WordPress has been the preferred content material administration system for a very long time now. Not solely does it energy over 30% of the web sites on the Web, but it surely additionally boasts an enormous neighborhood of contributors who preserve the WordPress ecosystem alive and powerful.
WordPress is primarily a PHP based mostly server software program. There are literally thousands of customized enhancements and extensions to WordPress that are primarily within the type of PHP based mostly plugins. Thus, not surprisingly there have been many makes an attempt to combine non PHP frameworks with WordPress, particularly Javascript frameworks that are quickly taking on the Frontend house in Net growth.
One such framework which is basically climbing the charts is a React.js framework for WordPress referred to as Frontity. It’s developed by a startup based mostly out of Spain. Improvement for Frontity has been occurring for a few years. Nonetheless, it just lately made information when it raised € 1 million spherical led by the corporate behind WordPress, Automattic and enterprise capital agency KFund. To grasp the rationale behind this, it’s first vital to grasp what the Frontity framework is, and what advantages it brings.
What’s Frontity?
Earlier than we study Frontity, it’s important to know the fundamental structure of WordPress. As you may know, WordPress is a PHP based mostly server software program. It requires a server software program like Apache or Nginx to serve requests, and a database software program like MySQL for storage of knowledge (Posts, Pages, Customers, and so on.).
WordPress Structure
When you open, say the principle web page of the WordPress web site, it can name index.php file within the backend, which is able to return the HTML, CSS and JS for the house web page which is able to then be displayed within the browser. Thus, PHP acts as a Frequent Gateway Interface (CGI) for the web site and due to this fact any type of enhancements to the frontend must be PHP-based.
Frontity Structure
Since Frontity is a React-based framework, let’s discuss a bit about React JS first. React is a entrance finish Javascript framework developed and revealed by Fb. This can be very in style because of its handiness in creating fast, steady, responsive UIs. React works as a Node JS module and therefore a web site utilizing React should be based mostly on a Node JS server.
Now, if you wish to use a purely Javascript framework like React to reinforce the frontend, i.e., create customized themes, it’s cumbersome to take action. The reason is {that a} framework like React works along with Node, which begins a server of its personal. And as we talked about earlier than, WordPress works with a PHP CGI server on the backend. Thus, there isn’t any simple technique to construct customized themes and UIs utilizing React for WordPress.
Nonetheless, there’s a technique to retrieve information from the WordPress database remotely. It may be performed utilizing the WordPress REST API, which is absolutely built-in within the core WordPress since WP model 4.7 and above. If we will fetch WordPress information remotely, meaning we will now show the fetched information as we wish. Customers have been utilizing the REST API for a very long time to develop customized apps, webpages to entry WordPress information immediately from the database. These sort of Content material Administration Techniques (CMS) are additionally known as headless CMS.
Frontity is predicated on this very idea. It connects to a WordPress database through REST API, takes care of parsing and organizing the retrieved information. It leaves to you which ones theme you want to use to show the web site. Since it’s based mostly on React, any React theme can be utilized for the web site. You too can develop your customized theme if you happen to so select. The PHP based mostly entrance finish of WordPress will nonetheless be utilized by creators/admins to create content material or change settings. However Frontity based mostly entrance finish might be used as the principle web page of the web site.
Thus, in a Frontity setup there might be two servers required: one is the WordPress server, which has REST API up and working and returns WordPress information, and second is Node JS server which runs Frontity to name the REST API and show information utilizing React.
The Method Ahead?
With the corporate behind WordPress elevating 1 Million Euros and React bringing a wealthy consumer expertise to WordPress, it gained’t be an exaggeration to say that Frontity is the best way ahead for modern-day WordPress powered web sites. The WordPress UI will proceed for use as a dashboard for creating content material whereas the show half might be shifted to the Frontity server.
You possibly can learn extra about Frontity right here. If in case you have a WordPress web site and need to check out Frontity, you possibly can comply with the steps talked about right here to take action.