A: You don't need to be a coder to use it, but some technical experience helps a lot! We do help quite a lot in support, so if chatting with us isn't a problem, I don't see a reason not to try it out! 🙂
A: We handle these automatically in most cases. There are two different limits that are relevant when using GitHub:
1) First Rate Limit:
This is handled by Simply Static, we basically pause the process for a while (we get the exact time back from the API) and continue the process afterward.
2) Secondary Rate Limit:
This happens if too many requests to the API happen at the same time. We have "throttling" implemented but deactivated by default.
You can quickly enable it with the following code snippet:
I see you need extra support from Simply Static. Please kindly reach out to https://simplystatic.com/support , or to support@appsumo.com, if there is still no reply from them and we'll be able to speak to this further - our Support team is always happy to assist!
Q: From the comments below, I learned that SimplyCDN is closing down.
You recommend using BunnyCDN to host static websites. Additionally, you plan to make your SimplyCDN configuration open-source. This will enable handling the entire configuration within BunnyCDN for our websites. It will include creating edge rules for caching, redirects, mapping domains, RSS feeds, proxy comments, and more. Is that right?
Furthermore, I discovered that you are suggesting using a free LocalWP (if connections to WP dynamic content is not required) or SpinupWP ~ 150$/y (cPanel user-friendly alternative for VPS hosting) with Digital Ocean VPS ~ 70$/y for (Shared CPU Basic, Regular 1GB, 1CPU, 25GB, 1TB) that can handle roughly 50k monthly sessions, maybe more. This is more capacity than 99% of small business websites need.
However, I am curious about the Email hosting service. Which provider would you recommend? I am aware that some web hostings partner with Titan.email, but it has received negative reviews. Could you suggest alternative options for email hosting?
I am a bit concerned that the total cost of all these services together SpinupWP + Digital Ocean VPS + Email hosting may become comparable or even more expensive that Hosted WordPress services like NameSilo Turbo (10 websites, Titan email, cPanel) = 100$/y or SiteGround GrowBig (unlimited sites, email, nice interface, advanced management tools, 100k monthly visits) = 360$/y.
When we created SimplyCDN as a static site hosting offer, the market was entirely different- many hosting providers were restrictive or too complex to use, but fast forward 3 years later, it looks completely different.
BunnyCDN (which we are using as a provider for SimplyCDN) got huge VC funding and now offers 99% of the features at a price point where we can no longer compete (basically, our monthly price is their yearly pricing now).
We already share our configuration within support for existing customers (sadly, there isn't a simple export/import for these), but we plan to offer generating them as part of the "deployment configuration" within the plugin.
WP Hosting:
I think the numbers here are completely overkill, honestly 😅
SpinupWP is quite handy but not required—pretty much every basic hosting provider will do it. You also don't need to think about sessions at all, as all of the traffic will go to your static site instead.
However, I would avoid those "specialized WordPress hosting" companies at all costs (especially Siteground). They are insanely overpriced and do more harm than good with their drastically limited configuration.
E-Mail Hosting:
I think that's up to personal preference.
If you are looking to convert simple websites and reduce the overall costs, I would go with a general hosting provider like GoDaddy, which includes domains, emails, and basic WP hosting all in one.
I prefer to keep domains, web hosting, and e-mails separated for security reasons (I don't like the idea of a single point of failure), but that might be too complex for most use cases. I use Cloudflare for the domains/DNS, SpinupWP (with DO) for WP, and mailbox.org for the e-mail server, but again, that might seem overengineered for most users.
Thank you. Very useful information. GoDaddy is insanely expensive as well. I am moving from GoDaddy domain hosting to NameSilo to reduce .com renewal costs from 24$ to 14$. I moved web hosting from GoDaddy to SiteGround 2 years ago to save a lot on WordPress and email hosting, security, CDN and SSL until now when SiteGround asks 360$ for renewal which is still cheaper and better than GoDaddy I am looking for more affordable WP hosting considering that production websites will be hosted on BunnyCDN. I have action found an interesting option for both Domain and WP hosting including email - Speedypage. They use BunnyCDN as well and also offer VPS with VirtFusion panel. I guess SpinupWP will also work with them under Ubuntu 22.04.
Q: Hi there!
Have you already planned a WPGridBuilder facets integration to make filtering, search and pagination facet work in the static version of the website?
Honestly, I did not know about a competitive plugin to FacetWP (we already tried to work with them), so I'm keen to give WPGridBuilder a try and reach out to them to see if there is a way to make that available for static sites!
I had exactly the same question. Static site + facetted search without the need for an external search service (eg. algolia) might be a killer combo. Any ETA on the WP Grid Builder integration?
> Static site + facetted search without the need for an external search service (eg. algolia) might be a killer combo. Any ETA on the WP Grid Builder integration?
Not yet, but we already touched base with the folks from WP Gridbuilder 🙂
Q: I am a designer, not a developer.
I have very little knowledge of html or coding.
I want to improve the speed of my clients' websites. Most websites are basic websites with information and no real interaction with the users. My hope is that this product will improve the speed and reliability of their websites.
I currently use WordPress, Elementor Pro and themes for Envato Elements.
I have 3 questions: 1. Is this product beyond my skill level? 2. Will the static site look exactly the same as the Elementor site that I build? 3. Is it mobile responsive? Will the format change for mobile users in the same way as it currently does on the dynamic WordPress website?
The current workaround is to have a separate WP deployment in a subdomain with a simple theme, disabled header, and footer. Next, create an empty page “amelia-page” with no spacing, header, and add an Amelia shortcode. Once ready, you can embed this page on any external website:
<iframe width="700" height="700" src="https://www.your-domain.com/amelia-page"></iframe> or <embed height="560" width="315" src="https://your-domain.com/amelia-page">
Just add the URL that contains the Amelia booking form in Simply Static -> Settings -> Forms -> iFrames. We automatically replace the content of the static HTML page with an embedded iFrame of the original page.
