How to install WordPress for beginners?

Domain name First, you’ll need a domain name. This is the unique name that people will type into a browser to access your website. (e.g. something.com).  Hosting Account Then you’ll need a hosting account that stores the files for the website. When you set up and install WordPress, you are doing it on your server.…

Domain name

First, you’ll need a domain name. This is the unique name that people will type into a browser to access your website. (e.g. something.com). 

Hosting Account

Then you’ll need a hosting account that stores the files for the website. When you set up and install WordPress, you are doing it on your server. WordPress.org provides a list of hosting providers where you can purchase a domain and hosting account. There are several hosting providers, make sure to use one that supports WordPress.

(Precisely, domain means the address of the house, hosting account is the house)

Installation

You’ll need to log in to connect to the hosting account. Once the hosting is set up, download and extract Word Press installation files. 

  • Go to the WordPress download page and download the latest version.
  • It’ll be downloaded as a zip file.
  • Extract it into the location you can easily find.

Connect your server to FTP (File transfer protocol)

FTP connects to the hosting account and drags and drops files to and from your computer and server. This makes the files you upload, visible to people, who visit your domain.

e.g., you use a free platform FTP software Cyberduck. 

  • Open and install. 
  • Click “Open Connection” and enter the information to connect to the server with the required information.

(You should have received the information from the hosting company with an initial welcome email.)

During login, you might receive a message that says that you are using an unsecured connection (FTP) and that there is a secured connection available (SFTP).

In this case, you should click “change” in order to use a secure one.

Click to continue and accept the SFTP security certificate.

Once connected, you’ll see a screen that shows the files you have access to. 

With most hosting accounts, when you log in with an FTP, you’ll see one of the folders called public_html, however, the name might differ according to the hosting providers. 

Click on the folder and anything that goes in the folder will be accessible on your site. However, note that if you do not see any public HTML or HT folder, it probably means that you are already inside the correct folder. So you can move on to the next steps. 

Now we install WordPress

If you want to install WordPress at the root of your site (people go to your domain and see your WordPress site, then you’ll upload files directly into the public HTML folder.

However, if you want to install WordPress at your domain.com/test, then go to the public HTML folder and create a new folder called test and then navigate into that folder.

Once navigated, select all the WordPress files and drag and drop them from your computer into the Cyberduck window. The process takes a while so if the process gets interrupted, it’s best to delete the files and start again.

Set up a database

When you post a post or a page, all content of that gets saved in the database. Most hosts use software tools known as the cpanel for managing the process. If a hosting provider does not have a cpanel, you can search their knowledge base on how to create a database.

Database setup:

  • Login to your cpanel hosting control panel.
  • Search and click on MySQL DB wizard.
  • Name your database. Use a name with no space and save your database name carefully. You’ll need it later.
  • Create a username. This will be a unique username for the server plus the database. 
  • Choose a strong password. It will auto generate the password. However, if you wish to write your won, choose the one with high strength so that it’s safe from hackers.
  • Make sure to save your password securely. 
  • Grant the user access to the database. Click the checkbox for privileges.

Install Script

It is a series of pages where you select and set options for configuring WordPress. 

Once the files are uploaded and the database is created, you can access the install script using the browser to go to the URL where you have Word Press files uploaded. 

This will direct you to the install page. 

  • Select language and click continue.
  • You will be asked to enter the database information.
  • You will have all the values from the previous steps so enter them and click “Let’s go”
  • For the table prefix, make a 3-6 character followed by an underscore.
  • Once the form is completed, click submit.
  • Then click “run the install” on the directed page.

In the final steps, you will enter the information about the WordPress site itself. Here you can set the title for the site. It can be changed later. Now you will be required to choose a username and password to login to your WordPress site. This should be different from your database username and password. Make sure to enter the correct email address as this will be required for password resets and WordPress notifications. 

Note: When building a site uncheck the privacy checkbox that adds code to your site that gives search engine instructions whether or not to index content from your site. 

Finish setting with updating the reading search engine visibility. After completing the form, click install WordPress, and it is done. You will see your username and the link to log in.

Login

Type the URL and add wp-admin to the end. This will lead you to the page where you can enter your username and password as well as receive instructions to change the password.

If you have a problem connecting with the FTP client, then try to copy-paste your login information instead of typing it.

If you cannot visit your domain name, and you purchased your domain name and hosting from different companies, you have to update something called DNS.

If during the database portion of the install script, you see an error message that the word press was unable to connect, then double-check the database name, username, and password. 

If forgotten, login to the cpanel and click MySQL.

Sometimes it happens that when people try to install WordPress, they see a white screen of death. The common solution is to set up a new database and start the installation process all over again.