--- title: "What is UltraStack?" description: "In this article, we cover the basics of our proprietary UltraStack caching system used for NGINX-powered Shared Hosting, Shared WordPress Hosting, and WordPress VPS Hosting plans for top web hosting..." url: https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/edu/ultrastack/what-is-ultrastack/ date: 2019-10-25 modified: 2025-03-05 author: "Jesse Owens" categories: ["UltraStack"] type: post lang: en --- # What is UltraStack? ![What is UltraStack? - Hero Image](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/What-is-UltraStack-1024x538.png) In this article, we cover the basics of our proprietary UltraStack caching system used for NGINX-powered [Shared Hosting](/shared-hosting), [Shared WordPress Hosting](https://inmotionhosting.com/wordpress-hosting), and [WordPress VPS Hosting](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress-vps) plans for top web hosting performance and [ultimate scalability](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/edu/ultrastack/scaling-with-ultrastack/). UltraStack includes the following fine-tuned software to enhance any content management system (CMS) or PHP/HTML/CSS/Javascript based website: ## What’s Included? ### NGINX Proxy Caching Our UltraStack servers run NGINX as a reverse caching proxy in front of Apache. This means that Apache will still be responsible for handling the interaction with PHP and CGI scripts, with NGINX returning the response to the visitor. [NGINX reverse proxy](/support/server/nginx/nginx-reverse-proxy-edition/) uses PHP to cache web content into memory to prevent loading source code for every new visitor. This improves the performance for any PHP/HTML/CSS website, not just WordPress. [Learn more about NGINX](/support/server/server-usage/nginx-basics/) and our [cPanel Cache Manager](/support/edu/wordpress/nginx-cache-management/). ### Redis Object Caching Redis, short for Remote Dictionary Server, provides object caching for SQL and other server processes within a database and your server RAM instead of using server hard drive resources. For more information, check out how to [edit the Redis configuration file](/support/server/how-to-edit-the-redis-configuration-file/) and [configure Redis for WordPress](/support/server/how-to-configure-redis-for-wordpress/). **Note:** Redis Caching is not included on Shared and Shared WordPress Hosting due to potential privacy issues between cPanel accounts. ### PHP-FPM PHP Handler **PHP-FastCGI Process Manager **[(PHP-FPM) has many benefits over the outdated SuPHP](/support/server/php-fpm/suphp-vs-php-fpm/) which makes it more secure and efficient in improving website performance. PHP-FPM uses isolated “pools” of memory and processes per user with [configurable max requests and timeout settings](/support/server/php-fpm/php-fpm-settings-for-better-optimization/) to minimize system resource usage. VPS and Dedicated server administrators may be familiar with PHP-FPM from the WebHost Manager (WHM) MultiPHP Manager or [PHP-FPM service for Apache](/support/server/php-fpm/how-to-restart-php-fpm/#whm) sections. Advanced users have a wide range of controls and parameters at their disposal in order to tune NGINX for their specific needs, with defaults in place as a starting point. ### Brotli Compression Brotli is a newer open-source compression algorithm used by NGINX that utilizes fewer resources than gzip. With better compression rates compared to gzip, Brotli can improve your website speed upon first visit – known as the *time to first byte* – within [compatible browsers](https://caniuse.com/#search=brotli) and content delivery networks (CDN) including [Cloudflare](/support/website/setting-up-cloudflare/) and [Sucuri](https://sucuri.net/lp/promo/inmotion/?clickid=1cHSUoS7TxyLT9tQy%3ASR0UvEUkBWzXQDhTDQUQ0). ## Visualizing our UltraStack Configurations The following diagrams illustrate the configurations used for **UltraStack** based on the hosting solution selected. ### UltraStack Platform for Shared Hosting [![UltraStack Platform for Shared Hosting](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ultrastack-shared-platform-1024x582.png)](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ultrastack-shared-platform.png)**UltraStack configuration on Shared server** ![Easy WordPress Website Transfers](https://design.inmotionhosting.com/assets/legacy/images/website-transfer.svg) If you’re having trouble with your WordPress host, then check out InMotion’s [WordPress Hosting](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress-hosting). We provide secure, optimized servers that are priced to meet your budget needs! ![check mark](https://design.inmotionhosting.com/assets/icons/standard/check-blue.svg)Free Domain ![check mark](https://design.inmotionhosting.com/assets/icons/standard/check-blue.svg)Free SSLs ![check mark](https://design.inmotionhosting.com/assets/icons/standard/check-blue.svg)Unlimited Bandwidth [WordPress Hosting](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress-hosting) ### UltraStack Platform for VPS & Dedicated Servers [![UltraStack Platform for VPS & Dedicated Servers](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ultrastack-vps-dedicated-platform-1024x576.png)](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ultrastack-vps-dedicated-platform.png)**UltraStack configuration on VPS and Dedicated Server** ## Anything to be Aware of? Our default caching configuration should improve most popular software. It will not cache a webpage during user engagement to negatively affect real-time changes. A popular example of this for e-commerce websites: customers adding products to the cart. The PHP opcode cache will speed up these updates regardless even if the individual page isn’t cached. Advanced users can modify such caching rules within [cPanel Cache Manager](/support/website/cache-manager-cpanel/). ## Why NGINX over LiteSpeed? Similar to why we chose [PHP-FPM](#php-fpm) over SuPHP, many competitors use older caching software such as [APC](/support/website/speed-up-php-with-apc/) and LiteSpeed. NGINX, and its open source license, nurtures our dedication to improving user experience and security. We’ve gained years of experience working with NGINX on our [managed VPS server](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/vps-hosting) and scaled-down NGINX-powered [WordPress Hosting](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress-hosting) plans for smaller initiatives. Still, have questions about how UltraStack can help you? Learn more about [how UltraStack is configured](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/edu/ultrastack/ultrastack-configurations/). Or learn how to serve faster websites with our [WordPress VPS](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/wordpress-vps). ![Ultimate Guide to High Performance WordPress Sites](https://www.inmotionhosting.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Ultimate-Guide-Cover-and-spread-mockup.png)