This works with all kinds of dynamic content limited to a certain page and allows all of them to run on the same domain (instead of fiddling with a subdomain setup).
Q: Hello Patrick, I hope you are well.
I have some questions, could you help me solve them? 😅
1- We can develop WordPress sites locally, use Simply Static, obtain the HTML/CSS and JS code and upload it to our preferred hosting using FTP / GitHub, etc.. With the aim of having more automated and less repetitive processes, right?
2- In addition to LocalWP and Lando, can we also use Docker for our local development or any similar technology?
3- Could you explain to me how your forms solution works? I read that it is compatible with certain plugins (Contact Form 7, Gravity Forms, or Elementor Forms), but how do they work if there is no PHP or MySQL code behind it? * Another solution that occurs to me is to use embedded forms. It should work right?
4- What limitations are there regarding plugins? That is, how do I know if the plugins I use will be compatible? I use SEO plugins, block builders, redirects, etc. How can I know if my plugin is working correctly when using Simply Static? I know that it has compatibility with several famous plugins, but in some cases I use very specific and perhaps little-known plugins. So how could I recognize a plugin that may generate inconsistencies when converting my WordPress site into a static site with your tool?
5- I understand that this deal is for the Static Pro plan, but I saw that you are planning to launch the Static Central plan. What differences or additional features will this plan have? More than anything I ask out of curiosity and perhaps to understand what is ideal for me..
Thank you for your help 🙌🏻 and sorry for the length of my questions, I wish you and the entire Simply Static team the best of success, you have a great tool. 🚀
1- We can develop WordPress sites locally, use Simply Static, obtain the HTML/CSS and JS code and upload it to our preferred hosting using FTP / GitHub, etc.. With the aim of having more automated and less repetitive processes, right?
Yes!
2- In addition to LocalWP and Lando, can we also use Docker for our local development or any similar technology?
You can use Docker, but the setup is a bit more tricky because of the way it handles the IP within the container.
We have an option inside of Simply Static now to help with that called "Origin URL" (Simply Static -> Settings -> Misc -> Origin URL) - set the IP of the container here and save the settings - this should handle most docker-like scenarios.
3- Could you explain to me how your forms solution works? I read that it is compatible with certain plugins (Contact Form 7, Gravity Forms, or Elementor Forms), but how do they work if there is no PHP or MySQL code behind it? * Another solution that occurs to me is to use embedded forms. It should work right?
We handle them with JavaScript by sending the submission to a webhook.
We have a webhook receiver implemented into Simply Static that is configured by default (but requires WP to be online somewhere). You can also replace it with one from Zapier, Make, FormSpark, or any other webhook service.
Embedded Forms will work right away!
4- What limitations are there regarding plugins? That is, how do I know if the plugins I use will be compatible? I use SEO plugins, block builders, redirects, etc. How can I know if my plugin is working correctly when using Simply Static? I know that it has compatibility with several famous plugins, but in some cases I use very specific and perhaps little-known plugins. So how could I recognize a plugin that may generate inconsistencies when converting my WordPress site into a static site with your tool?
We now have a compatibility checker included in the plugin.
So when installing or visiting the "Plugins" page in your admin area, we will let you know exactly which plugins are compatible. We keep extending the list with every release, and if you're unsure about a specific one - just reach out to us, and we'll check it (and maybe add it to the list)
5- I understand that this deal is for the Static Pro plan, but I saw that you are planning to launch the Static Central plan. What differences or additional features will this plan have? More than anything I ask out of curiosity and perhaps to understand what is ideal for me..
Central is a hosted service that includes Simply Static.
We handle WordPress for you and make it available only when needed. As you already asked about Docker, I think I can throw in some technical details here, right? 😁
it's a Kubernetes Cluster managed by us that spins up containers with an optimized Docker image for WordPress and Simply Static (also maintained by us). You will get access to a dashboard with all your static sites. From the dashboard, you can start/stop WordPress and run static exports.
We are currently exploring the option to also include a basic static site hosting option (so you get an all-in-one solution) without requiring our customers to use it (so you can still export to GitHub, AWS, and so on).
Hi Patrick, I wanted to get a little more clarity on web forms.
Say, we setup staging.domain.com and install WP with Simply Static where we build/maintain/export to SS our website... and then we have www.domain.com hosting account with no WP. Is WP required for web forms to work in this setup and if so, where/how do we make these two connections so this is possible with your webhook as you described. Just trying to wrap my head around this, but very excited to try this if it seems possible.
If it helps, I use Divi and I use their built-in web form builder. What would your recommended config be based on the above outline with divi as my form "plugin"? Thanks
> Say, we setup staging.domain.com and install WP with Simply Static where we build/maintain/export to SS our website... and then we have www.domain.com hosting account with no WP. Is WP required for web forms to work in this setup and if so, where/how do we make these two connections so this is possible with your webhook as you described. Just trying to wrap my head around this, but very excited to try this if it seems possible.
If it helps, I use Divi and I use their built-in web form builder. What would your recommended config be based on the above outline with divi as my form "plugin"? Thanks
WP is only required if you use our internal webhook (included in the plugin), but I recommend an external one in your case. As we right now not officially support Divi forms, I would recommend https://formspark.io/
Here, all you have to do is set the "action" attribute of your DIVI form to the webhook URL from Formspark, and they will handle it from there (spam checking, sending submissions to your e-mail inbox, and so on).
However, you can also use the webhook from WP for that. What we are doing here is sending the request from www.domain.com to staging.domain.com - this does require some technical setup (CORS restrictions), but it works the same way as Formspark - your staging website receives the submission and sends the details to your configured e-mail address.
Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, FormSpark.io is not online today, which is a concern as a service provider. Do you have any other similar suggestions? It sounds like a great alternative, or I can look into your final suggestion of using my own staging server with WP. Thanks again. I really like the idea of making this work!
> Unfortunately, FormSpark.io is not online today, which is a concern as a service provider. Do you have any other similar suggestions?
