Maintenance isn’t glamorous, but it’s what keeps things running smoothly. Manufacturers already get this. They plan downtime, track performance, and fix problems before production stops. Websites deserve the same kind of care.
I’ve come to see maintenance as a mindset, not a task. The longer I’ve done this, the more I’ve realized reliability comes from steady, intentional work.
I call it PAD (Proactive, Adaptable, Disciplined). It’s a simple way to keep websites dependable without chaos or surprises.
Proactive
Most teams treat maintenance as an afterthought, only addressing it when something breaks or a customer points it out. Then it becomes a scramble to chase down the developer or agency to get it fixed.
Proactive teams flip that by planning ahead, assigning ownership, and making checks routine. The goal is simple: find issues before your customers do.
Adaptable
Web maintenance is an iterative process, and you learn as you go. The routine work, updates, reviews, and small fixes are often where the best ideas surface.
Adaptable teams notice patterns, refine workflows, and treat maintenance as a source of improvement, not just upkeep.
Disciplined
Discipline is about sticking to the plan and not getting distracted by shiny objects. The hard part isn’t knowing what to do, it’s doing it consistently.
Leaders have to set that tone. If they don’t commit time and budget to maintenance, no one else will. Technical debt is real, and it usually costs more later or hamstrings your ability to move fast when it matters.
What smart teams maintain
Smart teams keep maintenance organized around a few key areas.
- Access and ownership: registrar, DNS, hosting, and permissions. Prevents downtime, expired domains, or orphaned logins.
- Backups and verification: database and file backups stored offsite, tested and verified regularly. Prevents data loss and shortens recovery time.
- Monitoring and visibility: uptime checks, logs, and analytics QA. Prevents blind spots and delayed response.
- Security and communication: secrets management, alerts, and incident flow. Prevents small issues from spreading.
- Continuity and training: documentation, onboarding, and cross-coverage. Prevents knowledge loss when people leave.
Even with all that in place, things still go sideways sometimes. That’s where experience matters.
I asked my friend Roger Glenn, a fellow developer with more than 20 years of experience who focuses on Craft CMS and maintenance, how he thinks about it. Here’s what he said:
– Roger Glenn, Craft CMS Maintenance Specialist
Experience builds instincts
After decades(!) of building and maintaining B2B websites, I’ve broken a site every way possible. Most failures weren’t complex. They were simple, predictable issues that slipped through when no one owned the basics.
Here are a few recent examples.
| Issue | Consequence | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Unpatched CMS | Security lapse led to a hijacked transactional email API key used for spam | Applied latest patches, rotated keys, enforced 2FA |
| Bot traffic spikes | Downtime and degraded performance during heavy load | Reviewed CPU, bandwidth, and RAM; added Cloudflare proxying and fail2ban; adjusted rate limits |
| Lapsed domain | Expired card went unnoticed because renewal alerts were sent to a procurement inbox | Enabled auto-renew and added a monitored human email for notifications |
| Unauthorized CMS access | Former employee still had admin rights | Advised client to create an offboarding checklist and suggested SSO to IT |
| Missing images or PDFs | Broken pages linked to private drives | Automated link and asset scans with Ahrefs |
Smart teams don’t wait to learn these lessons twice. They review what failed, fix the root cause, and update the playbook. That’s how operational discipline takes hold.
The quiet reward of prevention
When maintenance runs smoothly, no one notices, and that’s the goal. Kind of like good sports refereeing.
The real reward is calm operations, predictable outcomes, and no surprises.