Glossary
Plain-language explanations of PHP, WordPress, security and hosting terms, for site owners who want to understand what is going on and what to do next.
Browse by category
- PHP and versions13 terms
- Security14 terms
- Web basics9 terms
- WordPress9 terms
- Hosting and infrastructure10 terms
- Static sites10 terms
All terms
A
- Active supportActive support is the phase in which a PHP version is fully looked after: both ordinary bugs and security problems get fixed, with regular updates.
- Attack surfaceThe attack surface is the total of all places where an attacker could try to get in, such as logins, forms, plugins and the code on your server.
B
- BackportA backport takes a fix made for a newer version of software and applies it to an older version, so the old one gets the fix without a full upgrade.
- BackupA backup is a separate copy of your website's files and database, so you can bring the site back after a mistake, a hack or a failed update.
C
- CacheA cache is a store of ready-made copies, such as finished pages, so a website or browser can show something instantly instead of building it again.
- CDNA CDN is a network of servers around the world that keeps copies of your website close to your visitors, so pages load fast wherever they are.
- CISA KEVCISA KEV is a list kept by the US cybersecurity agency CISA of security weaknesses that attackers are known to have used in real attacks.
- ComposerComposer is a tool that downloads the code libraries a PHP project needs and notes exactly which versions, so the project can be rebuilt the same way anywhere.
- Content management system (CMS)A content management system (CMS) is software that lets you edit the pages, texts and images of your website by logging in, without writing any code.
- Content Security Policy (CSP)A Content Security Policy (CSP) is a rule your site sends to browsers that lists where scripts, styles and images on a page may come from. All else is blocked.
- Cross-site scripting (XSS)Cross-site scripting (XSS) is an attack that sneaks a harmful script into one of your pages, so it runs in your visitors' browsers as if you had placed it.
- cURLcURL is a tool that lets software, such as PHP, fetch information from other websites and services, for example to check for updates or send an order.
- CVEA CVE is a public ID number for one known security weakness in software, such as CVE-2026-109618, so everyone talks about the same problem.
- CVSSCVSS is a score from 0 to 10 that shows how serious a security weakness is, so you can see at a glance which problems to deal with first.
D
- DeploymentA deployment is the step that puts a new version of your website live for visitors, ideally automated, tested and easy to undo.
- DeprecationA deprecation is an early warning that a feature still works today but will be removed in a future PHP version, so code using it must be changed in time.
- DNSDNS is the internet's phone book: it looks up a domain name, such as yourcompany.com, and tells browsers which computer holds that website.
- Domain nameA domain name is the address people type to reach your website, such as yourcompany.com. It points visitors to wherever your site is hosted.
E
- Edge computingEdge computing means running small bits of code on servers close to the visitor, instead of on one central server far away.
- End of life (EOL)End of life (EOL) means the makers have stopped looking after a version of software. It still works, but it no longer gets updates, not even security fixes.
- Error logAn error log is a file where your website's software writes down what went wrong, with the time and place. It is the first thing to check when a site breaks.
- ExploitAn exploit is a piece of code or a method that turns a software weakness into a real attack. A proof of concept only shows that the attack works.
H
- Headless CMSA headless CMS is a system for editing content that has no website attached; a separate front end takes the content and builds the pages visitors see.
- Hosting control panelA hosting control panel, such as cPanel, Plesk or DirectAdmin, is the web page where you manage your domain, email, databases and PHP version.
- HTTP headerAn HTTP header is a short line of extra information that a browser and a website send each other with every page request, invisible to the visitor.
- HTTP status codeAn HTTP status code is a three-digit number a website sends back with every page request to say how it went, such as 200 for OK or 500 for an error.
J
L
M
- memory_limitmemory_limit is a PHP setting that decides how much memory the code behind one page may use. If it needs more, it stops with an error.
- mod_phpmod_php is an older way of running PHP, in which PHP is built into Apache, the program that answers visitors, instead of running as a separate helper.
N
O
P
- Page builderA page builder is a WordPress add-on, such as Elementor, that lets you design pages by dragging blocks around instead of working with code.
- PHPPHP is a programming language that builds your web pages on the computer that hosts your site, just before they reach the visitor. WordPress runs on it.
- PHP versionA PHP version is a numbered edition of PHP, like 8.3. Each edition is looked after for a limited time, then gets security fixes only, then nothing.
- PHP-FPMPHP-FPM is a helper on your hosting that runs your site's PHP code as a separate job and hands the finished page back to the program that answers visitors.