Oh, sure! We have a tutorial with all kinds of different alternatives here: https://simplystatic.com/tutorials/forms-on-a-static-site/
Q: Hello Patrick,
Still have some Simplystatic Plugin Noob Questions here 😜
Simplystatic is created for ...
change an existing dynamic WP Site in a Static Site.
1.Is there any Difference in Speed when i start a complete new WP Site and create all of my Sites ( with my content ) as a regular Page ( not as Posts ) ?
or is it better to create a “regular” dynamic WP Site and convert it later ?
2. When a WP Site is converted in a Static Site and i have some content changes where i do it ? on the hide orginal WP Site or on the fresh Static WP Site ?
example, i want add an Table Plugin with Data and API
or is there a sync modus, when i change the content on my old hide WP Site automatic change that on my new Static Site?
or i have to convert it again when some of my content is changed?
1) You generally start by building your website in WordPress and then converting it to static with Simply Static. The "type" of your content doesn't really matter in terms of performance: use posts, pages, events - whatever you need for your website!
2) You do it in WordPress and then push the updates to your static site via Simply Static.
We have different ways of keeping your static site updated (full export, single export, build export, and soon incremental exports), you can learn about the differences in our documentation here: https://simplystatic.com/docs/how-to-update-content-on-your-static-website/
However, none of these changes sync automatically; you always push from WordPress to your static site. You can, however, automate some parts of the process (auto-exporting new posts after they are published, for example).
> How about the Data from the WPdatatable with API which i use on my old dynamic WP Site?
I think that depends a bit on the API used within the plugin - an external one should work, but if you actively rely on WP data, you might want to replace pages containing the shortcode with an embedded iFrame instead.
> When I use your integration to Bunny.net, must I also run ( export ) both Versions of WP ( dynamic and static Site )?
No, you edit your content in WP (as usual) and click the button in Simply Static - we handle all the updates on BunnyCDN for you.
Thank you for your explanation all of my questions!
After that, it is easy to make a decision. Will stack Tier 3…
🎉⭐️🥂
Q: Hi Patrick.
Thanks for the previous replies to my questions. I have another question about the wordpress plugin uncanny automator. Can I create webhooks on a website with uncanny and use them in the webhooks for forms in the simple static settings for processing forms? Do webhooks from other websites work on a static website?
However, it's only in one direction - you can send form requests from your static website to webhooks in WP (and thus also Uncanny), but not the other way around.
Instead of Uncanny, you can also use external services like Zapier, IFTTT, Make, and so on - as long as it follows the same direction: static site sends the request, and the other services receives it 🙂
Wow you are so quick with your answer. Thanks for that! Just to be clear. Can I use the webhook that is built into the forms plugin settings or into the settings of simply static?
> Can I use the webhook that is built into the forms plugin settings or into the settings of simply static?
Technically, both work.
However, in my experience, there are often some hiccups with the webhook settings directly built into the form plugin, so to be 100% sure, I would add the webhook to the Simply Static form connection settings instead.
Q: Thanks @petrick for bringing SimplyStatic To AS.
Is there any way around to push the static site to GitLab and BitBucket? If your answer is "We are working on these integrations" then What is the ETA?
Next, Can you suggest some practical guide or how-to link for exporting and hosting static site to sub folder and/or sub-module? My scenario is something like www.domain.com/ae/blog where www.domain.com repo has a static wordpress with "ae" as subfolder that contains ae specific static wordpress site with sub-sub folder (or submodule) "blog" containing ae blog. It would be really helpful if you can spare some more time and guide to achieve this in better ways.
We do have plans to support GitLab at some point, but we almost abandoned the idea of supporting BitBucket, mainly because of the lack of demand (We got about 1-2 people in about 3 years asking for it).
I have to say that these integrations aren't a high priority right now compared to other features (like more forms integrations, locking WP, and cookie consent support), so there is no ETA for them.
Subfolder/Subdirectory:
You can do that with almost all of our supported deployment options.
You set the subdirectory in Simply Static -> Settings -> General -> Replace Urls (choose either a relative path or an absolute URL). This will ensure that all the URLs contain the subdirectory and that everything is loading correctly (including all the CSS, JS, and image paths).
Then you do the same within Simply Static -> Settings -> Deploy. Almost all the integrations have a "subdirectory" setting. Add your desired directory, and we will add all the files to it when running the export.
Mainly because of how the service has changed over the years.
Once DO introduced their "App Plattform," they made Spaces almost unusable for static site hosting (no redirects, no assignable root domains, DNS has to be managed by DO, etc.).
We can no longer recommend this service compared to AWS S3 (or the other integrations).
It will be replaced by a general "S3-compatible storage" method that allow exports to all kinds of providers.
SimplyCDN:
It's because it will shut down by the end of the year and will be entirely replaced by our BunnyCDN integration.
It already used BunnyCDN as the provider but shipped with some extra features that will be included directly in Simply Static Pro over the next few months.
We also want to get some space for new deployment integrations that we are working on.
Q: I started using Simply static a couple of month ago...
I jumped on the LTD when i saw it! Awesome job! I do have some issues with sites on my current hosting not exporting static sites correctly - might be due to caching (I will open a ticket for that) however, exporting static site from a local (local software) site works like a charm. not ideal for my model but i'm pretty confident your support will help me fix that. I tried different services you highlighted in your documentation: 1. Cloudflare (via github) works great! and free! 2. Bunny CDN is the fastest and requires a small monthly fee. 3. Netlify is fast (via github) but beware of hidden bills that might skyrocket as discussed on this reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/webdev/comments/1b14bty/netlify_just_sent_me_a_104k_bill_for_a_simple/
My questions: 1. What is the best practice for my wordpress sites to remain 'hidden' and get only my static site shown on search engines? do i need to turn off 'Search engine visibility' every time i push an update/ generate static files?
Also what do you suggest? having a subdomain for my worpdress site (say wp.mysite.com) and use the main domain (www.mysite.com) for my static site? or should i use a completely different domain for my wordpress instal?
it sounds like you already had some decent success with Simply Static; awesome!
