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Install WordPress on Ubuntu 24.04
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This chapter is all about setting up the software needed to run a WordPress site. First we’ll install Nginx and configure it with better settings for our use. Next we’ll install PHP and its packages required by WordPress and configure PHP-FPM. Then we’ll install WP-CLI and MariaDB.
Brad Touesnard
Jul 10, 2024
Even after configuring HTTPS to encrypt connections between the browser and server, sites are still open to other areas of attack such as XSS, Clickjacking and MIME sniffing. We’ll take a look at each of those and how to deal with them. You’ll learn what a referrer policy is and how it can be useful.
Jul 09, 2024
In this chapter we walk through setting up server monitoring and alerting on DigitalOcean. We discuss how to investigate problems when you get an alert. Then we emphasize the importance of keeping plugins and themes up-to-date, checking that backups are actually running, and watching log files for problems. Finally we walk through updating server software and upgrading PHP to a new major version.
Jun 27, 2024
In this chapter, we’ll cover what cron is and how to get around some typical hurdles. Then we’ll set up automatic renewals of HTTPS certificates. Next we discuss why we don’t set up an email server and step through configuration of outgoing email sending.
Once you have your server up and running, the first thing you’re likely to want to do is move an existing site over to it from elsewhere. In this chapter we walk through copying the site files, Nginx configs, and SSL certificates. Next we export the database and import the database. Then we test the site on the new server before flipping the switch.
We’ll start this chapter with a benchmark of site speed without caching and end it with a benchmark with caching enabled. We’ll install Redis and a companion WordPress plugin that will work together to enable object caching. Next we’ll return to our Nginx config files and add a batch of directives to enable FastCGI Cache and tell it what not to cache, including some directives for WooCommerce.
In this chapter we’ll discuss HTTPS and why it’s so important before updating our DNS and obtaining our first SSL certificate from Let’s Encrypt. Then we’ll add a new config file to Nginx for our first site complete with a redirect from HTTP to HTTPS. Next we’ll create a database for the site and we’ll use WP-CLI to install WordPress. We’ll wrap up with a discussion about creating more sites on the server.
In this chapter we’ll provision a new VPS at DigitalOcean with Ubuntu 22.04 LTS. We’ll login to the server via SSH, configure the hostname and timezone, install software updates, and set up automatic security updates. Then we’ll create a new sudo user, set up SSH login with keys instead of a password, and disable SSH for the root user. We’ll also install a firewall and fail2ban to protect against intrusion attempts.
In this final chapter, we offer a complete Nginx configuration optimized for WordPress sites. Not only does it amalgamate all the information from the previous chapters, but we also draw upon the best practices from our experience over the years.
We’ll compare ease of use and benchmark performance for three of the most popular server providers.
Cameron Pavey
Jun 20, 2024
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