Full site editing moved the header, the footer and every template out of your theme folder and into the database. That is a different site to serve.
A block theme renders from stored templates and generated styles, so the work moved from the filesystem into the database and the object cache.
Every request decides which stored template applies, then which parts it pulls in. That resolution is cached, so a page does not rebuild the hierarchy from scratch on each view.
The stylesheet a block theme serves is computed from theme.json plus whatever was changed in the editor. It is produced and cached rather than recalculated per request.
Opening the site editor loads templates, patterns, styles and the block library in one go. Those admin requests get their own headroom instead of competing with visitors.
Synced patterns are looked up wherever they appear. Those reads come from the object cache instead of hitting the database on every occurrence.
Breaking the header now means editing a database record, not a file you could revert in git. Daily backups are what makes it undoable.
With classic themes, a deploy changed the design and the database held content. With block themes both live in the database, which changes what a backup means and where speed comes from.
A classic theme included a file. A block theme resolves a template, expands its parts, and computes a stylesheet — every one of which is cacheable and none of which is free.
Full site editing moves the design into the database, so every row here is about reading it back quickly and keeping it recoverable.
| Setting | What we do | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Template resolution | Cached per template rather than recomputed | Each request works out which stored template applies and which parts it includes, which is work with an identical answer for every visitor to that route. |
| Global styles | Generated once and served from cache | The stylesheet is computed from theme.json merged with editor changes, and recomputing that merge per request pays for a design decision on every page view. |
| Editor requests | Given headroom apart from front-end traffic | Opening the site editor loads templates, patterns, styles and the block library at once, which is far heavier than any page a visitor requests. |
| Synced patterns | Read through the object cache | A pattern used in a header is looked up on every page of the site, so the database sees it once per request without caching. |
| Design in backups | Treated as content because it now is | Templates and styles live in the database rather than in files under version control, so a bad edit is no longer something a deploy can revert. |
Every plan includes free migration, daily backups, SSL and 24/7 support.
Move the site across — migration is free, templates and styles included.