How to Install WordPress Blog on Fedora 16

In this guide, we will walk you through the process of installing a WordPress blog on a Fedora 16 server. WordPress is a widely-used open-source blogging platform and content management system (CMS) that is built on PHP and MySQL.

This tutorial assumes that Apache and MySQL have already been set up on your server.

Step 1: Download the Latest WordPress File

Firstly, you need to log in as a root user and download the latest WordPress file. You can do this by using the wget command followed by the URL of the latest WordPress file.

[root@fedora16 ~]# wget http://wordpress.org/latest.tar.gz

Next, navigate to the document root, which is “/var/www/html” in this case.

[root@fedora16 ~]# cd /var/www/html
[root@fedora16 blog]# pwd
/var/www/html

Step 2: Extract the WordPress File

Now, you need to extract the downloaded WordPress file to the current directory. In this guide, we will extract the WordPress file into the document root “/var/www/html”.

[root@fedora16 html]# tar xvzf /root/latest.tar.gz

After extracting the WordPress file, rename the extracted directory to “blog” for easier identification.

[root@fedora16 html]# mv wordpress blog

Step 3: Create a WordPress Database

The next step involves creating a WordPress database. Log in to your MySQL database using the following command:

[root@fedora16 ~]# mysql -u root -p

You will be prompted to enter your password. After successful login, you will be welcomed to the MySQL monitor.

[root@fedora16 ~]# mysql -u root -p
Enter password:
Welcome to the MySQL monitor.  Commands end with ; or \g.
Your MySQL connection id is 2
Server version: 5.5.14 MySQL Community Server (GPL)

Copyright (c) 2000, 2010, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.

Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its
affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective
owners.

Type 'help;' or '\h' for help. Type '\c' to clear the current input statement.

Now, create a new database named “wordpressdb”.

mysql> CREATE DATABASE wordpressdb;
Query OK, 1 row affected (0.07 sec)

Step 4: Create a User for the WordPress Database

After creating the database, you need to create a user for the database. We will create a user named “wordpressuser” with the password “wordpresspassword”.

mysql> CREATE USER 'wordpressuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'wordpresspassword';
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

Next, grant all privileges to the “wordpressdb” database to the user “wordpressuser” from localhost access.

mysql> GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON wordpressdb.* to wordpressuser@localhost;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

To ensure that the user “wordpressuser” has been granted the necessary access, check and verify the granted access.

mysql> SHOW GRANTS FOR 'wordpressuser'@'localhost';

Example:

mysql> SHOW GRANTS FOR 'wordpressuser'@'localhost';
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Grants for wordpressuser@localhost                                                                                   |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| GRANT USAGE ON *.* TO 'wordpressuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY PASSWORD '*E62D3F829F44A91CC231C76347712772B3B9DABC' |
| GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON `wordpressdb`.* TO 'wordpressuser'@'localhost'                                               |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
2 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql>

Step 5: Configure WordPress Folder Permissions

For security purposes, it’s important to make the WordPress folder readable only from the browser. You can do this by changing the permissions of the WordPress folder using the chmod command.

[root@fedora16 ~]# chmod 755 /var/www/html/blog/

Step 6: Configure WordPress

Now, it’s time to configure WordPress. Start by copying and renaming the wp-config-sample.php file to wp-config.php.

[root@fedora16 ~]# cp /var/www/html/blog/wp-config-sample.php //var/www/html/blog/wp-config.php

Next, modify the wp-config.php file.

[root@fedora16 ~]# vi /var/www/html/blog/wp-config.php

In the wp-config.php file, you need to update the MySQL settings with the database name, username, and password that you created earlier.

// ** MySQL settings - You can get this info from your web host ** //
/** The name of the database for WordPress */
define('DB_NAME', 'wordpressdb');

/** MySQL database username */
define('DB_USER', 'wordpressuser');

/** MySQL database password */
define('DB_PASSWORD', 'wordpresspassword');

Step 7: Install WordPress

With all the necessary configurations in place, you can now install WordPress. Navigate your browser to http://servername/blog/ to start the installation process.

Complete the form and click on “Install WordPress”. The form will ask for the following details:

• Site Title: The title of your blog
• Username: Your preferred username
• Password: Your password (entered twice for confirmation)
• Your E-mail: Your email address

To log in to your new WordPress blog, navigate your browser to http://servername/blog/wp-login.php.

Commands Mentioned

• wget – used to download files from the internet
• cd – used to change the current directory
• pwd – used to print the current directory
• tar xvzf – used to extract tar.gz files
• mv – used to move or rename files
• mysql -u root -p – used to log in to MySQL as the root user
• CREATE DATABASE – SQL command to create a new database
• CREATE USER – SQL command to create a new user
• GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES – SQL command to grant all privileges to a user on a database
• SHOW GRANTS FOR – SQL command to show all grants for a user
• chmod – used to change the permissions of files or directories
• cp – used to copy files or directories
• vi – a text editor used to edit files

Conclusion

Installing WordPress on a Fedora 16 server involves several steps, from downloading and extracting the WordPress file to creating a database and user in MySQL, configuring the WordPress installation, and finally installing WordPress through the web interface. By following this guide, you can successfully install WordPress on your Fedora 16 server and start building your blog or website.

Remember, if you encounter any issues, you can refer to our guides on Apache, MySQL, and other best web servers for additional help.

Happy blogging!

FAQs

1. What is WordPress?

   WordPress is an open-source content management system (CMS) that allows you to create and manage websites and blogs. It’s built on PHP and MySQL, making it highly customizable and flexible for different types of websites.

2. What is Fedora 16?

   Fedora 16 is a version of the Fedora operating system, a Linux distribution developed by the community-supported Fedora Project and sponsored by Red Hat. It’s known for its innovation and inclusion of the latest technologies and software.

3. Why do I need to create a separate user for the WordPress database?

   Creating a separate user for the WordPress database is a good security practice. This user has specific privileges only on the WordPress database and no other. This limits the potential damage in case the user’s credentials are compromised.

4. What does the chmod command do?

   The chmod command in Linux is used to change the permissions of a file or directory. In this guide, it’s used to change the permissions of the WordPress directory to make it readable only from the browser, enhancing the security of the installation.

5. 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 the database name, username, password, and host. It also contains various settings that control the behavior of WordPress.