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mod_pagespeed 2.1 is here — open source (Apache-2.0): the module you know, plus the optimizer worker

cPanel / EasyApache 4

Install, uninstall, and maintain mod_pagespeed on cPanel / EasyApache 4: the signed EA4 RPM, enabling it in WHM Customize, the cpanel/elevate OS-upgrade runbook, and how the Apache Module Magic Number keeps routine ea-apache24 updates from breaking the module.

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mod_pagespeed ships as a signed EasyApache 4 RPM, ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed, served from packages.modpagespeed.com. This is the package name Google’s archived apache/incubator-pagespeed-cpanel repo used before it went dormant; We-Amp maintains the EA4 build today.

EasyApache 4 ships only on RHEL-family hosts. The EA4 RPM is built for EL8 (AlmaLinux 8, Rocky 8, CloudLinux 8), EL9 (AlmaLinux 9, Rocky 9, RHEL 9, CloudLinux 9), and EL10, x86_64. Each EL major has its own RPM (the module is built against that major’s glibc); pick the tree matching your host’s release. arm64 is not built. The module pairs with the pagespeed-optimizer worker on EL9 and EL10; on EL8, the module runs without the optimizer worker.

On CloudLinux 8/9, mod_pagespeed is an Apache output filter and runs on the standard EA4 Apache (including hosts using mod_lsapi as the PHP handler — mod_lsapi is an Apache handler, not LiteSpeed Web Server). It does not apply to LiteSpeed Web Server (LSWS), which is a separate, non-Apache server. The EL8 build is validated on AlmaLinux 8 / Rocky 8 stock EA4; if you run CloudLinux’s cl-ea4-patched Apache and hit anything unexpected, let us know.

Install

1. Add the EA4 yum repository

sudo tee /etc/yum.repos.d/modpagespeed-ea4.repo >/dev/null <<'EOF'
[ea4]
name=mod_pagespeed for EasyApache 4
baseurl=https://packages.modpagespeed.com/yum/ea4/el$releasever/x86_64/
enabled=0
repo_gpgcheck=1
gpgcheck=1
gpgkey=https://packages.modpagespeed.com/pubkey.gpg
EOF

$releasever resolves to 8 on EL8 hosts, 9 on EL9, and 10 on EL10, so dnf picks the matching tree automatically — the same .repo file works on both. enabled=0 keeps the EA4 tree out of routine dnf update runs; you opt in per command with --enablerepo=ea4 below. The RPMs and the repository metadata are both signed with key rsa4096/F50D6054F10712A0 — the same key as the rest of packages.modpagespeed.com, which is why both repo_gpgcheck=1 and gpgcheck=1 are set.

2. Install the module

sudo dnf install --enablerepo=ea4 ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed

3. Turn it on in WHM

The RPM drops the module file but does not flip it on. Apache loads mod_pagespeed only after you tick the box in WHM and rebuild:

  1. WHM → Software → EasyApache 4 → Customize on the current profile.
  2. Open the Apache Modules step. ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed appears alongside the other EA4 modules.
  3. Tick the checkbox, then Review → Provision. EasyApache 4 rebuilds Apache.
  4. When the provision finishes the module is loaded and the filter runs on every vhost served by ea-apache24-httpd.

The package installs its configuration to /etc/apache2/conf.d/pagespeed.conf (marked %config(noreplace), so your edits survive a reinstall or upgrade). Tune it the same way you would on any RHEL Apache host — see Getting Started for the directive reference.

4. Open the admin console

The global admin console lives at:

https://your-host.example.com/pagespeed_global_admin

Open /pagespeed_global_admin on any vhost — the admin route is global to the server, not scoped to one vhost (/pagespeed_admin/ is the per-vhost statistics endpoint). The module installs and fully optimizes out of the box: mod_pagespeed is licensed under the Apache License 2.0, free in development and in production. See Downloads & Licensing.

There is nothing to license per site or per server. cPanel hosts running many sites can join the Hoster partner program for backing across the fleet, set up through the contact form. Plans: pricing. Support terms: we-amp.com/licensing.

Uninstall

sudo dnf remove ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed

The package’s uninstall script reloads EA4 Apache (/scripts/restartsrv_httpd), so the module is dropped immediately — no provision needed. Your /etc/apache2/conf.d/pagespeed.conf stays on disk, so a later reinstall picks it up unchanged. To remove the configuration as well, delete /etc/apache2/conf.d/pagespeed.conf (and pagespeed_libraries.conf) after the package is gone. To stop the repo from being offered at all:

sudo rm -f /etc/yum.repos.d/modpagespeed-ea4.repo

Before an OS upgrade (cpanel/elevate)

Any third-party EA4 module — ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed included — blocks cpanel/elevate OS-major upgrades (for example EL8 → EL9 or EL9 → EL10), the same way mod_passenger does. cPanel’s elevate preflight stops on the installed package; the upgrade does not start.

