Most of us treat WordPress like a black box. You log in, publish a post, maybe install a plugin, and a website appears. It feels seamless. But beneath that simplicity lies a small network of programs that work together every time someone visits your site.
The Four Layers That Make WordPress Work
A live WordPress site sits on four main layers of software. Each has a specific role.
| Layer | What It Does | Common Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Operating System | The foundation the server runs on. | Linux (Ubuntu or Debian) |
| Web Server | Accepts requests from browsers and delivers pages. | Apache or Nginx |
| PHP Interpreter | Executes the WordPress code written in PHP. | PHP 8.x |
| Database | Stores posts, users, and settings. | MySQL or MariaDB |
This combination is usually called the LAMP stack: Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP. It is the quiet machinery behind most WordPress sites on the planet.
What Happens When You Visit a WordPress Site
Imagine someone typing https://example.com into their browser.
- The browser sends a request to the server.
- The web server, usually Apache or Nginx, receives it and looks for a matching file.
- It finds
index.phpand passes it to the PHP interpreter. - PHP starts WordPress, loading themes, plugins, and configuration files.
- WordPress asks the database for the relevant content.
- The database sends that content back.
- PHP assembles the page using the theme’s design.
- The web server sends the completed HTML back to the browser.
This process repeats for every page load, usually in less than a second.
The Role of PHP
PHP is the language WordPress is written in, but the program that runs it is built in C. The interpreter reads PHP scripts, converts them into instructions called opcodes, and executes them.
When you install PHP on your computer, you are installing that interpreter. It is a bridge between the human-readable PHP code you write and the machine that executes it. In practice, it is what makes echo "Hello World"; actually print “Hello World”.
A Typical Server Setup
Most WordPress servers are organised like this:
/var/www/html/
├── index.php
├── wp-config.php
├── wp-content/
│ ├── plugins/
│ ├── themes/
│ └── uploads/
└── wp-includes/
On top of that, hosts often add services such as:
- PHP-FPM to process PHP faster
- Caching systems like Redis or Varnish to reduce database load
- SSL certificates for HTTPS security
- Content delivery networks to serve images globally
These tools keep sites fast and secure without changing how WordPress itself works.
Managed WordPress Hosting
Most people never see any of this because managed hosts handle it. Platforms such as WordPress.com, Kinsta, or WP Engine already have the operating system, web server, database, and PHP configured. They also maintain caching, backups, and SSL certificates. You just log in and publish.
Why It Matters
When you understand what is underneath WordPress, the web feels less magical and more mechanical. Problems become easier to diagnose. If a site is slow, you can ask the right questions: Is it PHP? The database? The server configuration?
Even for non-technical users, this knowledge clarifies why hosting quality, PHP versions, and caching policies make such a difference.
In Short
Every WordPress page load follows a simple loop:
Browser → Web Server → PHP → WordPress → Database → PHP → Web Server → Browser
A request goes in. PHP runs WordPress. HTML comes out.
That cycle happens billions of times a day, quietly powering one of the largest ecosystems on the internet.
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