How to Install WordPress Blog on CentOS 5.5

WordPress, a renowned Content Management System (CMS), is a robust open-source blogging tool and publishing platform powered by PHP and MySQL. It can be installed on both Windows and Linux servers, offering a plethora of features, including plugins that modernize and empower your blog.

This guide will walk you through the process of installing WordPress on a CentOS server, assuming you have already set up a LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP) server. For more information on different server types, you can explore our articles on Apache, Nginx, and LiteSpeed.

Step 1: Access Your Web Server Root Directory

Start by navigating to your web server root directory. You can do this by entering the following command:

cd /var/www

Step 2: Download the Latest WordPress

Next, download the latest version of WordPress using the wget command:

wget http://wordpress.org/latest.tar.gz

Step 3: Extract the Compressed Archives

After downloading WordPress, you need to extract the compressed archives with the following command:

tar xzvf latest.tar.gz

Step 4: Rename the Extracted File

The extracted file will be named ‘wordpress’. You can rename it to anything you want. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will rename it to ‘blog’:

cp wordpress blog

Your URL will now look like this: http://servername/blog

Step 5: Create the Database and Database User

Next, create the database and database user. You can do this by entering the following commands:

CREATE DATABASE blogdb;
CREATE USER 'bloguser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'blogpassword';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON blogdb.* to bloguser@localhost;

Step 6: Navigate to Your Blog URL

Now, navigate your browser to http://servername/blog. You will be prompted to create a wp-config.php file. Click on “Create a Configuration File”.

Step 7: Setup Configuration File

You will be redirected to the WordPress Setup Configuration File page. Here, you will need to provide some information on the database. Fill in the details as per the database and user you created in Step 5. If your Apache and MySQL are on the same server, your Database host will be ‘localhost’.

Click on “Let’s Go!” to proceed.

Step 8: Fill in the Form and Submit

Fill in the form with the following details and click Submit:

Database name = blogdb
Database username = bloguser
Database password = blogpassword
Database host = localhost
Table prefix = wp_

You will be redirected to a page where you will be asked to manually create the wp-config.php file.

Step 9: Create the wp-config.php File

To create the wp-config.php file, go back to your web server terminal or SSH to your web server. Copy and rename wp-config-sample.php to wp-config.php using the following command:

cp /var/www/blog/wp-config-sample.php /var/www/blog/wp-config.php

Step 10: Modify the wp-config.php File

Next, you need to modify the wp-config.php file. Open the file using the vi editor:

vi /var/www/blog/wp-config.php

Change the following lines to match the database details you set up earlier:

/** The name of the database for WordPress = Line 19 */
define('DB_NAME', 'blogdb');

/** MySQL database username = Line 22 */
define('DB_USER', 'bloguser');

/** MySQL database password = Line 25 */
define('DB_PASSWORD', 'blogpassword');

/** MySQL hostname = Line 28 */
define('DB_HOST', 'localhost');

Save the wp-config.php file and exit from the web server.

Step 11: Run the Install

Now, continue to the following URL:

http://servername/blog/wp-admin/setup-config.php?step=2

Click on “Run the install”.

Step 12: Complete the Form and Install WordPress

Finally, complete the form with your preferred site title, username, password, and email, and click on “Install WordPress”. To log in to your new WordPress site, navigate your browser to http://servername/blog/wp-login.php.

Commands Mentioned

• cd /var/www – Navigates to the web server root directory
• wget http://wordpress.org/latest.tar.gz – Downloads the latest version of WordPress
• tar xzvf latest.tar.gz – Extracts the downloaded WordPress file
• cp wordpress blog – Renames the extracted WordPress file
• CREATE DATABASE blogdb; – Creates a new database
• CREATE USER ‘bloguser’@’localhost’ IDENTIFIED BY ‘blogpassword’; – Creates a new database user
• GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON blogdb.* to bloguser@localhost; – Grants all privileges to the new user on the new database
• cp /var/www/blog/wp-config-sample.php /var/www/blog/wp-config.php – Creates a new wp-config.php file
• vi /var/www/blog/wp-config.php – Opens the wp-config.php file for editing

Conclusion

Installing WordPress on a CentOS server involves a series of steps, including accessing your web server root directory, downloading and extracting WordPress, creating a database and user, and configuring WordPress to connect to your database.

While the process may seem complex, following this step-by-step guide will help you successfully install WordPress and start building your website.

Whether you’re using a dedicated server, a VPS server, cloud hosting, or shared hosting, WordPress is a versatile platform that can meet your website needs.

FAQs

1. What is WordPress?

   WordPress is a popular open-source Content Management System (CMS) usedfor creating websites and blogs. It’s powered by PHP and MySQL and can be installed on both Windows and Linux servers.

2. What is a LAMP server?

   A LAMP server is a type of web server that uses Linux as its operating system, Apache as its web server, MySQL as its database management system, and PHP as its scripting language. It’s a popular choice for hosting websites and web applications.

3. What is the purpose of the wp-config.php file in WordPress?

   The wp-config.php file is one of the most important files in a WordPress installation. It contains the configuration details for the WordPress site, including database connection information, table prefix, secret keys, WordPress language, and ABSPATH.

4. How do I log in to my WordPress site after installation?

   After installing WordPress, you can log in to your site by navigating to the wp-login.php file in your browser. The URL will look something like this: http://yourwebsite.com/wp-login.php. Enter the username and password you set during installation to log in.

5. What is the wget command used for in this tutorial?

   The wget command is a free utility for non-interactive download of files from the web. In this tutorial, it’s used to download the latest version of WordPress from the official WordPress site.