You want to install WordPress yourself and are not sure what you need to pay attention to and what the most important steps are? Installing WordPress yourself can be a rewarding challenge.
Step 1: Preparation
Before we dive into the technical details, it is important to make sure that all requirements are met. Choose a hosting provider that meets your needs. It is important that you have FTP access and can create a database. With most providers, you can already secure your desired domain.
Step 2: Download WP and unzip files
After all the preparation, you can now - if you haven't already done so - download the free WordPress file via https://de.WordPress.org/ download. You need to unzip the contained ZIP files on your PC or laptop. Attention: Do not confuse WordPress.org and WordPress.com!
Step 3: Create MySQL database for the WordPress installation
If a MySQL database does not yet exist on your server, it must be created for the WordPress installation. You can usually find the MySQL database in the "Database" menu item - however, this varies from provider to provider. Make a note of the access data and password, as we will need these in step 6.
Step 4: Customizing the WordPress file
Before installing WordPress on the server, you need to make small adjustments to your WordPress file. It is best to work through the points one after the other so that nothing gets lost:
- Duplicate the wp-config-sample.php file and rename the duplicate to wp-config.php to
- Open the file with the text editor and insert the access data from step 3
- Replace database_name_insert_here with your individually selected database name
- replace username_insert_here with your MYSQL database username
- replace password_insert_here with your password
- replace localhost with the MYSQL database server address (in some cases this step is not needed - but better safe than sorry)
- Replace the safety key with any security key you have created yourself or generated on the Internet
- Save and close (you've almost done it!)
Step 5: Create and upload FTP access
To transfer files to your booked server, you need an FTP program. There are various free tools for Mac and Windows, such as Filezilla or Cyberdruck. In the FTP program, you must now enter the access data under "FTP access" of your hoster.
Open the FTP program of your choice and log in with your access data. If you have done everything correctly, you should now see two windows - one for the server and one for the PC. Now you can right-click on "Upload" to upload the files of the unzipped WordPress folder to the server via FTP.
Step 6: Using WordPress and starting the installation
If you now finally want to create your WordPress website, you only have to make a few clicks and then finally start the actual work. Now go to your domain that you selected in step 1. If that doesn't work, you can also add /wp-admin/install.php after your domain and use it to call up the page. Follow the instructions that appear in the window and choose your username and password for WordPress. Once you have completed all the steps, you can always add /wp-admin/ to your domain in future and use it to visit the backend of your WordPress site.
