Infrastructure Engineering
Server Management & DevOps
Production-grade server engineering for the sites you cannot afford to lose. Linux, Nginx, PHP-FPM, MySQL, Redis, Docker, monitoring, automated backups, and security hardening — owned end-to-end so you stop wondering whether the server is fine.
What's Included
Comprehensive solutions tailored to your specific needs
Linux & web server tuning
Ubuntu or Debian, kernel parameters, Nginx, PHP-FPM, and OpenSSL configured for production load — not generic defaults.
Database engineering
MySQL or MariaDB, PostgreSQL, slow query analysis, indexing, replication, and backup automation.
Caching layers
Redis or Memcached object cache, Nginx microcache, OPcache, and edge cache integration with Cloudflare or BunnyCDN.
Security hardening
SSH keys, fail2ban, UFW, unattended security upgrades, ModSecurity, WAF integration, and audit logging.
Backups & disaster recovery
Encrypted, offsite, automated backups with tested quarterly restore drills and a documented runbook.
Monitoring & alerting
Netdata or Prometheus, external uptime, log shipping, and alerts tuned to the metrics that actually predict failure.
Problems I Solve
Symptoms this engagement is built to fix
TTFB above 600ms because PHP-FPM, opcache, or MySQL is misconfigured for your load.
A VPS that crashes weekly under traffic that should be trivial for its specs.
No automated backups — or backups that have never been tested for restore.
An SSH config still on password auth with root login enabled and fail2ban absent.
Slow MySQL queries killing checkout, search, or admin without anyone noticing.
A dev team that ships great code but has no idea why the server falls over on Black Friday.
Why managed hosting often is not enough
Managed hosting providers do the bare minimum that keeps the lights on: patch the kernel, take a nightly backup, and answer support tickets. They do not tune PHP-FPM for your traffic pattern, they do not size opcache and Redis for your codebase, and they will rarely tell you that your MySQL config is causing the slowdown you blame on plugins. The result is sites that score 99 in Lighthouse on an empty cache and 23 under real concurrency, because nothing on the server side has been engineered for production. The fix is rarely more expensive hosting. It is the right hosting, configured properly, by someone who has done this many times before.
The configuration changes that move TTFB the most
PHP-FPM: tune pm.max_children against the actual memory footprint of your application rather than the dynamic default; size opcache to fit your full codebase plus margin, with JIT enabled on PHP 8.1+ for compute-heavy paths. MySQL or MariaDB: innodb_buffer_pool_size at 60–70 percent of RAM on a dedicated DB host, query cache off (it has been a bottleneck since 8.0), slow query log on for diagnostic baseline, and indexes added against the queries actually hitting the disk. Redis or Memcached: object cache wired into WordPress, Magento, Drupal, or Laravel so that database round trips drop by 70–90 percent on hot paths. Nginx: HTTP/2 and Brotli, gzip fallback, sane fastcgi buffers, microcache for anonymous traffic on WordPress and Magento, sendfile and aio for static delivery. Each of these is small in isolation. Together they routinely cut TTFB from 800ms to 120ms.
Security, backups, and the things that go wrong at 3am
Hardening starts with the basics: SSH keys only, root login disabled, a non-default port, fail2ban configured for SSH and the web admin, automatic unattended-upgrades for security patches, and UFW or firewalld restricting inbound traffic to the ports the application actually needs. Backups: nightly database dumps and weekly full filesystem snapshots, encrypted, stored offsite (typically Backblaze B2 or S3), with a documented restore runbook and at least one tested restore per quarter. Monitoring: Netdata or Prometheus + Grafana for system metrics, UptimeRobot or BetterStack for external uptime, log shipping to a central store, and alerting on the metrics that actually correlate with downtime — not every CPU spike. This is the unglamorous work that decides whether 3am is a non-event or a disaster.
Docker, CI/CD, and zero-downtime deployment
For teams shipping more than once a week, the next step up is containerised deployment with a real CI/CD pipeline. I build production setups around Docker Compose for single-host deployments or a small Kubernetes/K3s cluster where horizontal scaling justifies the operational cost. CI/CD via GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or Bitbucket Pipelines covers automated tests, linting, image build, deploy to staging, smoke tests, and production deploy with a blue-green or rolling strategy so users never see downtime. Database migrations are gated, environment variables are managed via a real secrets store, and every deploy is reversible. This is the kind of pipeline a senior platform engineer would set up at a Series B startup — without the Series B headcount.
What ongoing management actually looks like
After initial engineering, most clients move to a small monthly retainer that covers patching, monitoring response, monthly backup restore tests, quarterly security review, and on-call response within an agreed SLA window for incidents. This is not hourly billing — it is predictable monthly cost for predictable peace of mind. Larger clients add capacity planning ahead of campaign peaks, performance budgets enforced in CI, and quarterly architecture reviews as the application grows. The point is not to replace your in-house team if you have one; it is to give them senior infrastructure backup at a fraction of a senior platform engineer's salary.
What You Receive
Deliverables & expected outcomes
- Production-tuned server with documented configuration
- Object cache and database optimisation wired in
- Hardened security baseline and audit log
- Automated, encrypted, offsite backup with restore runbook
- Monitoring dashboard and alerting policy
- Optional CI/CD pipeline with zero-downtime deployment
Illustrative Engagement
A representative scenario
The problem
A WooCommerce store on a popular managed host went down twice during a launch week, with checkout timeouts under 80 concurrent users. The host blamed plugins; the agency blamed the host.
The approach
We moved to a tuned VPS, sized PHP-FPM and Redis to the real footprint, added the three missing MySQL indexes, microcached anonymous traffic at Nginx, and put Cloudflare in front for edge protection. Total work: nine engineering hours.
The outcome
Checkout held cleanly under 600 concurrent users with headroom to spare. Average page TTFB fell from 740ms to 110ms, and the next launch week ran without a single incident.
Composite scenario based on typical engagements. Replace with a real, attributed case study once published.
My Process
A proven methodology for delivering exceptional results
Audit & access
Full server review — system, web, database, cache, backups, security, monitoring — with a written remediation plan.
Engineering
Tune the stack against real load, fix security baseline, wire caching, and put monitoring and backups in place.
Validation
Load test against expected traffic, restore from backup to a clean instance, and document every change.
Handover or retainer
Either hand back to your team with full documentation, or move into a monthly management retainer with on-call response.
Why Choose Me?
With 7+ years of experience and a track record of delivering results, I bring expertise, reliability, and a results-driven approach to every project.
- Senior infrastructure engineering at a fraction of a head's cost
- Configuration tuned to your real load, not generic defaults
- Tested backups — not just backup software that happens to be installed
- Predictable monthly retainer for ongoing oversight
- Clear runbooks so your team can act when I am not on call
- Honest provider recommendations — no affiliate hosting bias
Starting at
€247
Production server engineering: tuning, hardening, caching, backups, monitoring, and optional CI/CD. Ongoing management available on retainer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Services
Further Reading
Related articles from the blog
Ready to Get Started?
Let's discuss your project and create a custom strategy for success.