Your questions:
Best practice to hide WordPress:
We usually recommend using "Basic Auth" to protect the entire WordPress website with a username and password. You can add those credentials in Simply Static -> Settings -> Misc -> Basic Auth. This way, Simply Static can still access the page to run static exports, but it's blocked from public access.
We also wrote a little code snippet for a customer to automatically toggle the search engine visibility (no-index by default, but replacing it on the static site) - I would need to look that up, but that's also an option.
We are also working on a service called "Central" that solves that problem more deeply.
This will allow you to disable WordPress (and the entire webserver) completely when not in use and quickly restart it if you want to make changes. It will also ship with an optimized environment for Simply Static, where everything is optimized for running static site exports (including long-running exports, CORS configuration, optimized filesystem structure, and so on).
This is 100% optional, but it might be handy if you plan to convert many websites (as we also offer a central dashboard to quickly access, export, start, and stop WP sites).
Subdomain / Domain:
I recommend using WP on a subdomain and the primary domain for the static site. While an entirely different domain would be even more secure, it might also be more challenging to memorize in the long term.
Thank you for your quick reply Patrick! much appreciated! is "Basic Auth" a plugin? or do you have a doc on how to implement this? I'd love to hear more about "central" - looks promising! 2 more questions: 1. how does generated static sites handle cookieless analytics such as Matomo or Plausible analytics? I'm thinking the self hosted solution here.... 2. the code shown on the picture here https://simplystatic.com/docs/how-to-update-content-on-your-static-website/#Generate-static-export-on-publishing-a-post sends me to a completely different code that i can copy/paste in my "function.php" where can we grab this code?
It's not a plugin but something you add to your .htaccess file (within the root directory of WordPress). There are a couple of easy generators, so you don't have to figure that out yourself: https://www.web2generators.com/apache-tools/htpasswd-generator
> How does generated static sites handle cookieless analytics such as Matomo or Plausible analytics? I'm thinking the self hosted solution here
The same way as in WordPress. All you need to do is add the JS snippet from Matomo or Plausible (and maybe upload the verification HTML page to your static site for the domain).
> the code shown on the picture here https://simplystatic.com/docs/how-to-update-content-on-your-static-website/#Generate-static-export-on-publishing-a-post sends me to a completely different code that i can copy/paste in my "function.php" where can we grab this code?
Oh yeah, I just sent you the updated one in your support ticket 20 seconds ago! 😅
Groove Funnels is a SaaS platform, so you can't host your own static site with them.
Q: I'm very intrigued by this solution.
Per the backend code, your current website appears to still be in WordPress and not Static. Is there a reason for this not to have your own website as a sample? I was hoping to test it for SpeedInsights and your additional CDN service to see how well the performance was. Am I missing something? Is there demo sites we can analyze for speed and coding to evaluate?
Our website is static most of the time, but we decided to switch back to a traditional setup for a while because we're currently working on a big relaunch (and restructuring our website almost daily to prepare for that).
We will return to a static site setup once the new design is ready and the restructuring is complete.
I can't share them publicly, but if you create a short ticket at https://simplystatic.com/support/, I can share some examples with you!
Q; Can I still use the plugin when my licence expires? A: Yes. You can use the plugin A piece of software that adds specific features to WordPress. as long as you like. Once the license expires we only restrict access to support and updates. The plugin will still be working as is without any restrictions.
> Can I still use the plugin when my licence expires?
Yes. However, if you revoke the license from one website, you shift ownership to a new website.
So the new website will get access to updates forever, while the old website will no longer receive updates (as long as you don't switch back the license).
So you get lifetime updates and one year of support, but only for one website at a time with the Tier 1 offering.
This is to avoid abuse of our pricing model.
Q: Hello,
works the Publitics Analytics Tool
( a current Appsumo Deal ) with Simplystatic ?
A: Thank you for the question Ukeu. Simply Static Pro contains a number of features not available in the standard version. Some of these features include support for forms, different export options, search integration, multilingual support, and WP-CLI to name a few.
Here is a link to more information about Pro including a comparison table towards the bottom of the page: https://simplystatic.com/pro/
Q: Hi!
Should i know some code to use your tool?
It looks interesting, but I am a no coder, so I am not sure if the tool is usable for someone like me.
Thanks for the answer.
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: You don't need to be a coder to use it, but some technical experience helps a lot!
We do help quite a lot in support, so if chatting with us isn't a problem, I don't see a reason not to try it out! 🙂
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Q: I met Github api rate limits What should I do?
Localwp’s teaching for non-technical people needs to be more complete
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: We handle these automatically in most cases.
There are two different limits that are relevant when using GitHub:
1) First Rate Limit:
This is handled by Simply Static, we basically pause the process for a while (we get the exact time back from the API) and continue the process afterward.
2) Secondary Rate Limit:
This happens if too many requests to the API happen at the same time.
We have "throttling" implemented but deactivated by default.
You can quickly enable it with the following code snippet:
add_filter('ssp_throttle_github_request', '__return_true' );
Once added, we will slow down the requests per second to avoid hitting the limit for you.
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Hey there sam80104, this is Dandy from AppSumo!
I see you need extra support from Simply Static. Please kindly reach out to https://simplystatic.com/support , or to support@appsumo.com, if there is still no reply from them and we'll be able to speak to this further - our Support team is always happy to assist!
Q: From the comments below, I learned that SimplyCDN is closing down.
You recommend using BunnyCDN to host static websites. Additionally, you plan to make your SimplyCDN configuration open-source. This will enable handling the entire configuration within BunnyCDN for our websites. It will include creating edge rules for caching, redirects, mapping domains, RSS feeds, proxy comments, and more. Is that right?
Furthermore, I discovered that you are suggesting using a free LocalWP (if connections to WP dynamic content is not required) or SpinupWP ~ 150$/y (cPanel user-friendly alternative for VPS hosting) with Digital Ocean VPS ~ 70$/y for (Shared CPU Basic, Regular 1GB, 1CPU, 25GB, 1TB) that can handle roughly 50k monthly sessions, maybe more. This is more capacity than 99% of small business websites need.
