Studio Guide 02 · WordPress.org
The self-hosted route, end to end.
This is the other WordPress: the free software, running on hosting you rent, under a domain you own. Do it when you have something worth owning. If you are starting your course blog this week, use Guide 01 instead.
Before you touch anything
1
Decide whether you actually need this
Nobody fixes this at 2 a.m. but you.Running your own server costs money and time. Do it when you have something worth owning: a portfolio on your own domain, or a client.
2
Buy hosting and a domain
Any host on wordpress.org/hosting meets the requirements. Check they have servers in or near Korea before you pay. It is the difference between a fast site and a slow one.
CarefulDo not pay a host extra to “install WordPress for you”. It is the button they already gave you.
3
Look for “one click WordPress” in your host's panel
If your host offers it, use it and skip to step 9. The steps in between are what that button does for you.
Put the files on the server
4
Download WordPress from wordpress.org/download
Never from anywhere else. Copies on other sites are how people end up hosting somebody's malware.
5
Create a database and a database user in your host's control panel
Write down three things: database name, username, password. You need them in ninety seconds and you will not remember them.
6
Upload the unzipped files to your public folder
Usually
public_html or www, by FTP or the host's file manager.Run the installer
7
Open your domain and choose your language
8
Read the screen and click Let's go
It is telling you what it is about to ask for. This is the screen that scares people off, and it wants four fields.
9
Type your database name, username and password
Leave Database Host as
localhost unless your host said otherwise. Changing the table prefix from wp_ adds one small layer of security.
10
Click Submit, then Run the installation
11
Fill in the famous five minute form
Site Title and email you can change later. The username you cannot.
CarefulNever use “admin” as the username.It is the first thing every attack tries. And leave “Discourage search engines” unchecked, unless you want to be invisible.
12
Click Install WordPress, then Log In
Store that password somewhere real.There is no “sign in with Google” here. This password is the only way in.
13
Log in at yoursite.com/wp-login.php
Bookmark it. This is your front door from now on.
The settings that matter
14
Look at the dashboard
Posts, Media, Pages, Appearance, Settings. Everything else can wait.
15
Settings, then General: set the Site Title and Tagline
Delete “Just another WordPress site” before anyone sees it.
16
Settings, then Permalinks: choose Post name
Do this before you publish anything.Changing it later breaks every link that already exists.
CarefulThis is the biggest single difference from WordPress.com, where it is done for you. On a fresh install your links are
/?p=123 until you change it.
17
Settings, then Reading: leave “Discourage search engines” unchecked
Set the homepage to your latest posts, and feeds to Excerpt, while you are here.
18
Settings, then Discussion: decide who can comment
The same three switches as WordPress.com. Comments on, name and email required, registration not required. The difference is that here you have no spam filtering at all until you install some. See the last step.
19
Set the moderation rules and save
Email me whenever anyone posts a comment: on. Manually approve every comment: off. Comment author must have a previously approved comment: on. Then Save Changes, which is at the very bottom.
Make it yours
20
Appearance, then Themes: activate a template
Everything on wordpress.org/themes is genuinely free here. No “available on Premium” badges, and you can upload any template you buy elsewhere.
21
Posts, then Add New Post, and write
The editor is identical to the one on WordPress.com. Everything you learned there applies.
22
Set the category and featured image, then Publish
23
Visit your own domain and check it logged out
The things WordPress.com was doing for you
24
Install a spam filter, a backup plugin and a security plugin
Nobody is doing this but you.Akismet for comment spam, any reputable backup plugin, and a security plugin. On WordPress.com all three were included and invisible.
25
Keep WordPress, templates and plugins updated
Out of date plugins are how these sites get hacked. Check monthly, or turn on automatic updates and stop thinking about it.
Moving your work across
Nothing you wrote on WordPress.com is trapped there. Tools → Export produces one XML file with every post, page, category and comment; Tools → Import on the new site reads it back. Images need re-uploading, which is one more reason to name them properly from day one.
The reverse is also true: if self-hosting turns out to be more maintenance than you want, the same export moves you back.