##Watch
To finish off 2019, here are 36 of my favourite Easy-To-Follow Magento 2 Tips
Installation Tips
1. WAMP/AMPPS
Avoid using local tools like WAMP or AMPPS. These tools actually seem create issues when Installing, Running or Upgrading Magento 2
2. Softaculous
Avoid one-click installation tools like Softaculous. The method that it uses to install Magento 2 causes issues during Updates, Upgrades or even installing 3rd party modules.
3. Virtual Machines
If you want to work in a local environment then use a Virtual Machine tools such as VirtualBox. This allows you to simulate an actual web server with the ideal hosting environment but run on your computer. Read More…
4. Developer Mode
After installing Magento 2, switch to Developer Mode to help you configure and debug your store more easily. Default and Production Mode severely hinder your progress when you’re trying to work out why something isn’t working correctly. Read More…
5. Wait a few days…
Don’t always be the first to install Updates or Upgrades as soon as they come out. Giving it a couple of days will allow others to identify any bugs that came out with that release and provide workarounds.
6. Wait for 3rd party support
If a Magento Upgrade supports something new (for example PHP 7.3), then don’t attempt to upgrade anything until you know for sure that all of your 3rd party modules support it too - Otherwise parts of your store may not work afterwards.
7. MySQL Variables
Some default variables in MySQL are quite low. Look at increasing the innodb-buffer-pool-size to around 2Gig if your server has the spare memory. You’ll find this will improve your system performance. The better your server specs, the more room you’ll have to tweak these settings.
8. Set a PHP memory_limit
After installing Magento for the first time, be sure to amend your .htaccess file to remove the PHP memory_limit bottleneck. Read More…
9. Set a PHP memory_limit (again)
After upgrading Magento make sure you go back and update your PHP memory_limit again because any customisations to the file will be reset.
Backend Tips
10. WYSIWYG Editor
Disable the WYSIWYG Editor by default. This ensures that the TinyMCE Editor doesn’t end up breaking any Theme Shortcodes when you save any changes. You can find the setting under Stores > Configuration > General > Content Management
11. Flat Catalog
To improve Frontend performance on Magento 2.2 or lower, enable Flat Catalog. Otherwise, if you’re running 2.3 or higher then disable it. You can find the setting under Stores > Configuration > General > Catalog. Read More…
12. Redirect Loops
To avoid redirect loops when setting up your Domain and SSL then go in the order of
1. Update your DNS
2. Update your Base URLs in the Magento Backend
3. Install your SSL Certificates
4. Then enable SSL support in the Magento Backend
13. Importing Tax Rules
You can’t import Tax Zones and Rates from the Tax Zones and Rates page. However, you can import them via the Tax Rule page. You’ll see the Import option when you Add New Tax Rule (at the bottom of the page)
14. Enable Backups
After installing Magento, make sure to Enable Backups in the settings. This setting can be found under Stores > Configuration > Advanced > System
15. Remove partner modules
Magento comes packaged with a variety of partner modules that don’t do much unless you have additional monthly fees. These modules can easily be disabled to reduce clutter and improve performance. Read More…
16. Admin Sessions
To avoid getting kicked out of Magento after 15 minute of activity then increase the Admin Session Lifetime from 900 to 3600 seconds. This can be adjusted under Stores > Configuration > Admin > Security
17. Sender Names
When setting up Store Email Addresses, make sure you include your Company Name in the Sender Name field. Otherwise your customers won’t know who the email came from. Here’s what it looks like if I just enter “Sales”… And this is how it looks if I enter “Example.com Sales”. This can be adjusted under Stores > Configuration > General > Store Email Addresses
18. Maintenance Mode
Update the default Maintenance Mode page that your customers see with something more customer friendly. This template is what your customers see whenever you Update, Upgrade, Install a module or backup your store. This is how it looks by default… And here’s an example I made earlier. Read More…
19. Indexing
To improve system performance, change the Index Mode from Update on Save to Update on Schedule. The settings is under System > Index Management. Read More…
20. Customer Passwords
Stop your customers from getting frustrated when they create an account by reducing the number of password requirements from 3 to 2 (or even 1). This setting is under Stores > Configuration > Customers > Customer Configuration > Password Options
21. Grid Views
Reduce clutter in the Sales and Catalog grids by creating custom views. Set up each view based on certain tasks you might regularly undertake.
22. Startup Page
When logging into Magento, change the default page you see to something more useful than the Dashboard - For example, the Sales grid. This setting us under Stores > Configuration > Advanced > Admin > Startup Page
23. JS Bundling
Avoid JS Bundling. It’s like trying to hammer a nail into a wall with a wrecking ball - It’ll do more harm than good with your page load times.
24. JS/CSS Optimisation
Before launching your store in Production Mode, be sure to optimise your JS and CSS files by enabling the following options. These settings are found in Stores > Configuration > Advanced > Developer. Once in Production Mode, these settings are hidden and can only be adjusted via the Command Line Interface:
- JavaScript Settings
- Merge JavaScript Files: Yes
- Minify JavaScript Files: Yes
- CSS Settings
- Merge CSS Files: Yes
- Minify CSS Files: Yes
Web Server Tips
25. Putty.exe
When you create a bookmark for your web server in Putty, you can stop your session from timing out by going into “Connection” and changing “Seconds between keepalives” to “60”.
26. Magento CLI Shortcuts
Often you can use shorthand when running Magento commands in the Command Line Interface. For example, you can actual type bin/magento c:c instead of bin/magento cache:clean
27. Magento CLI Reminders
If you’re midway through typing a bin/magento command and can’t remember how it ends, then simply press Enter to display the list of available options.
28. Module Versions
To quickly see what versions of modules you have installed, simply run the following command from the Command Line Interface (composer show). And if you want to narrow the results down to a specific module (e.g. amazon), then enter (composer show | grep amazon)
29. Production Mode
Don’t forget to switch to Production Mode before your store goes live. The process takes a few minutes, but it’s the most optimised state for your customers to view your site. Read More…
30. Rsync
When moving large amounts of files between servers (for example when migrating servers or building a Dev Server), use the rsync command to transfer the files between the servers. Typically an 8 Gig can be transferred in a matter of minutes. Whereas downloading the files and re-uploading them again can take several hours - Plus if your connection gets interrupted then you might have to start over. Read More…
Security Tips
31. Remove Accounts
When staff leave, be sure to set their User Account to Inactive or simply delete it. This reduces the risk of malicious activity.
32. User Roles
Take advantage of User Roles for your Admins. Limiting their access is both great for security and also reduces the chances of them changing any settings that they shouldn’t. You can configure this under System > User Roles
33. Usernames
Avoid using obvious login names like “Bob”, “Sales” or “Admin”. It’s much harder to brute force logins when you have to guess both a username and a password.
34. reCaptcha
Ensure you setup reCaptcha for any Frontend forms. This stops bots from creating malicious accounts or spam messages. You can configure this under Stores > Configuration > Security > Google reCaptcha > Frontend.
35. Magento Security Scan
Be sure to setup your free Magento Security Scan. You can sign up to this service by logging into your Magento Marketplace account. Each week you’ll get an update if any potential security risks have been identified.
36. Unsupported Modules
Avoid using 3rd party modules that aren’t well supported. Unsupported modules could stop you from being able to upgrade to the latest version of Magento in the future.