However, I am curious about the Email hosting service. Which provider would you recommend? I am aware that some web hostings partner with Titan.email, but it has received negative reviews. Could you suggest alternative options for email hosting?
I am a bit concerned that the total cost of all these services together SpinupWP + Digital Ocean VPS + Email hosting may become comparable or even more expensive that Hosted WordPress services like NameSilo Turbo (10 websites, Titan email, cPanel) = 100$/y or SiteGround GrowBig (unlimited sites, email, nice interface, advanced management tools, 100k monthly visits) = 360$/y.
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Thanks for your questions!
SimplyCDN:
That's true.
When we created SimplyCDN as a static site hosting offer, the market was entirely different- many hosting providers were restrictive or too complex to use, but fast forward 3 years later, it looks completely different.
BunnyCDN (which we are using as a provider for SimplyCDN) got huge VC funding and now offers 99% of the features at a price point where we can no longer compete (basically, our monthly price is their yearly pricing now).
We already share our configuration within support for existing customers (sadly, there isn't a simple export/import for these), but we plan to offer generating them as part of the "deployment configuration" within the plugin.
WP Hosting:
I think the numbers here are completely overkill, honestly 😅
SpinupWP is quite handy but not required—pretty much every basic hosting provider will do it.
You also don't need to think about sessions at all, as all of the traffic will go to your static site instead.
However, I would avoid those "specialized WordPress hosting" companies at all costs (especially Siteground).
They are insanely overpriced and do more harm than good with their drastically limited configuration.
E-Mail Hosting:
I think that's up to personal preference.
If you are looking to convert simple websites and reduce the overall costs, I would go with a general hosting provider like GoDaddy, which includes domains, emails, and basic WP hosting all in one.
I prefer to keep domains, web hosting, and e-mails separated for security reasons (I don't like the idea of a single point of failure), but that might be too complex for most use cases.
I use Cloudflare for the domains/DNS, SpinupWP (with DO) for WP, and mailbox.org for the e-mail server, but again, that might seem overengineered for most users.
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Verified purchaser
Thank you. Very useful information. GoDaddy is insanely expensive as well. I am moving from GoDaddy domain hosting to NameSilo to reduce .com renewal costs from 24$ to 14$. I moved web hosting from GoDaddy to SiteGround 2 years ago to save a lot on WordPress and email hosting, security, CDN and SSL until now when SiteGround asks 360$ for renewal which is still cheaper and better than GoDaddy I am looking for more affordable WP hosting considering that production websites will be hosted on BunnyCDN. I have action found an interesting option for both Domain and WP hosting including email - Speedypage. They use BunnyCDN as well and also offer VPS with VirtFusion panel. I guess SpinupWP will also work with them under Ubuntu 22.04.
Q: Hi there!
Have you already planned a WPGridBuilder facets integration to make filtering, search and pagination facet work in the static version of the website?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: We are currently testing it!
Honestly, I did not know about a competitive plugin to FacetWP (we already tried to work with them), so I'm keen to give WPGridBuilder a try and reach out to them to see if there is a way to make that available for static sites!
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Verified purchaser
This is a great news. WPGridBuilder is a great alternative to FacetWP and is widely used, an integration with it is a must have!
Verified purchaser
I had exactly the same question. Static site + facetted search without the need for an external search service (eg. algolia) might be a killer combo. Any ETA on the WP Grid Builder integration?
Verified purchaser
> Static site + facetted search without the need for an external search service (eg. algolia) might be a killer combo. Any ETA on the WP Grid Builder integration?
Not yet, but we already touched base with the folks from WP Gridbuilder 🙂
Q: I am a designer, not a developer.
I have very little knowledge of html or coding.
I want to improve the speed of my clients' websites. Most websites are basic websites with information and no real interaction with the users. My hope is that this product will improve the speed and reliability of their websites.
I currently use WordPress, Elementor Pro and themes for Envato Elements.
I have 3 questions:
1. Is this product beyond my skill level?
2. Will the static site look exactly the same as the Elementor site that I build?
3. Is it mobile responsive? Will the format change for mobile users in the same way as it currently does on the dynamic WordPress website?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Thanks for your questions!
1) Maybe. You don't need any coding knowledge, but the product is pretty technical.
However, we have excellent support if you run into any hiccups!
2) Yes.
3) Yes, it works the same way as in WordPress.
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Q: Hi, I have sites that use the learndash, amelia, memberpress plugins, could this work with these plugins?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: No, as all of them need WordPress available at all times (login areas, payment integration, calendar event synching, and so on).
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Verified purchaser
The current workaround is to have a separate WP deployment in a subdomain with a simple theme, disabled header, and footer. Next, create an empty page “amelia-page” with no spacing, header, and add an Amelia shortcode. Once ready, you can embed this page on any external website:
<iframe width="700" height="700" src="https://www.your-domain.com/amelia-page"></iframe>
or
<embed height="560" width="315" src="https://your-domain.com/amelia-page">
Verified purchaser
Good suggestion!
We also simplified that now with the last update.
Just add the URL that contains the Amelia booking form in Simply Static -> Settings -> Forms -> iFrames.
We automatically replace the content of the static HTML page with an embedded iFrame of the original page.
This works with all kinds of dynamic content limited to a certain page and allows all of them to run on the same domain (instead of fiddling with a subdomain setup).
Q: Hello Patrick, I hope you are well.
I have some questions, could you help me solve them? 😅
1- We can develop WordPress sites locally, use Simply Static, obtain the HTML/CSS and JS code and upload it to our preferred hosting using FTP / GitHub, etc.. With the aim of having more automated and less repetitive processes, right?
2- In addition to LocalWP and Lando, can we also use Docker for our local development or any similar technology?
3- Could you explain to me how your forms solution works? I read that it is compatible with certain plugins (Contact Form 7, Gravity Forms, or Elementor Forms), but how do they work if there is no PHP or MySQL code behind it?
