolodych — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 12:50:20 +0000

After losing two weeks of work to a crash, I spent years perfecting my backup strategy. Here's everything I learned managing 10+ client sites.

Why I'm Writing This

Three years ago, I lost two weeks of work because I trusted backups I never tested. The panic, the scrambling, the realization that my "backup solution" was just an empty promise — I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

Since then, I've done 20+ website restorations, tested every major backup plugin, and built a system that works so well I actually sleep at night. I documented the complete process on my site, but wanted to share it here with the Dev.to community too.

Because if there's one thing I've learned: hope is not a backup strategy.

Website Crashes Are Normal

Updates fail. Plugins conflict. Servers go down. Themes break layouts. Hackers exploit weak spots.

You do not control when this happens. You control how fast you recover.

Most site owners panic. They search logs. They contact hosting. They wait. Hours pass. Sometimes days. Without backups, recovery becomes guesswork.

A backup removes fear. It turns a crash into a routine task. Restore. Check. Move on.

The WordPress Backup Plugin Solution

While there are many backup plugins available, not all are created equal. Some are lightweight and reliable, while others can slow down your site or cause conflicts.

I've tried them all: UpdraftPlus, Backuply, Jetpack, BackWPup, WPvivid, Duplicator, All-in-One WP Migration.

After 20+ website restorations, WPvivid is my choice. It strikes the perfect balance between comprehensive protection and ease of use, without the complexity that makes you need a computer science degree to configure it properly.

What WPvivid Can Do For You

✅ Full website backups
✅ Database-only backups
✅ Files-only backups
✅ Manual backups on demand
✅ Automatic scheduled backups
✅ One-click restore
✅ Website migration
✅ Staging site creation
✅ Remote storage support (Google Drive, Dropbox, Microsoft OneDrive, Amazon S3, FTP, SFTP)
✅ Backup splitting for large sites
✅ Incremental backups in Pro version

Your First Backup with WPvivid

Here's the critical part most tutorials skip: you need to verify that it works correctly for YOUR specific setup.

Every website is unique — different themes, plugins, hosting environments and configurations. Backups mean nothing if restore fails.

Never trust blindly — test once, then relax.

Step 1: Create Your First Backup

Install and activate WPvivid plugin
Open WPvivid Backup in WordPress, tab "Backup & Restore"
Choose "Database + Files"
Choose "Save to Local"
Click "Backup Now"
Wait for the backup to complete
Reload the page, click "Scan uploaded backup or received backup", then click "Download"

Congratulations! You have your first backup. But we're not done yet.

Testing the Restore Process (THE MOST IMPORTANT PART)

This is where most people stop. Don't be most people.

Step 2: Test on a Blank WordPress Site

Create a blank test WordPress site (use a subdomain or local environment)
Install and activate WPvivid plugin on the test site
In the test site, open WPvivid, tab "Backup & Restore"
Scroll down to find the "Upload" section
Click 'Upload' and select the backup file from your local machine
Wait for "The upload has completed" message - click "OK"
Click the "Backups" button (located next to the 'Upload' button)
You should see the uploaded backup - click "Restore" and then "Restore" again
Click "OK"

Important: Don't close or switch to other tabs during the restore process.

When finished you'll get the message "Restore completed successfully" - click "OK".

Step 3: Verify Everything Works

Reload the page. Go to different pages and sections of your website. Confirm everything is working as expected.

This entire test process takes 5-60 minutes (depending on the size of your site) and is worth every second.

Why Testing Matters (My Hard-Learned Lessons)

I test my backups every couple of months. Here are issues I've caught BEFORE they became disasters:

❌ File corrupted during transfer
❌ PHP timeout during restore
❌ Incompatible plugin files
❌ Invalid backup file format
...and so much more that can go wrong

That's why for every website I have or make, I create a test website to verify the backup works. This practice gives me peace of mind and ensures my clients' websites are always protected and recoverable.

Setting Up Remote Storage (CRITICAL)

I hope you now understand the importance of having your backups NOT in the same place as your website.

Configure Remote Storage:

Go to tab "Remote Storage"
Click on the cloud service you prefer (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.)
Click "Authenticate" (log in to your account)
Give it a descriptive name so you'll know where to find your backups later

Automating Your Backups

Now let's set it and forget it:

Schedule Settings:

Go to tab "Schedule"
Tick "Enable backup schedule"
Choose frequency (daily or weekly - I recommend daily for active sites)
Choose "Database + Files"
Select "Send backups to remote storage" (your authenticated service will show as active)
Most importantly: Click "Save"

General Settings:

Go to tab "Settings" → "General settings"
Set maximum backups retained = 7 (keeps one week of daily backups)
Tick "Merge all the backup files into single package"
Click "Save"

FAQ

How often should I backup my WordPress site?

Most websites: Daily backups
E-commerce sites: Multiple times per day
Blogs with infrequent updates: Weekly backups
The key: Always backup before any major changes

Why should I test my WordPress backups?

Testing backups ensures they actually work when disaster strikes. Many website owners discover their backups are corrupted or incomplete only after they need them.

Is WPvivid free?

Yes! WPvivid has a robust free version that includes full site backups, scheduling, cloud storage integration, and one-click restore. The premium version adds incremental backups, staging sites, and advanced features for $79/year.

The Results: Peace of Mind

Since implementing this system, I've had:

Servers crash
Hard drives fail
Hosting accounts suspended due to billing errors
Security breaches that required immediate rollback
Plugin updates that broke entire sites

Every single time: Restored from backup and was back online within 20 minutes.

My clients never knew there was a problem. My visitors never saw downtime. I never lost sleep or spent hours on emergency support calls.

One Final Rule

If you remember nothing else from this article, remember this:

Every update — every single one — should happen on a test environment first. Not sometimes. Not for "small" updates.

Every. Single. Time.

I learned this the hard way. You don't have to.

Additional Resources

If you want even more details, screenshots, and specific settings, I've documented everything on my site: Complete WordPress Backup Guide

You can also check out my other web development guides:

What's your backup horror story? Drop it in the comments. Let's learn from each other's mistakes.

Originally published at kolodych.com

Scraping Data with Telegram Bots: My Amazon Project

Serhii Kolodych — Thu, 10 Oct 2024 15:33:56 +0000

If you’ve ever wanted to create a Telegram bot, my guide walks you through the entire process step-by-step. From using BotFather to set up the bot to coding it using popular frameworks, I’ve got you covered. I even include a video tutorial to help you get started. Interested? Read more in my article here.

🛠️ Website Development Tools I use every day 💻

Serhii Kolodych — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:39:31 +0000

Image Optimization with Image Resizer
Broken Link Management with Dead Link Checker
Overview of Google PageSpeed Insights
SEO Check Overview with Seobility
Optimize Your Social Sharing with Open Graph tags

Full article 📄 Read Here! 📈

Hello dev.to! 🚀 My Journey as a Web Developer

Serhii Kolodych — Fri, 30 Aug 2024 18:00:48 +0000

Hi everyone,

I'm thrilled to share my very first post on dev.to! My name is Serhii Kolodych, and I'm a passionate developer with a focus on WordPress development, Python automation, and building Telegram bots. I've been fortunate to work on a range of exciting projects, from creating custom websites to automating tasks that save time and effort.

If you're interested in exploring more about what I do, feel free to check out my website kolodych.com. There, I showcase my latest projects and offer insights into the world of web development, automation, and beyond.

I look forward to connecting with this amazing community, sharing knowledge, and learning from all of you. Let's code something awesome together!

Cheers,
Serhii Kolodych