WordPress Lite eligibility¶
WordPress Lite is only allowed for eligible use-cases. If possible, users are encouraged to wait for the full WordPress Service to be available (ETA May 2025).
The final WordPress Service will be more powerful and reliable and will require less technical knowledge from the users.
Overview of differences between WordPress Lite and WordPress Service¶
| WordPress Lite | WordPress Service | |
|---|---|---|
| Technical knowledge required; website owners must ensure compatibility with upgrades | Yes | No |
| Technical knowledge needed to migrate website to WordPress Service (once available) | Yes | Does not apply |
| Allows customisation | No | No |
| Service level | Self-managed, limited support | Central service, full support |
| Training | Limited, general Udemy course recommended | CERN specific training available |
| Allowed for .cern domains and highly visible websites | No | Yes |
| Allowed for personal websites | No | Yes |
| Stable | No, functionality may change | Yes |
| Features | Limited features available | Fully developed |
| Load limits | Maximum 100 requests/second | Not limited |
| Takes advantage of CERN's scalable database platform | No | Yes |
| Backups and restores on demand | No, only daily backups | Yes |
| High availability | No | Yes |
Guidelines for eligibility¶
- Not allowed for .cern websites
- Not designed for high load/traffic websites (max. 100 req/sec)
- Not allowed for Personal websites
- All WordPress websites will need to be migrated to the final WordPress Service once available. The migration is expected to be automated - but we cannot offer guarantees at this stage
- All users need to commit to have a technical person to act as a web administrator in order to maintain their website throughout its lifecycle and updates; and to support a migration to the final WordPress Service once available (rather than investing just on the creation phase). It's the website owner(s) responsibility to provide:
- Content maintenance: update content, review site structure when needed
- Technical maintenance: solve problems, assist in migration to WordPress Service if needed, be readily available to make changes shall an urgent request arise i.e. security incidents or upgrades that require owner action
- Understand and agree, as per Computing Rules, the owner of a computing resource (here: WordPress site) is the ultimate person responsible for its security, including keeping it up to date.
- Only allowed for well justified use-cases who plan to actively develop their sites. Examples are:
- Users who will recreate their website in WordPress instead of migrating the existing Drupal website
- Particularly users who are planning to hire external developers to move customised websites from Drupal to WordPress and need to start as soon as possible
- Users who have time constraints and need to move to WordPress urgently
- Users who have been waiting a long time for a new website
- Requires approval of your Web Representative