- php.iniphp.ini is the settings file for PHP on your hosting. It sets limits, such as how much memory a script may use, how big an upload may be and if errors show.
R
- Remote code execution (RCE)Remote code execution (RCE) means an attacker can make the computer that hosts your site run their own commands from afar. It is among the most serious flaws.
- RollbackA rollback means going back to the last version of your website that worked, after an update has gone wrong.
S
- Security advisoryA security advisory is an official notice from a software maker about a security weakness: what it is, which versions are affected and how to fix it.
- Security headersSecurity headers are hidden instructions your site sends with each page that tell the visitor's browser which protections to switch on.
- Security patchA security patch is a software update that closes one known security weakness and adds nothing else, so installing it protects you against that problem.
- Security supportSecurity support is a phase in which a PHP version only gets fixes for security problems. Ordinary bugs are no longer repaired.
- ServerlessServerless is a way to run code without looking after your own server: the provider runs your small pieces of code when needed and keeps the machinery updated.
- Shared hostingShared hosting is a hosting plan where many websites share one computer. It is cheap and simple, but your host decides which PHP versions you can use.
- SQL injectionSQL injection is an attack where text typed into a form or web address is slipped into the database as a command, letting the attacker read or change data.
- SSL/TLS certificateAn SSL/TLS certificate proves your website is really yours and scrambles the data between visitor and site. It shows as HTTPS and a padlock in the address bar.
- SSRFSSRF is an attack that tricks your website's server into making requests for the attacker, for example to private systems that are closed to the outside.
- Staging environmentA staging environment is a private copy of your website where you try updates first, so any mistakes happen there and not on the live site.
- Static site generatorA static site generator, such as Astro or Hugo, is a tool that builds all the pages of a website in advance, so visitors get ready-made files.
- Static websiteA static website is made of ready-made page files that the server hands over as they are, with no PHP code or database working behind the scenes.
T
V
- VPSA VPS (virtual private server) is your own virtual computer inside a bigger shared machine. You get more control than on shared hosting, and more to manage.
- VulnerabilityA vulnerability is a weakness in software that an attacker can use to do something the software was never meant to allow, such as reading private data.
W
- Web hostingWeb hosting is the service that keeps your website's files on a computer that is always online, so visitors can open your site at any time.
- Web serverA web server is the program, such as Apache, Nginx or LiteSpeed, that answers when a visitor opens your site and sends back the page and files.
- WooCommerceWooCommerce is a free add-on for WordPress that turns your website into a webshop, with products, a shopping cart and a checkout.
- WordPressWordPress is free software for building and editing a website in your browser. It is written in PHP, so it builds each page when someone visits.
- WordPress pluginA WordPress plugin is an add-on you install in WordPress to give your site extra features, such as contact forms, SEO tools or a webshop.
- WordPress recovery modeWordPress recovery mode is a safe mode that starts after a serious error, so you can still log in and switch off the plugin or theme that broke your site.
- WordPress themeA WordPress theme is a ready-made package that decides how your WordPress site looks and how its pages are laid out. Change the theme and the design changes.
- WP_DEBUGWP_DEBUG is a WordPress setting that makes hidden errors visible or saves them to a file, which helps find out why a site shows a blank page.
X
Z
Related pages
- Explained in plain languagePHP2Shell without jargon, in five minutes
- Status overviewConfirmed facts with source and time
- Supported PHP versionsWhich versions get fixes right now
- All servicesOverview of what we fix, update and rebuild
- Exposure CheckFree, passive check of your PHP site
- All CMS alternativesStay, move, headless or static: compared
- Domain
- Check
- Result
- Report
We are checking
We only read what your site already sends in public. This takes a few seconds.
- Looking up the domain
- Connecting to your site
- Reading the headers
- Identifying the platform
- Identifying the CDN or firewall
Request a free audit
Adds platform, firewall or CDN, hosting and your previous scan. We add your result to the form. A person replies within 1 business day.
Details
- Website
- PHP
- PHP version
- Checked
Headers we looked at
What this does not tell you
Read how to find your PHP version yourself
Ask your hosting provider
Copy this question and send it to your hosting provider or developer. You do not need to give us an email address for this.
Which PHP version does this website use, and how do I check that in my hosting panel?
Where should we send your report?
You see the report below. The email version, ready to forward to your web developer, follows.
Your full report
- Website
- PHP
- PHP version
- Platform
- Firewall/CDN
- Hosting
- Previous scan
Request a free audit
We add your result to the form. A person replies within 1 business day.