{"id":726,"date":"2024-12-04T20:31:07","date_gmt":"2024-12-04T20:31:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/?p=726"},"modified":"2024-12-04T20:34:42","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T20:34:42","slug":"cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/","title":{"rendered":"CloudFlare \u2013 Is it worth the effort?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4515\" src=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/cloudflare-image.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"438\" height=\"414\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/cloudflare-image.png 438w, https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/cloudflare-image-300x284.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 438px) 100vw, 438px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>CloudFlare is not all roses and candy, nor is it thorn bushes and tofu (my apologies to everyone who loves tofu). On one hand, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cloudflare.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CloudFlare<\/a> does offer a degree of DDoS protection, and who doesn\u2019t need that in 2023?<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_80 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#The_speed_factor\" >The speed factor<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#The_CDN_factor\" >The CDN factor<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#The_one-two_punch\" >The one-two punch<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#Is_CloudFlare_for_the_small_business_owner_webmaster_or_enterprise_site_owner\" >Is CloudFlare for the small business owner, webmaster or enterprise site owner?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#Can_CloudFlare_create_some_issues\" >Can CloudFlare create some issues?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#Using_a_cPanel_plugin\" >Using a cPanel plugin<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#From_the_top_here_are_some_pros_and_cons_of_CloudFlare\" >From the top, here are some pros and cons of CloudFlare<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#Distributed_Denial_of_Service_attacks_are_on_the_rise\" >Distributed Denial of Service attacks are on the rise<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#How_can_you_beat_FREE\" >How can you beat FREE?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#BROUGHT_TO_YOU_BY_PROLIMEHOST\" >BROUGHT TO YOU BY PROLIMEHOST<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-5' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#VPS_SERVICES_LIGHTNING_FAST_SSD_VIRTUAL_SERVERS\" >VPS SERVICES: LIGHTNING FAST SSD VIRTUAL SERVERS<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#DEDICATED_SERVERS_BACKED_BY_A_999_SLA_NETWORK_UPTIME_GUARANTEE\" >DEDICATED SERVERS: BACKED BY A 99.9% SLA NETWORK UPTIME GUARANTEE<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-5'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-13\" href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/cloudflare-is-it-worth-the-effort-that-depends-read-on\/#ASIA_OPTIMIZED_SERVERS_IMPROVING_CONNECTION_SPEED_AND_QUALITY\" >ASIA OPTIMIZED SERVERS: IMPROVING CONNECTION SPEED AND QUALITY<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_speed_factor\"><\/span>The speed factor<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>On the other hand, I\u2019ve seen many comments on web hosting forums from members who claim it slowed down their sites. In an industry driven in large part by speed, in terms of CPU power, throughput, port specs and so on, this constitutes a real concern.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_CDN_factor\"><\/span>The CDN factor<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>CloudFlare is also a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cloudflare.com\/learning\/cdn\/what-is-a-cdn\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Content Delivery Network<\/a>. These are designed to speed up delivery of your website content across vast demographics via strategically placed data centers.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_one-two_punch\"><\/span>The one-two punch<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>So not only does CloudFlare speed up delivery of your website content to a global audience, it also provides some type of protection against common attacks.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to DDoS protection, it offers safeguards against SQL injection (which is responsible for numerous exploits of data driven systems). This particular type of attack allows cybercriminals to tamper with, disclose or destroy data, spoof identities and allow them to become admins on the database server.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_CloudFlare_for_the_small_business_owner_webmaster_or_enterprise_site_owner\"><\/span>Is CloudFlare for the small business owner, webmaster or enterprise site owner?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The answer is yes, yes and yes. CloudFlare provides each of them an outstanding solution based platform to not only improve delivery performance, but also provides some degree of protection.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_CloudFlare_create_some_issues\"><\/span>Can CloudFlare create some issues?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Unfortunately, yes, issues can arise when setting up CloudFlare. I\u2019m aware of a recent incident whereby CloudFlare was set up by a client and their email stopped working. Ultimately, that turned out to be a DNS issue which was resolved fairly quickly.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Using_a_cPanel_plugin\"><\/span>Using a cPanel plugin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>There is a cPanel plugin available for CloudFlare, so if your provider hasn\u2019t enabled that yet, ask them if they could set that up. It\u2019ll make enabling CloudFlare for your sites so much easier.