CDN & edge caching checklist for Indian websites 2026

Adding Cloudflare or another CDN to a HostStack-hosted website can cut page load times by 40–60% for users across India. It can also completely break your site if configured wrong. This checklist covers the five areas where Indian website owners most commonly go wrong.

1. TLS mode must match your certificate story

The most common Cloudflare misconfiguration on cPanel hosts is choosing the wrong SSL/TLS encryption mode. The options:

• Off: HTTP only — never use this for a live site
• Flexible: Cloudflare to browser is HTTPS, but Cloudflare to your origin is plain HTTP. Causes redirect loops on cPanel which forces HTTPS.
• Full: HTTPS end-to-end, but doesn't validate the origin certificate. Allows self-signed certs.
• Full (Strict): HTTPS end-to-end with a valid, trusted certificate on the origin. Use this.

HostStack includes free Let's Encrypt SSL on all hosting plans. Set Cloudflare to Full (Strict). Mismatched modes produce 52x loop errors that look like HostStack downtime — they are not.

2. Exclude dynamic paths from cache

Cloudflare's default caches HTML. For WordPress and WooCommerce, you must exclude:

• /wp-admin/* — admin panel, never cache
• /wp-login.php — login page
• /cart/, /checkout/, /my-account/* — WooCommerce user-specific pages
• Any URL with ?wc-ajax=* — WooCommerce AJAX calls

Set these as Cloudflare Cache Rules with action "Bypass Cache". Missing these causes logged-in users to see cached versions of other users' cart data — a serious bug.

3. Cache key design for multilingual or geo-targeted sites

If your site serves different content based on Accept-Language headers or geolocation cookies, Cloudflare's default cache key (URL only) will serve wrong content to wrong users. Add the relevant cookie or header to the cache key via Cloudflare Cache Rules → Custom Cache Key. For most Indian WordPress sites with a single language, this is not needed.

4. Purge discipline — targeted not global

A global cache purge during a product launch or deployment amplifies load on your origin — all Cloudflare edges hit your server simultaneously for cache-fill. Instead:

• Purge specific URLs or use Cloudflare's Cache-Tag system for tagged purges
• Use the WordPress Cloudflare plugin to auto-purge only changed pages
• Schedule large purges during off-peak hours (2–5 AM IST for Indian sites)

5. DNS ownership checklist

Before enabling Cloudflare's proxy (orange cloud), confirm:

• Who controls the domain registrar? The site owner should, not just the developer.
• Are Cloudflare nameservers set at the registrar, or is Cloudflare used in CNAME setup mode?
• Is DNS propagation verified (24–48 hours for full global propagation)?

Confused DNS ownership is the #1 cause of "who broke the site?" emergencies. See our guide on external DNS with HostStack.

Frequently asked questions