Check the detected server
Open OptiWave → Server and check the detected server type. Server-level delivery requires the correct rules for your host. If rules cannot be installed, the PHP cache path remains available for eligible requests.
| Server | Setup |
|---|---|
| Apache / LiteSpeed | Use the managed .htaccess controls. Required modules and file permissions must be available. |
| Nginx | Give your host the generated Nginx configuration. Ask them to validate it before reloading Nginx. |
| Nginx in front of Apache | Confirm the configuration with your host: Nginx does not read .htaccess. |
Serve cached pages directly
With working server rules, eligible public requests can receive saved HTML directly from disk. Uncached, personal, or excluded requests continue to PHP and WordPress. See the Page Cache guide for exclusions and cache checks.
OptiWave adapts generated rules and its drop-in to your WordPress permalink structure, including slashless and .html paths. A permalink change triggers rule and drop-in recompilation; have your host apply an updated Nginx snippet when needed.
Choose supported compression
Static Compression offers None, GZIP, and Brotli where supported. GZIP is the initial default. Unsupported methods are disabled in the interface.
Pre-compress Cache Files (.gz / .br) prepares supported compressed HTML variants on disk so they can be served directly. A plain HTML copy remains available.
Enable browser caching for assets
Enable Browser Caching (Expires Headers) is on by default. Installed server rules tell browsers to reuse static files such as images, styles, scripts, and fonts. This is separate from the server's HTML page cache.
Understand the pristine backup
Before its first modification, OptiWave saves the original file as .htaccess.bak in the WordPress root. It keeps one pristine snapshot, not a series of timestamped backups.
On deactivation or clean uninstall, OptiWave restores that snapshot and removes the backup. Coordinate later manual .htaccess edits with your host: restoring the pristine snapshot returns to the pre-OptiWave configuration.
Verify with your host
Check a public cached page while logged out. Confirm its cache header and inspect Content-Encoding for supported compression. If server rules cause a problem, restore the known-good configuration with your host, then confirm the normal PHP path works before retrying.
See the server screen