Because mod_pagespeed is built for both EL8 and EL9, an EL8 → EL9 upgrade has a target-OS package waiting — you reinstall the EL9 build after elevate finishes (an EL8-only module would leave you with nothing to reinstall). The remove-before / reinstall-after flow below is still required, because elevate’s preflight halts on any third-party module regardless of whether a target-OS build exists.

Remove the module before the upgrade window and reinstall after:

  1. Remove the module.

    sudo dnf remove ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed

    EA4 Apache reloads without it. /etc/apache2/conf.d/pagespeed.conf stays on disk.

  2. Run the OS upgrade.

    sudo /scripts/elevate-cpanel

    EasyApache 4 migrates to the new EL release as part of elevate.

  3. Reinstall on the new EL release. The $releasever-based baseurl picks up the new release’s tree (el9 or el10) automatically, then:

    sudo dnf install --enablerepo=ea4 ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed

    Re-tick the box in WHM → EasyApache 4 → Customize if the post-elevate provision dropped it. The existing config is picked up unchanged. The post-install script also writes a one-line reminder to /etc/motd so it surfaces at the next SSH session before the upgrade window.

Current limits

  • arm64. EA4 RPMs ship x86_64 only. arm64 isn’t packaged yet; contact us if it blocks you.
  • Ubuntu EA4. cPanel’s Ubuntu EA4 support is partial / preview. We ship RHEL-family only — EL8, EL9, and EL10 (AlmaLinux, Rocky, RHEL, CloudLinux).
  • WHM plugin UI. Config still lives in pagespeed.conf and per-vhost includes. There’s no WHM plugin for point-and-click config yet.

MMN / Apache ABI FAQ

The module is built against EasyApache 4’s Apache ABI, identified by the Apache Module Magic Number (MMN). cPanel hardcodes the MMN at 20120211 and the package pins it with Requires: ea-apache24-mmn.

Does a routine ea-apache24 update break the module?

No. The MMN 20120211 has been stable across the entire Apache 2.4 series — cPanel sets %define mmn 20120211 in its ea-apache24 spec, and a minor ea-apache24 bump does not change it. Routine ea-apache24 updates keep the same MMN, so a yum update does not disturb the installed module; it keeps loading on the new Apache build.

What is Requires: ea-apache24-mmn for, then?

It is the safety pin for the one case that would matter: a true Apache ABI break (a future Apache 2.6 / 3.0, which would move the MMN). The package requires the MMN it was built against. If Apache’s ABI ever changed, that requirement makes yum update hold the Apache upgrade with a clear dependency message instead of loading an incompatible module — your site keeps serving the existing Apache and module. dnf/yum default to skip-broken; --allowerasing is not the default, so the update is blocked, not silently resolved by removing the module.

Will a yum update ever silently unload the module?

No. Either the MMN is unchanged (the normal case) and the module keeps loading, or a hypothetical ABI break trips the ea-apache24-mmn requirement and yum/dnf holds the Apache upgrade with a dependency message. Neither path removes a loaded module out from under a running httpd. As a further fail-safe the loader fragment is <IfFile>-guarded, so if the module file is ever absent, Apache starts as plain Apache rather than failing to start.

Do you keep up with EA4?

Yes. We track ea-apache24 releases and publish a matching signed rebuild when an ABI change requires one — through the same signed repo, so dnf upgrade --enablerepo=ea4 ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed picks up the current build.

Where do I check which Apache the module is built for?

rpm -q --requires ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed   # lists the ea-apache24-mmn requirement
rpm -q ea-apache24-mod_pagespeed              # installed package version
httpd -M 2>/dev/null | grep pagespeed         # confirm the module is loaded

If it does not appear, re-check the Apache Modules step in WHM Customize and re-provision. See Troubleshooting for the general “module not running” checklist.

rpm -q shows a leading 2: (e.g. 2:1.15.0-...) — is that version 2?

No. The leading 2: is the RPM epoch, not a major version — the installed package’s version string currently reads 1.15.0. The epoch is a packaging ordering hint that sits above the version number; it ensures dnf/WHM consistently selects and upgrades to our signed build by epoch first, independent of the version string. WHM and dnf may surface the 2: prefix in a few places; read it as “epoch 2, version 1.15.0”.

cPanel, WHM, and EasyApache are trademarks of cPanel, L.L.C. We-Amp B.V. is not affiliated with or endorsed by cPanel, L.L.C.