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"From_the_top_here_are_some_pros_and_cons_of_CloudFlare\"><\/span>From the top, here are some pros and cons of CloudFlare<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Pros<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It speeds up delivery of your website content on a global scale<\/li>\n<li>It offers some degree of protection against DDoS attacks<\/li>\n<li>It offers some degree of protection against SQL Injection attempts<\/li>\n<li>It\u2019s well documented<\/li>\n<li>It helps not only small business owners, but enterprise site owners and everyone in-between<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Cons<\/p>\n<p>There are some scenarios where using Cloudflare may negatively affect website performance, such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Slow DNS resolution: In some cases, the DNS resolution process may take longer when using Cloudflare, which can delay the time it takes to load the website.<\/li>\n<li>Caching issues: If the website being served through Cloudflare has caching issues, it can result in stale or outdated content appearing on the user&#8217;s browser, which can lead to slower performance.<\/li>\n<li>Network latency: Cloudflare has servers located all over the world, but if the website&#8217;s visitors are located in a region where there are no cached servers, it can lead to higher network latency, resulting in slower website performance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>One of the features I love about CloudFlare is the ability to monitor your website from a Smartphone. To kick it off, you don\u2019t need to install any hardware or software, and if you\u2019re using the cPanel plugin, it could not be easier to set up.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Distributed_Denial_of_Service_attacks_are_on_the_rise\"><\/span>Distributed Denial of Service attacks are on the rise<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>DDoS attacks can slow websites and entire networks to a standstill. If you\u2019re running mission critical data on your site, you need every advantage possible to keep your site online.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_can_you_beat_FREE\"><\/span>How can you beat FREE?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The free version of CloudFlare works great, but you always have the option to upgrade their services. My recommendation is to give the free version a run for its money, then decide whether their advanced services are appropriate to your hosting requirements.<\/p>\n<h4><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-51 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2014\/08\/unnamed-e1408122780935.jpg\" alt=\"ProlimeHost Cheap Dedicated Servers\" width=\"400\" height=\"80\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2014\/08\/unnamed-e1408122780935.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2014\/08\/unnamed-e1408122780935-300x60.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/h4>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"BROUGHT_TO_YOU_BY_PROLIMEHOST\"><\/span>BROUGHT TO YOU BY PROLIMEHOST<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<p>We\u2019ve been in the web hosting industry for over a decade, helping hundreds of clients succeed in what they do best and that\u2019s running their business. We specialize in Virtual Private Servers (VPS) and dedicated servers, with data centers in Los Angeles, Denver &amp; Singapore.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"VPS_SERVICES_LIGHTNING_FAST_SSD_VIRTUAL_SERVERS\"><\/span>VPS SERVICES: LIGHTNING FAST SSD VIRTUAL SERVERS<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<p>Our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/ssd-vps-server\/\">Virtual Private Servers<\/a>\u00a0all feature high performance Xeon processors and SSD storage in a RAID10 configuration to optimize your server\u2019s performance, which dramatically enhances visitor experiences on your site.<\/p>\n<p>That speed is backed by unparalleled 24\/7 support, featuring both outstanding response AND resolution times to maximize your uptime.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Now is the time to join the ProlimeHost virtual private server revolution.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"DEDICATED_SERVERS_BACKED_BY_A_999_SLA_NETWORK_UPTIME_GUARANTEE\"><\/span>DEDICATED SERVERS: BACKED BY A 99.9% SLA NETWORK UPTIME GUARANTEE<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<p>We only use enterprise-class hardware in our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/los-angeles-dedicated-servers\/\">dedicated servers<\/a>\u00a0and offer a four (4) hour hardware replacement. Throw in IPMI for remote management, support for public and private networks, free operating system (OS) re-installs, and SATA, SAS &amp; SSD (including NVMe) storage. Call 1-877-477-9454 or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/contact\/\">contact us<\/a>. For everything from gaming, AMD and GPU servers to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/discounted-dedicated-server-deals\/\">cheap dedicated servers<\/a>, we\u2019re here to help.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"ASIA_OPTIMIZED_SERVERS_IMPROVING_CONNECTION_SPEED_AND_QUALITY\"><\/span>ASIA OPTIMIZED SERVERS: IMPROVING CONNECTION SPEED AND QUALITY<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h5>\n<p>Procuring an Asia optimized server improves the connection speed and quality between the server and the users in Asia or China. This can reduce latency, packet loss, jitter, and bandwidth issues that can affect the performance and reliability of the server and the applications hosted on it. For more information, please call 1-877-477-9454 or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/contact\/\">contact us<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CloudFlare is not all roses and candy, nor is it thorn bushes and tofu (my apologies to everyone&hellip;","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4515,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"csco_display_header_overlay":false,"csco_singular_sidebar":"","csco_page_header_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1,10],"tags":[120,123,60,29,24,107,113,139,61,33],"class_list":{"0":"post-726","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-geneal","8":"category-tutorials-tips","9":"tag-asia-optimized","10":"tag-china-optimized","11":"tag-cloudflare","12":"tag-ddos","13":"tag-dedicated-servers","14":"tag-dedicated-servers-usa","15":"tag-gaming-servers","16":"tag-prolimehost","17":"tag-sql-injection","18":"tag-vps","19":"cs-entry"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=726"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/726\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}