WordPress runs great on Google Cloud Platform, however, choosing between the two available options for installing WordPress on Google Cloud Platform can be difficult.

Choosing which version of WordPress to run on Google Cloud is a decision that should be considered carefully.

Your first option is the WordPress stack configured by Bitnami, and your second option is Google Cloud’s default Click-to-Deploy WordPress Stack.

In this post, we will compare the Bitnami vs. Click-to-Deploy versions of WordPress on Google Cloud Platform side-by-side, so that you can choose the option that will work best for you.

1. Software Stacks

Although the Bitnami and Click-to-Deploy WordPress stacks are very similar, you’ve probably noticed a few key differences. As you can see from the comparison, the Bitnami WordPress stack includes additional software components that aren’t included in the Click-to-Deploy version.

Unlike the Click-to-Deploy version of WordPress on Google Cloud Platform, the Bitnami version comes equipped with some additional software including SQLite, Varnish, and OpenSSL.

SQLite

As the name implies, SQLite serves as a simple database solution for small to medium size websites. It’s simple to use, lightweight, and can be used as a standalone option on most platforms.

Check out these resources to learn more about SQLite:

What does SQLite do?

Database comparison: SQLite vs MySQL vs PostgreSQL

 
 

Varnish

Varnish is an HTTP cache server solution that is used by website and hosting companies due to it’s powerful features and flexibility. It offers increased functionality as an HTTP cache solution over the built-in web server HTTP cache solution.

Check out these resources to learn more about Varnish:

The role of Varnish in a WordPress server stack

Using Varnish: a comprehensive tutorial

 
 

OpenSSL

OpenSSL is an open source software package that implements SSL and TLS protocols for conducting secure communication over digital networks.

Check out these resources to learn more about OpenSSL:

7 practical uses of OpenSSL

OpenSSL essential guide

2. User Experience

Although both stacks offer a similar user experience, there a couple of key differences regarding accessing phpMyAdmin and configuring WordPress settings.

Accessing phpMyAdmin

In the Bitnami version, phpMyAdmin is only accessible locally via SSH tunnel. Although this requires additional work to configure, it provides an extra layer of security for your website.

With the Click-to-Deploy version, phpMyAdmin is accessible directly from your domain by default. This potentially leaves your website more vulnerable to Brute Force Attacks, since there is no limit to the amount of times a user can attempt to login via the phpMyAdmin dashboard.

Configuring WordPress settings

By default, changing your website’s URL via the WordPress settings page is not enabled in the Bitnami version of WordPress on Google Cloud.

The recommended method to change your site’s URLs is to edit the default settings within your wp-config.php file.

In the Click-to-Deploy version, you can change your website’s URLs directly via your WordPress General Settings page, which is standard in most WordPress configurations.

3. Default Pricing

Both the Bitnami and Click-to-Deploy versions of WordPress can be configured to operate at a cost of around $6/month. However, the default configurations are different:

The recommended machine configuration for WordPress on Google Cloud would be a 1 vCPU + 3.75 GB memory machine, as configured in the Click-to-deploy version.

If you run WordPress with a 1 shared vCPU + 0.6 GB memory machine, you will likely receive a message that your machine is being over-utilized.

4. Final Thoughts

In conclusion, both the Bitnami and Click-to-Deploy versions are are suitable options for deploying WordPress on Google Cloud Platform. However, both options are configured differently, and choosing the right one depends on your particular situation.

Why choose Bitnami?

The great thing about using Bitnami is that their configurations are nearly identical across most of their stacks. So once you’ve learned how to deploy their version of WordPress on Google Cloud, you could just as easily deploy their Moodle or Drupal stacks.

Another great thing about using Bitnami’s stacks is that they offer free technical and extensive documentation for all of their stacks. Unfortunately, Google Click-to-Deploy offers neither of these great features.

Finally, if you’re new to the cloud, Bitnami might not be the best option for you. The Bitnami version requires more back-end configuration than the Click-to-Deploy version and therefor takes more time and technical know-how to set-up.

Click here to get started with the Bitnami version.

Why choose Click-to-Deploy?

The great thing about using Click-to-Deploy is it’s simplicity. You can have a WordPress site up and running in a matter of minutes, without ever having to configure your site from the back-end.

The main drawback to using the Click-to-Deploy version is that Google doesn’t provide any documentation for it’s Click-to-Deploy solution, nor does it offer free technical support.

Click here to get started with the Click-to-Deploy version.

Conclusion

If you’re new to Google Cloud and are looking for a simple option for deploying your WordPress website, choose Click-to-Deploy. Over time, you will inevitably be required to learn how to configure your website from the back-end as your website grows.

If you have grand ambitions for your WordPress website and want to harness the full power of cloud computing from the beginning, choose the Bitnami option. However, this option requires a significant time investment to learn how to configure your site from the back-end.