* Another solution that occurs to me is to use embedded forms. It should work right?
4- What limitations are there regarding plugins? That is, how do I know if the plugins I use will be compatible? I use SEO plugins, block builders, redirects, etc. How can I know if my plugin is working correctly when using Simply Static?
I know that it has compatibility with several famous plugins, but in some cases I use very specific and perhaps little-known plugins. So how could I recognize a plugin that may generate inconsistencies when converting my WordPress site into a static site with your tool?
5- I understand that this deal is for the Static Pro plan, but I saw that you are planning to launch the Static Central plan. What differences or additional features will this plan have? More than anything I ask out of curiosity and perhaps to understand what is ideal for me..
Thank you for your help 🙌🏻 and sorry for the length of my questions, I wish you and the entire Simply Static team the best of success, you have a great tool. 🚀
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Happy to help!
1- We can develop WordPress sites locally, use Simply Static, obtain the HTML/CSS and JS code and upload it to our preferred hosting using FTP / GitHub, etc.. With the aim of having more automated and less repetitive processes, right?
Yes!
2- In addition to LocalWP and Lando, can we also use Docker for our local development or any similar technology?
You can use Docker, but the setup is a bit more tricky because of the way it handles the IP within the container.
We have an option inside of Simply Static now to help with that called "Origin URL" (Simply Static -> Settings -> Misc -> Origin URL) - set the IP of the container here and save the settings - this should handle most docker-like scenarios.
3- Could you explain to me how your forms solution works? I read that it is compatible with certain plugins (Contact Form 7, Gravity Forms, or Elementor Forms), but how do they work if there is no PHP or MySQL code behind it?
* Another solution that occurs to me is to use embedded forms. It should work right?
We handle them with JavaScript by sending the submission to a webhook.
We have a webhook receiver implemented into Simply Static that is configured by default (but requires WP to be online somewhere).
You can also replace it with one from Zapier, Make, FormSpark, or any other webhook service.
Embedded Forms will work right away!
4- What limitations are there regarding plugins? That is, how do I know if the plugins I use will be compatible? I use SEO plugins, block builders, redirects, etc. How can I know if my plugin is working correctly when using Simply Static?
I know that it has compatibility with several famous plugins, but in some cases I use very specific and perhaps little-known plugins. So how could I recognize a plugin that may generate inconsistencies when converting my WordPress site into a static site with your tool?
We now have a compatibility checker included in the plugin.
So when installing or visiting the "Plugins" page in your admin area, we will let you know exactly which plugins are compatible.
We keep extending the list with every release, and if you're unsure about a specific one - just reach out to us, and we'll check it (and maybe add it to the list)
5- I understand that this deal is for the Static Pro plan, but I saw that you are planning to launch the Static Central plan. What differences or additional features will this plan have? More than anything I ask out of curiosity and perhaps to understand what is ideal for me..
Central is a hosted service that includes Simply Static.
We handle WordPress for you and make it available only when needed.
As you already asked about Docker, I think I can throw in some technical details here, right? 😁
it's a Kubernetes Cluster managed by us that spins up containers with an optimized Docker image for WordPress and Simply Static (also maintained by us).
You will get access to a dashboard with all your static sites. From the dashboard, you can start/stop WordPress and run static exports.
We are currently exploring the option to also include a basic static site hosting option (so you get an all-in-one solution) without requiring our customers to use it (so you can still export to GitHub, AWS, and so on).
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Verified purchaser
Hi Patrick, I wanted to get a little more clarity on web forms.
Say, we setup staging.domain.com and install WP with Simply Static where we build/maintain/export to SS our website... and then we have www.domain.com hosting account with no WP. Is WP required for web forms to work in this setup and if so, where/how do we make these two connections so this is possible with your webhook as you described. Just trying to wrap my head around this, but very excited to try this if it seems possible.
If it helps, I use Divi and I use their built-in web form builder. What would your recommended config be based on the above outline with divi as my form "plugin"? Thanks
Verified purchaser
> Say, we setup staging.domain.com and install WP with Simply Static where we build/maintain/export to SS our website... and then we have www.domain.com hosting account with no WP. Is WP required for web forms to work in this setup and if so, where/how do we make these two connections so this is possible with your webhook as you described. Just trying to wrap my head around this, but very excited to try this if it seems possible.
If it helps, I use Divi and I use their built-in web form builder. What would your recommended config be based on the above outline with divi as my form "plugin"? Thanks
WP is only required if you use our internal webhook (included in the plugin), but I recommend an external one in your case.
As we right now not officially support Divi forms, I would recommend https://formspark.io/
Here, all you have to do is set the "action" attribute of your DIVI form to the webhook URL from Formspark, and they will handle it from there (spam checking, sending submissions to your e-mail inbox, and so on).
However, you can also use the webhook from WP for that. What we are doing here is sending the request from www.domain.com to staging.domain.com - this does require some technical setup (CORS restrictions), but it works the same way as Formspark - your staging website receives the submission and sends the details to your configured e-mail address.
Verified purchaser
Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, FormSpark.io is not online today, which is a concern as a service provider. Do you have any other similar suggestions? It sounds like a great alternative, or I can look into your final suggestion of using my own staging server with WP. Thanks again. I really like the idea of making this work!
Verified purchaser
> Unfortunately, FormSpark.io is not online today, which is a concern as a service provider. Do you have any other similar suggestions?
Oh, sure! We have a tutorial with all kinds of different alternatives here: https://simplystatic.com/tutorials/forms-on-a-static-site/
Q: Hello Patrick, Still have some Simplystatic Plugin Noob Questions here 😜 Simplystatic is created for ...
change an existing dynamic WP Site in a Static Site.
1.Is there any Difference in Speed when i start a complete new WP Site
and create all of my Sites ( with my content ) as a regular Page ( not as Posts ) ?
or is it better to create a “regular” dynamic WP Site and convert it later ?
