Our Stack
Named, not hidden.
Most managed WordPress hosts wave their hands about "our proprietary cloud." We don't. Here's exactly what runs underneath every site we manage — what we own, what the host owns, and what stays with you.
Transparency isn't a marketing angle. It's the only honest way to run an ops business.
Layer by Layer
What runs underneath your site.
Hosting Layer
Kinstamanaged WordPress on Google Cloud Platform
Premium-tier managed WordPress with isolated containers, automatic scaling, and an MU-plugin layer we trust. We've evaluated WP Engine, Pressable, Pantheon, and self-managed VPS — Kinsta consistently wins on real-world performance and engineer-friendliness.
We Own
Configuration, deployment, MU-plugin layer, environment management.
Host Owns
Container infrastructure, GCP scaling, base PHP/MySQL/nginx stack.
You Own
Nothing — unless you want admin access, which you can have.
Edge & CDN
CloudflareCDN, WAF, image optimization, edge caching
Cloudflare's global edge network is the fastest path between your visitors and your site, full stop. WAF rules block bad traffic before it reaches origin. Image resizing happens at the edge, not in WordPress.
We Own
Cache rules, page rules, WAF configuration, image optimization, DNS.
Host Owns
Global edge network, DDoS protection at network layer.
You Own
Nothing — DNS can stay with you if preferred.
Monitoring & Portal
TopSyde portaluptime, health scores, AI diagnostics, activity log
Built in-house because off-the-shelf monitoring tools lump every WordPress site into a generic uptime check. Ours understands WordPress: plugin versions, conflict detection, Core Web Vitals trends, change history per site.
We Own
The entire portal, AI monitoring, alerting, and reporting layer.
Host Owns
Underlying infrastructure metrics (passed through to our portal).
You Own
Read-only or admin access to your sites and orgs — your call.
Backups
Daily incremental backups30-day retention, one-click restore
Backups should be invisible until you need them, then dead-simple. Daily incrementals at the host layer plus point-in-time recovery for the database.
We Own
Backup verification, restore procedures, off-site replication.
Host Owns
Snapshot infrastructure, redundant storage.
You Own
Optional access to download your own backups any time.
Security
Cloudflare WAF + hardened WP configs + malware scanning + SSL
Defense in depth. Bad traffic is filtered at the edge before it reaches origin. WordPress is hardened with sensible defaults (file permissions, login rate-limiting, disabled XML-RPC where safe). Sites are scanned continuously.
We Own
WAF rule tuning, hardening defaults, malware scanning and removal, SSL.
Host Owns
Container isolation, OS-level patching, network security.
You Own
Strong passwords and 2FA on your own accounts. (We'll nag you about it.)
Dev Workflow
Git-based deploys, staging environments, conflict-tested updates
Plugin and core updates run through a staged pipeline before they touch production. Conflict-tested in isolation, batched by stack similarity, rolled back instantly if anything misbehaves.
We Own
The entire deploy and update pipeline, staging environments, version control.
Host Owns
Git repository hosting and environment infrastructure.
You Own
Optional access to staging and Git history if you want it.
Support Model
Direct senior developer accessby name, no tier system
When something goes wrong, or you need real custom work, you talk directly to a senior WordPress developer. No ticket queue, no chatbot, no tier-1 reps reading scripts. Average response under 2 hours during business hours, faster for active incidents.
We Own
Every conversation. Every line of code. Every escalation.
Host Owns
Their own support layer for infrastructure-level incidents (we handle the relay).
You Own
Nothing — call, text, email, portal. Whatever's easiest.
Side by Side
How we stack up against the alternatives.
We're not naming names. The pattern is recognizable on its own.
| Capability | TopSyde | Generic Managed Agency | DIY + Host |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hosting layer transparency | Named: Kinsta on GCP | Often resold under a proprietary brand | You manage it |
| Edge / CDN named | Named: Cloudflare | Often unspecified or branded as "our network" | You wire it up |
| Dev hours model | Unmetered — no flex packs | Metered hour packs, overage billed | Your team |
| Host choice | We use the best — and tell you which | Often forces proprietary platform | Your call |
| Direct dev access | Named senior dev, no relay | Account manager → ticket queue → dev | You hire |
| After-hours support | Direct contact for active incidents | Often a top-tier add-on only | Your team |
| Multi-site dashboard | Included for all customers | Tier-gated | You build it |
| White-label support | Yes, by default | Sometimes | N/A |
Ask us anything about the stack.
If you're evaluating us against another managed host or agency, bring your stack questions. We'll answer all of them — including the ones our competitors won't.