WordPress (WP, WordPress.org) is a free and open-source content management system (CMS) written in PHP[4] and paired with a MySQL or MariaDB database. Features include a plugin architecture and a template system, referred to within WordPress as Themes. — Wikipedia
In this guide, I will show you how to install WordPress on a web server using the simplest method… via a control panel using the file manager. Later I will create different guides showing how to install and secure WordPress using different methods while updating this article with those new guides for reference.
Prerequisites
Before starting this journey, I assume you have the following:
- Grade A operating system (Ubuntu, CentOS, RHEL, etc).
- A control panel with MySQL/MariaDB installed.
- A file manager of sorts including FTP.
Step 1 — Download WordPress
The first step on our WordPress journey is to down the latest version of WordPress. This can be found on the WordPress website. Scroll down until you see the blue download button.
Save the.zip file somewhere you can easily find it (i.e., the desktop).
Fun fact: WordPress is the most widely used CMS (content management software) in the world. Which unfortunately makes WordPress a large target for hackers. Keeping your WordPress install constantly up-to-date is a top priority and can be done by a single click in the admin dashboard.
Step 2 — Create a MySQL database
In most server control panels like Plesk & cPanel, they will include a creation wizard to create MySQL databases fast. In Plesk this is simply named “Databases” and can be found under Websites & Domains > domainname > Dashboard > Files & Databases. In cPanel you will see a “MySQL Database Wizard” on the main dashboard. Both of these function the same.
Fill out the information required to create the database. Including, database name, database username, and password.
Be sure to save the information you entered for the database creation as we will need these later.
Step 3 — Upload & extract WordPress
Now that we have our WordPress files and our database created, we are ready to upload those files. In both Plesk & cPanel you will see a “File Manager” option from the dashboard. Select that and then select the root folder (or sub-domain directory) you wish to install WordPress in.
From here you can simply click and drag the .zip archive into the file manager or click “Upload Directory” to upload the archive.
Once the wordpress-x.x.zip file has finished uploading, click the wordpress-x.x.zip file and extract the ‘wordpress’ folder to your root directory (or sub-domain directory).
From here you will need to open the ‘wordpress’ folder, select all its contents, and move them to the root directory (or sub-domain directory).
Step 4 — Run in the install wizard
Navigate to your website where you uploaded the files. This could either:
- The root directory (www.example.com)
- Sub-domain (www.subdomain.example.com)
- Subfolder (www.example.com/subfolder)
Once the page loads you will see the WordPress install wizard.
Step 5 — Install wizard
Following the on-screen prompts, select your language, and click “let’s go!”. You will be asked a few questions, mainly about the MySQL databases we created earlier. Input the database name, database username, and password exactly as you did when creating the database in the control panel. The “Database Host” option and “Table Prefix” field can remain unchanged.
Step 6 — Create an admin account
After a successful connection to your MySQL database, you will be asked to create an admin account with a username and password.
Congratulations! Your new WordPress website is up and running. From here you can mess with and learn about the dashboard, how to create & publish posts and pages, upload media, themes, and much more.
If you have questions about any of our services, please contact us via email at [email protected] or by using our live chat at spinservers.com.
Spin Servers is a US-based provider of dedicated servers & affordable private cloud solutions. Our motto is to let you “spin up servers” fast, seamlessly, and affordably.
