How to FTP Your WordPress Managed Hosting Site
Familiarize Yourself With The Basics
WordPress is one of the most popular content management systems (CMS) around. It’s a great option for those who want to get started blogging but don’t have the skills. In this article, we’ll help you get up and running with WordPress so you can start creating your own content and sharing it with the world!
Pick A Username
Before you begin, it’s important to choose a username that will be easy to remember and won’t be taken by anyone else. For our examples, we’ll use admin because it is the default WordPress user. So, if you want to login to WordPress as the admin, use this username. If you picked a different username, please use this guide to find a suitable one.
As a general rule, you should use all lowercase letters and no special characters (e.g.!,?, or @). If you use symbols, they should be easy for others to understand and remember. If you have multiple accounts on a single device, be sure to use different usernames so you can identify which account belongs to which site. A good idea is to pick a username that is similar to your website’s domain name. For example, if your site’s domain is example.com, use admin as your username to keep things simple. It’s also a good idea to put your initials or a nickname in front of your username so it’s easily identifiable. For example, if your nickname is Jon, use JN or Jonny in front of your username so it’s easier for others to identify you.
Create A Password
Now that you have a username, let’s create a password. It’s a good idea to use a different password for each site. Make it complex but easy to remember. If you use the same password for multiple sites, even if they’re on different platforms (e.g. WordPress.com vs WordPress.org) or web servers (e.g. Bluehost vs Dreamhost), then it’s a good idea to change your password regularly because if someone gets access to one of your sites, they can easily access all of them. We recommend using passman (a password manager) to keep track of all your passwords. If you’re interested, you can try out passman for free for 30 days. You’ll discover that it is very useful for remembering passwords and keeping track of them securely.
Create Your WordPress Installation File
In order to get WordPress up and running on your computer, you’ll need to download the WordPress software from wordpress.org. Once you have it on your computer, create a folder to store all your WordPress files in. It’s a good idea to name this folder something easy to remember, such as My Website. Inside this folder, you’ll want to store the following:
- A .wordpress file containing the WordPress software;
- A .htaccess file (hidden file);
- A .com file (domain name);
- A .json file (local files storage);
- A .db file (database);
- A .php file (website’s front end);
- A .html file (website’s back end).
It’s important to note that none of these files should be stored in the public_html folder because this is the folder that is intended for websites that you host yourself. If you’re not sure where to store these files, follow this guide to find the right folder. Once all these files are stored, you can move on to the next step.
Move The Files To Your Server
Once you have all your files ready, it’s time to upload them to your server so you can start creating your WordPress website. If you use Bluehost to handle your website’s web hosting, then click on the My Website folder. Once the folder opens, click on the Upload button to begin the upload process. Once it’s done, click on the Open button to view your new site. Be sure to check out the My Website folder to make sure everything is uploaded correctly.
If you don’t use Bluehost, then click on the My Website folder on your computer. Once the folder opens, right click on the My Website folder and select the option to connect to a server. Then, click on the Connect button to begin the upload process. If everything went smoothly, then the upload process should be complete and you can access your new site. Congratulations! You’ve just finished the first step of setting up your WordPress site.
Configure Your New WordPress Installation
Once you’ve uploaded all your files to your server, it’s time to configure them for your new WordPress installation. First, log in to your server and check out your My Website folder. Then, click on the click here tab to open up your WordPress dashboard. From here, click on the Settings icon (top left) to open up the Settings page. Now, you can begin configuring the WordPress installation. Begin by entering a new website’s name in the Blog name field. You can use any name you’d like, but it’s best to use a name that is similar to your website’s domain name. Once you’ve entered a blog name, it’s time to enter a new WordPress theme. If you already have a custom theme for your site, then you can skip this step and go directly to the next one.
From the Settings page, click on Appearance followed by Theme. Choose Use existing site content to start with and then click on the Activate button to use your current theme. If you have multiple existing themes, then choose Use a specific theme followed by the Activate button to use that theme. Once you’ve chosen a theme, it’s time to begin configuring the WordPress installation’s settings. Begin by entering your new site’s URL (e.g. http://example.com) in the Site URL field. If you use a different domain name, then you’ll need to enter this in the Domain Name field. Remember, it’s a good idea to use a different domain name for your website (e.g. www.example.com) so you can quickly find your site again if someone else decides to use the same domain name.
In the next few sections, we’ll discuss two very important settings that you need to consider before continuing. First, is the Site Description field and the Tagline (also known as the breadcrumb trail) field. Second, is the Privacy setting because you want to make sure your visitors are protected while on your site.
Site Description
The Site Description field is where you’ll enter a short description of your site. This is also known as the meta description or the excerpt of your page’s content. It should be between 150 and 160 characters and should be written in plain English. For example, if you are a furniture store, then your site description might read something like this:
“Furniture Store – We specialize in high-quality furniture. We offer a variety of woods, styles, and colors so you’re sure to find the perfect piece to complement your home decor.”
As you can see, this description doesn’t contain any special characters or weird words. Keep it simple and to the point. You can use your own language and don’t have to use industry terms. If you want, you can also enter a brief bio about yourself.
Tagline
The Tagline field is where you’ll enter a short, catchy phrase that will become the title of your page’s content. It should be between 3 and 8 words and should be an effective way to describe your site to someone who hasn’t heard of it yet.