Public Linux Environment: Set Up WordPress on Volweb

Overview

Faculty, staff, and students may host WordPress-based websites on OIT’s Public Linux Environment, also referred to as Volweb. A Linux account allows you the most flexibility to design and customize sites and select the plug-ins you want to use on your site. Along with flexibility for your site, this approach requires familiarity with database management, secure file transfer protocol, and basic web skills.

Here are the basic steps you will need to follow:

1. Signup for a UT Linux account.
2. Set up your public_html folder.
3. Signup for the OIT MySQL Service.
4. Create a MySQL database with the OIT MySQL generator.
5. Download a basic WordPress file package.
6. Upload the WordPress files to your public_html folder.

Let’s Begin

Step 1: Create a Linux account

1. Go to the Linux Account Management webpage and select the Login to Create or Manage Account button.
2. Enter your UT NetID and password and log in.
3. Select Create.
4. Following the creation of your account, select Continue.

Note: If you have created an account in the past, you will be directed to the OIT Linux Account Management webpage containing your account information.

Step 2: Set up your public_html folder

A public_html folder stores your website content and includes HTML and PHP files, image folders, and images.

1. Return to the Linux Account Management webpage and select the Login to Create or Manage Account button and log in.
2. Select Create Web Folder from the left menu, then choose Create.  NOTE: If the left menu does not appear, then the public_html folder has already been created.
3. Your public_html folder should now appear.

Step 3: Sign up for the OIT MySQL service

This step guides you through the request process for My SQL service. WordPress sites are built on a MySQL database and will require that you create one. You will use your existing NetID for the MySQL account, but you will be selecting a unique password, so have your password manager ready to record this new password.

1. Go to the MySQL Account Setup webpage and select the Login Required button.
2. Enter your UT NetID and password.
3. If this is your first time using the OIT MySQL service, you will see the following message: No MySQL account associated with your NetID. If so, select Create New Account.
4. Your NetID is pre-populated and cannot be changed.
5. Enter %.utk.edu into the Host(s) field.
6. Create a unique MySQL password. This password is unique to the MySQL login and is not the same as your UT password.
               * If your application is using pre-v4.1 MySQL libraries, check the Use Old-Style Encryption
7. Select Create.
8. Create your new Public LAMP database by selecting Public LAMP MySQL Cluster for Software Collections from the dropdown menu.
9. Under Server Overview, make a note of the database hostname.

Step 4: Create a MySQL WordPress Database

1. Return to the MySQL Account Setup webpage and select Login.
2. Enter your UT NetID and password.
3. Select Create a Database.
4. Enter a database name, such as “MyGreatWebsite.” Please note that all database names are prefixed with your NetID, so if you name your database, MyGreatWebsite, the database name will be changed to “yourNetID_MyGreatWebsite”. Alternatively, you may select Use My NetID if you want to use your NetID as the name of the database.
5. Select Create.

Step 5: Download WordPress

1. Go to wordpress.org.
2. Select the Download WordPress button from the upper right-hand corner to get to the Download page.
3. In the right-hand column, you will see the option to download the latest version of WordPress. as either a .ZIP or .TAR.GZ file. Choose the appropriate file type and download it to your computer.
   Note: In most cases, you can choose the .ZIP file, which works on Windows or macOS.

Step 6: Upload WordPress

1. Connect to the Linux server using an SSH shell or secure file transfer application, e.g.:PuTTY, WinSCP, Cyberduck, or FileZilla.
   Enter the required server information:
   1. Host: linux.oit.utk.edu
   2. Port: 22 (SSH or SFTP)
   3. Username: your UT NetID
      Password: your UT NetID password
2. Once connected, locate your public_html folder.
3. Open the public_html folder.
4. Delete any existing files from your public_html folder to install WordPress in a clean environment.
5. Locate and unzip the WordPress file on your computer’s hard drive.
6. Upload the folder’s contents to your public_html file by dragging and dropping or selecting upload through your SSH/SFTP client.

7. After uploading WordPress files, you must change permissions for all directories and files to 755 or:owner (read/write/execute), group (read/execute), public (read/execute).
   In FileZilla, this is done by right-clicking. In Cyberduck, select the directory or file, then go to File > Info.

Step 7: Set up WordPress

1. Go to “volweb.utk.edu/~netid.” You will be automatically directed to the WordPress setup wizard. Select Let’s Go!
   • If you are not automatically directed to the WordPress setup wizard go to volweb.utk.edu/~netid/wp-admin/install.php. 
2. Enter your newly created MySQL database into the Database Name field (yournetid_MyGreatWebsite).
3. The Username is your NetID.
4. The password is your MySQL password.
5. Select the Database Host. This is the database hostname that you noted in step 3, such as  
   • mariadbx0.oit.utk.edu  
   • mariadbx1.oit.utk.edu  
   • mariadbx2.oit.utk.edu
6. Table Prefix can be left as is.
7. Select Submit.
8. WordPress will then write the wp-config.php file, provided it has the appropriate permissions (see note on permissions at the end of this article).
   1. If WordPress can’t write the wp-config.php file, you will need to create and upload the file. To do so, copy and paste the provided text into a basic text editor and save the file as “wp-config.php.”
   2. When creating your wp-config.php file on your computer, you need to create plain text document. If you do not have a plain text editor on your computer, create the document in Microsoft Word, saving it as wp-config.txt. Next, locate the file and change the extension from .txt to php (wp-config.php).
9. Upload the wp-config.php file to your public_html folder through your SFTP/SSH client.
10. Return to your browser and select Run the Install.
11. Now you’re ready to set up your new site! Enter a site title, username, password, and email. This login information does not have to match your UT NetID, and you will use this information to log in to your WordPress dashboard.
12. Finally, select Install WordPress.
13. Congratulations! You fully installed WordPress. To log into your WordPress dashboard, first connect to the VPN (directions for installing and connecting to the Pulse Secure VPN), then go to “volweb.utk.edu/~netid/wp-admin.”