Did you know that you have to enable Gzip compression in Joomla to make your website faster?. Smaller files takes less time to load which results in faster experience for the user. Upon enabling Gzip the server compresses the files before sending it to the user.
In this post I will let you know the process to test, enable and disable Gzip compression in Joomla. I will also tell you how to do it in the cPanel of hosting.
What is Gzip Compression?: Gzip is a method that compresses files to make them smaller. This means they take less time to load, making your website faster.
Testing Gzip Compression: Before you enable Gzip compression, you might want to test if it’s already enabled. You can do this by using online tools like Google PageSpeed Insights.
Enabling Gzip Compression in Joomla: To turn on Gzip compression in Joomla, go to the backend of your Joomla site. Click on ‘System’, then ‘Global Configuration’. In the ‘Server’ tab, you’ll find an option called ‘Gzip Page Compression’. Set this to ‘Yes’.
Disabling Gzip Compression in Joomla: If you ever need to turn off Gzip compression, just follow the same steps but set ‘Gzip Page Compression’ to ‘No’.
Enabling Gzip Compression in cPanel: If you’re using cPanel for your hosting, you can enable Gzip compression there too. Look for the ‘Optimize Website’ icon and click on it. Then, choose the option to ‘Compress All Content’.
How to test Gzip Compression?
There are many online tools which you can use to test the Gzip compression. GT-Metrix is one of the best tools which I will recommend to test the compression. The site will give you the report about the compression. You can also use another online too www.giftofspeed.com/gzip-test/ to test. It simple, just add your complete website and click on the test/check button.
As you can clearly see that the original file size is 112.8KB and has reduced to 21.8KB which is almot 81%. This really helps in fast page load.
How to Enable Gzip compression in Joomla?
To enble Gzip in Joomla, you don’t need any coding. Its very easy. Just login to the backend of the website and the two simple steps:
Step 1
Go to System Menu and click on Global Configuration
Step 2
In the Server Tab you will find an option Gzip Page Compression, set it to Yes and click on the Save button and you are done!
Once you set the Gzip Page Compression to Yes, check the website again using one of the above tools and you can find the difference.
How to disable Gzip compression in Joomla?
Disabling process is just the reverse of enabling the Gzip in Joomla . Follow the above step and set the Gzip compression to No instead of Yes and you ca done.
How to enbale Gzip in cPanel?
If your host has provided you cPanel control then you can manage the Gzip for all your websites hosted in the server. You have to login to your cPanel and search for the option Optimize Website. You will find it in the Software section Click to open it.
Once you open it, you can choose the option Compress All content this asks the server to compress the files before sending it to the user. This will not just compress the Joomla site but also compress all the files and websites that are hosted in the server. You can almost achieve more than 80% compression.
You can also explore this article to learn 10 additional factors that can help you achieve improved speed for your website – Speed Up Joomla