2. When a WP Site is converted in a Static Site and i have some content changes
where i do it ? on the hide orginal WP Site or on the fresh Static WP Site ?
example, i want add an Table Plugin with Data and API
or is there a sync modus, when i change the content on my old hide WP Site
automatic change that on my new Static Site?
or i have to convert it again when some of my content is changed?
how works that generally ?
have you any Scenario Docs or a Tutorial ?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: I'm happy to clarify that for you!
1) You generally start by building your website in WordPress and then converting it to static with Simply Static.
The "type" of your content doesn't really matter in terms of performance: use posts, pages, events - whatever you need for your website!
2) You do it in WordPress and then push the updates to your static site via Simply Static.
We have different ways of keeping your static site updated (full export, single export, build export, and soon incremental exports), you can learn about the differences in our documentation here: https://simplystatic.com/docs/how-to-update-content-on-your-static-website/
However, none of these changes sync automatically; you always push from WordPress to your static site.
You can, however, automate some parts of the process (auto-exporting new posts after they are published, for example).
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Verified purchaser
> How about the Data from the WPdatatable with API which i use on my old dynamic WP Site?
I think that depends a bit on the API used within the plugin - an external one should work, but if you actively rely on WP data, you might want to replace pages containing the shortcode with an embedded iFrame instead.
> When I use your integration to Bunny.net, must I also run ( export ) both Versions of WP ( dynamic and static Site )?
No, you edit your content in WP (as usual) and click the button in Simply Static - we handle all the updates on BunnyCDN for you.
Verified purchaser
Hello Patrick,
Thank you for your explanation all of my questions!
After that, it is easy to make a decision. Will stack Tier 3…
🎉⭐️🥂
Q: Hi Patrick.
Thanks for the previous replies to my questions. I have another question about the wordpress plugin uncanny automator. Can I create webhooks on a website with uncanny and use them in the webhooks for forms in the simple static settings for processing forms? Do webhooks from other websites work on a static website?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Yes, that should work!
However, it's only in one direction - you can send form requests from your static website to webhooks in WP (and thus also Uncanny), but not the other way around.
Instead of Uncanny, you can also use external services like Zapier, IFTTT, Make, and so on - as long as it follows the same direction: static site sends the request, and the other services receives it 🙂
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Verified purchaser
Wow you are so quick with your answer. Thanks for that! Just to be clear. Can I use the webhook that is built into the forms plugin settings or into the settings of simply static?
Verified purchaser
> Can I use the webhook that is built into the forms plugin settings or into the settings of simply static?
Technically, both work.
However, in my experience, there are often some hiccups with the webhook settings directly built into the form plugin, so to be 100% sure, I would add the webhook to the Simply Static form connection settings instead.
Q: Thanks @petrick for bringing SimplyStatic To AS.
Is there any way around to push the static site to GitLab and BitBucket? If your answer is "We are working on these integrations" then What is the ETA?
Next, Can you suggest some practical guide or how-to link for exporting and hosting static site to sub folder and/or sub-module?
My scenario is something like www.domain.com/ae/blog where www.domain.com repo has a static wordpress with "ae" as subfolder that contains ae specific static wordpress site with sub-sub folder (or submodule) "blog" containing ae blog.
It would be really helpful if you can spare some more time and guide to achieve this in better ways.
Thanking you in advance!
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: GitLab and BitBucket:
We do have plans to support GitLab at some point, but we almost abandoned the idea of supporting BitBucket, mainly because of the lack of demand (We got about 1-2 people in about 3 years asking for it).
I have to say that these integrations aren't a high priority right now compared to other features (like more forms integrations, locking WP, and cookie consent support), so there is no ETA for them.
Subfolder/Subdirectory:
You can do that with almost all of our supported deployment options.
You set the subdirectory in Simply Static -> Settings -> General -> Replace Urls (choose either a relative path or an absolute URL). This will ensure that all the URLs contain the subdirectory and that everything is loading correctly (including all the CSS, JS, and image paths).
Then you do the same within Simply Static -> Settings -> Deploy.
Almost all the integrations have a "subdirectory" setting. Add your desired directory, and we will add all the files to it when running the export.
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Q: Can I use BunnyCDN + Cloudflare?
My domain is registered on Cloudflare I cannot change my nameservers.
Do I have to use bunnyDNS?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Yes, you don't have to change the nameservers to BunnyCDN.
All you need is a CNAME record added in Cloudflare for your BunnyCDN zone.
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Q: I noticed it said Simply CDN and Digital Ocean Spaces will be removed.
What is the reason its being remove?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Good question!
Digital Ocean Spaces:
Mainly because of how the service has changed over the years.
Once DO introduced their "App Plattform," they made Spaces almost unusable for static site hosting (no redirects, no assignable root domains, DNS has to be managed by DO, etc.).
We can no longer recommend this service compared to AWS S3 (or the other integrations).
It will be replaced by a general "S3-compatible storage" method that allow exports to all kinds of providers.
SimplyCDN:
It's because it will shut down by the end of the year and will be entirely replaced by our BunnyCDN integration.
It already used BunnyCDN as the provider but shipped with some extra features that will be included directly in Simply Static Pro over the next few months.
We also want to get some space for new deployment integrations that we are working on.
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Q: I started using Simply static a couple of month ago...
I jumped on the LTD when i saw it!
Awesome job! I do have some issues with sites on my current hosting not exporting static sites correctly - might be due to caching (I will open a ticket for that) however, exporting static site from a local (local software) site works like a charm. not ideal for my model but i'm pretty confident your support will help me fix that.
I tried different services you highlighted in your documentation:
1. Cloudflare (via github) works great! and free!
2. Bunny CDN is the fastest and requires a small monthly fee.
3. Netlify is fast (via github) but beware of hidden bills that might skyrocket as discussed on this reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/webdev/comments/1b14bty/netlify_just_sent_me_a_104k_bill_for_a_simple/
My questions:
1. What is the best practice for my wordpress sites to remain 'hidden' and get only my static site shown on search engines? do i need to turn off 'Search engine visibility' every time i push an update/ generate static files?
