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Quick Start Guide

Get Performance Toolkit up and running in 5 minutes.

Installation​

  1. Download the Performance Toolkit plugin from your WordPress admin or upload the plugin files
  2. Navigate to Plugins → Installed Plugins
  3. Click Activate on Performance Toolkit
  4. The plugin menu will appear in your WordPress admin

Initial Setup​

Step 1: Visit the Dashboard​

  1. Go to Performance Toolkit → Dashboard in your WordPress admin
  2. Review your current performance metrics and status
  3. Check for any recommendations or warnings

Step 2: Enable Caching​

  1. Go to Performance Toolkit → Cache
  2. Check Enable page cache
  3. Set Cache TTL (Time To Live) to 1 hour (3600 seconds) to start
  4. Leave other settings at defaults
  5. Click Save changes

The plugin is now caching your site! New visitors and updated posts will have their HTML cached.

Step 3: Enable Basic File Optimization​

  1. Go to Performance Toolkit → File Optimization
  2. Check Defer frontend scripts — this non-critically delays script loading for better initial render
  3. Check Minify HTML output — removes unnecessary whitespace from HTML
  4. Check Minify inline CSS — compresses inline styles
  5. Click Save changes

These changes take effect immediately.

Step 4: Enable Image Lazy Loading​

  1. Go to Performance Toolkit → Media Optimization
  2. Check Lazy load images
  3. Click Save changes

Images will now only load when they come into the viewport, speeding up initial page load.

Step 5: Monitor Performance​

  1. Go to Performance Toolkit → System Status
  2. Review cache hit rate, database metrics, and recommendations
  3. Check back periodically to see performance improvements

What to Test​

After setup, test your site on a few key pages:

  • Home page — should load faster with caching and lazy loading
  • Blog post — verify scripts defer and CSS is minified
  • Shop/Product page (if applicable) — check lazy loading on images
  • Internal navigation — confirm cache purges on new posts/updates

Test with real browsers and tools:

Advanced Optimization (Optional)​

Once basics are working, explore:

  • Minify external CSS/JS — caches minified versions of enqueued stylesheets and scripts
  • Combine CSS/JS — merge multiple files into fewer requests (HTTP/1.1 only)
  • Minify external CSS/JS exclusions — exclude problematic assets if combining causes issues
  • Cloudflare CDN — integrate for global content delivery

Start cautiously with these; test thoroughly before rolling out to production.

Troubleshooting​

Site looks broken after enabling optimizations​

  1. Go to Performance Toolkit → File Optimization
  2. Add the problematic stylesheet/script handle to the exclusions textarea
  3. Save changes
  4. Test again

Cache not updating after I publish a post​

  1. Ensure Auto-purge on content update is enabled in Cache settings
  2. Try manually clicking Cache Management → Clear All Cache in the Tools tab
  3. Check System Status for any errors

Performance didn't improve much​

Make sure you've enabled:

  • ✅ Page caching
  • ✅ Defer scripts
  • ✅ Minify HTML
  • ✅ Lazy load images

Database optimization (pruning revisions, optimizing tables) also helps—see Database settings.

Next Steps​

  • Read feature-specific docs in the sidebar
  • Explore Advanced Rules for granular control
  • Set up Cloudflare CDN (optional but recommended)
  • Review System Status regularly for insights

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