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Installing WordPress

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Overview

To run WordPress on MODX Cloud, choose the WordPress Cloud type when you create a new Cloud. MODX Cloud installs WordPress for you, the same way it installs MODX Revolution for a MODX Cloud.

WordPress has its own Cloud type so that MODX Cloud can:

  • provide features built for WordPress sites and show version information;
  • require Cloud Edge on production sites, because WordPress sites are frequent targets for attack;
  • enforce the list of disallowed WordPress plugins, which protects performance, since WordPress can use up PHP workers quickly when every request runs PHP and database queries, especially without server-side caching.

If WordPress is already installed in a Flex Cloud, use Convert to WordPress to change it into a WordPress Cloud. Open the gear menu on the Cloud list, or the side menu on the Flex Cloud's details page.

Before you begin

Have these ready before you create the Cloud:

  • Access to your MODX Cloud Dashboard, with permission to create Clouds.
  • A Cloud name and, for a production site, the domain name you plan to use.

Backups and restores work the same way as for other MODX Cloud sites. If you restore a backup into a new Cloud, the database credentials and hostnames are updated for you. Snapshots are not yet available for WordPress Clouds. 

Create a WordPress Cloud

These steps create a new, empty WordPress Cloud. The same flow applies to MODX and Flex Clouds, with a different version choice for each type.

  1. Sign in to the MODX Cloud Dashboard.
  2. Click New Cloud at the top of any Dashboard page. You can also click Add Cloud Here from any Cloud Group, or Add New Cloud above any list of Clouds.
    cloud-wp-install-1.png
  3. Select the Cloud Type. The options are MODX, WordPress and Flex. Select WordPress. 
    cloud-wp-install-type.png
  4. Complete the New Cloud form:
    • Name — identifies the Cloud in the Dashboard and in notifications.
    • WordPress version — select the version to install.
    • PHP version — select a PHP version from the list. It currently runs from 7.4 to 8.3.
    • Group — the Cloud is added to your default Group, or to the Group you started from. Change it if you want the Cloud in another Group.

    • Location — select where the Cloud is hosted. Choose the region closest to your site's visitors.

      cloud-wp-install-information.png
  5. Click Complete Cloud Creation.
  6. Wait for the Cloud to be created. MODX Cloud builds it in the background, which usually takes a couple of minutes and longer when the server is busy. If you are on the Dashboard, a notification appears there when it is ready. You also receive an email confirming the Cloud is ready. The email contains your WordPress administrator login credentials.

A new WordPress Cloud is available at its development URL, which has the form [random hash].modx.dev e.g., abc12345.modx.dev. 

Finish setup and log in

  1. Open the new WordPress Cloud in the Dashboard and visit its development URL to confirm the site loads.
  2. Log in to WordPress by adding /wp-admin to that URL, using the administrator credentials from the confirmation email. Change the password immediately after you log in.

For a production site, also do the following:

  • Add Cloud Edge. After checkout, MODX Cloud support guides you through the DNS changes by email and support ticket, and the Cloud Edge plugin is installed in WordPress automatically. See Cloud Edge.
  • Check your plugins against the disallowed list. MODX Cloud already provides daily backups, GZIP and the CDN and WAF, so plugins that duplicate them are not needed.
  • Send email through an SMTP or email service rather than relying on the server's default mail.

Friendly URLs

Friendly URLs (WordPress permalinks) work by default on a WordPress Cloud. No nginx configuration is required.

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