Also what do you suggest? having a subdomain for my worpdress site (say wp.mysite.com) and use the main domain (www.mysite.com) for my static site? or should i use a completely different domain for my wordpress instal?
Thanks!
Ludo
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Hey Ludo,
it sounds like you already had some decent success with Simply Static; awesome!
Your questions:
Best practice to hide WordPress:
We usually recommend using "Basic Auth" to protect the entire WordPress website with a username and password. You can add those credentials in Simply Static -> Settings -> Misc -> Basic Auth.
This way, Simply Static can still access the page to run static exports, but it's blocked from public access.
We also wrote a little code snippet for a customer to automatically toggle the search engine visibility (no-index by default, but replacing it on the static site) - I would need to look that up, but that's also an option.
We are also working on a service called "Central" that solves that problem more deeply.
This will allow you to disable WordPress (and the entire webserver) completely when not in use and quickly restart it if you want to make changes.
It will also ship with an optimized environment for Simply Static, where everything is optimized for running static site exports (including long-running exports, CORS configuration, optimized filesystem structure, and so on).
This is 100% optional, but it might be handy if you plan to convert many websites (as we also offer a central dashboard to quickly access, export, start, and stop WP sites).
Subdomain / Domain:
I recommend using WP on a subdomain and the primary domain for the static site.
While an entirely different domain would be even more secure, it might also be more challenging to memorize in the long term.
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Verified purchaser
Thank you for your quick reply Patrick! much appreciated! is "Basic Auth" a plugin? or do you have a doc on how to implement this?
I'd love to hear more about "central" - looks promising!
2 more questions:
1. how does generated static sites handle cookieless analytics such as Matomo or Plausible analytics? I'm thinking the self hosted solution here....
2. the code shown on the picture here https://simplystatic.com/docs/how-to-update-content-on-your-static-website/#Generate-static-export-on-publishing-a-post sends me to a completely different code that i can copy/paste in my "function.php" where can we grab this code?
Cheers!
Ludo
Verified purchaser
> Basic Auth
It's not a plugin but something you add to your .htaccess file (within the root directory of WordPress).
There are a couple of easy generators, so you don't have to figure that out yourself: https://www.web2generators.com/apache-tools/htpasswd-generator
> How does generated static sites handle cookieless analytics such as Matomo or Plausible analytics? I'm thinking the self hosted solution here
The same way as in WordPress.
All you need to do is add the JS snippet from Matomo or Plausible (and maybe upload the verification HTML page to your static site for the domain).
> the code shown on the picture here https://simplystatic.com/docs/how-to-update-content-on-your-static-website/#Generate-static-export-on-publishing-a-post sends me to a completely different code that i can copy/paste in my "function.php" where can we grab this code?
Oh yeah, I just sent you the updated one in your support ticket 20 seconds ago! 😅
Q: Hello, it works with https://bitapps.
pro/bit-form/ ?
Thanks
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: No, we only support CF7, Gravity Forms, and Elementor Forms right now.
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Just for clarification, HTML-embedded forms are supported, correct?
Verified purchaser
> Just for clarification, HTML-embedded forms are supported, correct?
YES!
Q: Does this enable me to migrate my Wordpress site to the pages for Groove Funnels which is not a WordPress site?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: I don't know.
We convert WP to HTML/CSS and JS, which might be enough to be edited via Groove Funnels.
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Groove Funnels is a SaaS platform, so you can't host your own static site with them.
Q: I'm very intrigued by this solution.
Per the backend code, your current website appears to still be in WordPress and not Static. Is there a reason for this not to have your own website as a sample? I was hoping to test it for SpeedInsights and your additional CDN service to see how well the performance was. Am I missing something? Is there demo sites we can analyze for speed and coding to evaluate?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Good question!
Our website is static most of the time, but we decided to switch back to a traditional setup for a while because we're currently working on a big relaunch (and restructuring our website almost daily to prepare for that).
We will return to a static site setup once the new design is ready and the restructuring is complete.
I can't share them publicly, but if you create a short ticket at https://simplystatic.com/support/, I can share some examples with you!
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Q: Will domains such as ".
localhost", ".local", ".staging", and ".dev" consume licenses?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Yes.
We add one additional license for staging/local usage.
More activations require a bigger tier.
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Q: For Tier 1, after downloading the 1st Static Site.
Can I delete the old wordpress project and create a new static Site. Meaning it can be used for multiple wordpress sites, one at a time?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Yes!
You can disable the license from your account area and use the license on another project.
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Verified purchaser
Thanks for the answer, would that mean the 1st static site will be void, and shutdown, once I remove the license?
Verified purchaser
Q; Can I still use the plugin when my licence expires?
A: Yes. You can use the plugin
A piece of software that adds specific features to WordPress.
as long as you like. Once the license expires we only restrict access to support and updates. The plugin will still be working as is without any restrictions.
Verified purchaser
> Thanks for the answer, would that mean the 1st static site will be void, and shutdown, once I remove the license?
No, your static site will stay completely untouched.
Removing the license only disables the functionality to update your static site from within WordPress again.
Verified purchaser
> Can I still use the plugin when my licence expires?
Yes. However, if you revoke the license from one website, you shift ownership to a new website.
So the new website will get access to updates forever, while the old website will no longer receive updates (as long as you don't switch back the license).
So you get lifetime updates and one year of support, but only for one website at a time with the Tier 1 offering.
This is to avoid abuse of our pricing model.
Q: Hello, works the Publitics Analytics Tool ( a current Appsumo Deal ) with Simplystatic ?
Patrick_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Publytics, right?
Yes.
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Q: How is this different from the free plugins, apart from the automation part?
Scott_SimplyStatic
Jun 27, 2024A: Thank you for the question Ukeu. Simply Static Pro contains a number of features not available in the standard version. Some of these features include support for forms, different export options, search integration, multilingual support, and WP-CLI to name a few.
Here is a link to more information about Pro including a comparison table towards the bottom of the page: https://simplystatic.com/pro/
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