What is PuTTY and How to Use It?<\/h3>\n
In MacOS or Linux, there is already an interface required to access your WordPress site via SSH. So, simply use the built-in Terminal to use SSH.<\/p>\n
But in terms of Windows, it is needed to install a client for using SSH.<\/p>\n
PuTTY is the most popular SSH client. Prior to accessing your site from Windows, you need to download and install it. Then use the same SSH commands in PuTTY as you used in Terminal.<\/p>\n
How Can I Automate SSH Commands with WordPress?<\/p>\n
When you use SSH to access your WordPress site, you can automate commands that you use frequently.<\/p>\n
Use WP-CLI or the WordPress command-line interface to do this. With this interface, you can get an access to a library of commands specifically related to WordPress that can be used over and above those offered by SSH.<\/p>\n
WP-CLI helps to automate WordPress management tasks such as installing plugins, updating your WordPress installation and configuring remote servers. The command line helps in enhancing the speed of the process and can help you become an highly efficient developer.<\/p>\n
Benefits of Using SSH with WordPress<\/h3>\n
When you use SSH with WordPress, you get a number of benefits:<\/p>\n
Security:<\/strong> It is possible to access your server remotely from any location until you are doing this on secure interface.<\/p>\n Convenience:<\/strong> You can access the server from anywhere you happen to be. There is no need of accessing the WordPress admin screens or even having a web browser running.<\/p>\n Speed:<\/strong> SSH commands can be much fast as compared to the WordPress admin screen or using SFTP to access files in many cases.<\/p>\n Since you now know about SSH is and the way it works with WordPress, check the most popular SSH commands that can be used with WordPress.<\/p>\n The SSH protocol comes with a wide range of commands. Check below the list of the most commonly used commands divided into categories for convenience.<\/p>\n You will find a range of SSH commands that can be used for working with or manipulating the directories (or folders) in your WordPress site.<\/p>\n pwd \u2013 Displays Current Directory (Full Path to Your Current Location)<\/strong><\/p>\n With the pwd<\/strong> command, the full path will be displayed that displays your current location in your server. When you type this while accessing your site for the first time, it\u2019ll tell help you know which server you are on.<\/p>\n This command will help to move further into your folders, and you will see extra information about your exact location. With this you can check your location, because there is no visual representation that you would get while using a code editor or FTP client.<\/p>\n ls \u2013 Displays Directory Contents (List the File Names)<\/strong><\/p>\n With the ls command, the contents of the current directory will get displayed.<\/p>\n It is possible to use additional parameters for customizing or adding the information that the ls<\/strong> command returns:<\/p>\n Ensure that you type a space between the command and any parameters.<\/p>\n cd \u2013 Changes Directory<\/strong><\/p>\n With the cd<\/strong> command, you will be able to move to next directory. It is possible to move into subdirectories of the current directory or move up or across with the correct parameters.<\/p>\n The command below will take you from the root directory of your server to the public directory:<\/p>\n For moving up the directory tree or going back where you came from, using one of these parameters:<\/p>\n The below screenshot displays that you have been moved into the styles directory and listed out its contents. In case you have an experience with the contents of a WordPress installation, it will further look familiar to you:<\/p>\n Using the mkdir<\/strong> command, it is possible to create a new directory in the current directory.<\/p>\n So, in case you are inside the plugin\u2019s folder and you want to add a directory for stylesheet, you can use the below command:<\/p>\n With this, a new empty directory to the folder will get added to the folder that you are currently in. For adding a directory to a folder lower down in the structure, you type in the structure. So, you can type the below command from the wp-content folder:<\/p>\n rmdir \u2013 Removes Directory<\/strong><\/p>\n With the rmdir<\/strong> command, a directory on your server will get deleted. Ensure that you take care while using this as it isn\u2019t possible to undo it!<\/p>\n rmdir<\/strong> can be used with mkdir<\/strong> for removing a directory in your current location:<\/p>\n Using rmdir<\/strong> you can remove a folder further down in the structure:<\/p>\n Even rm can be used to remove directories, in case you add additional parameters.<\/p>\n You can use the below command with either files or folders\/directories.<\/p>\n cp \u2013 Copy File or Folder<\/strong><\/p>\n Use the cp<\/strong> command with both files and folders for copying them to another location. You\u2019ll need to mention the location of the file or folder to be copied to.<\/p>\n With this, the name of the file to be copied (including its extension) and the location it will be copied to will get specified.<\/p>\n For renaming the file (i.e. the new version will have different name from the original), then you can also mention the new file name.<\/p>\n Using this command you can use a number of parameters as below:<\/p>\n mv \u2013 Move File or Folder<\/strong><\/p>\n Along with copying files and folders, it is also possible to move them. This can be done using the mv<\/strong> command.<\/p>\n Using cp<\/strong>, you can either move a file or folder and keep the same name or move it and rename it.<\/p>\n zip \u2013 Compress File or Folder<\/strong><\/p>\n You can use zip<\/strong> command with folders or files which can be implemented for compressing a folder and its contents.<\/p>\n It is required to include the name of the file\/folder that will be compressed as a zip file. It can be used with parameters that will specify whether you want to delete the original folder or not.<\/p>\n While listing out the contents of the folder, you will see the zip file and the original folder if you used zip -r, but if you used zip \u2013m, you will just see the new zip file.<\/p>\n With the unzip command, a zip file will get decompressed in your directory and its contents will get extracted for creating the folder or files from which it was originally compressed:<\/p>\n If you haven\u2019t deleted the original folder don\u2019t use this command when zipping it. This is because the original folder won\u2019t be overwritten with it. You can use zip -m to delete the original folder when you want to zip it, or use rm to delete it prior to unzipping the zip file.<\/p>\n Parameters can be added to unzip to customize its use:<\/p>\n tar \u2013 Create and Unpack Compressed Archives<\/strong><\/p>\n The tar command allows you to create and unpack .tar.gz archives, which is an alternate option to using .zip archives. The same command can be used to compress and decompress files or folders.<\/p>\n Use tar cvzf for compressing a file or folder. To compress a folder, you can use the below syntax:<\/p>\n The archivename represents the name of the archive file to be created and directoryname represents the name of the folder to be compressed.<\/p>\n Use tar xvzf for decompressing the folder as below:<\/p>\n The four letters represent the below things:<\/p>\n The most common SSH commands specifically for use with files are as below:<\/p>\n touch \u2013 Create a New File<\/strong><\/p>\n The touch<\/strong> command is used to create a new empty file on your server as below:<\/p>\n The file can be created only in the current directory and so, you will need to navigate to it prior to using the touch command.<\/p>\n cat \u2013 Show File Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n The cat<\/strong> command helps to display the file\u2019s contents.<\/p>\n The complete contents of any file will be displayed within the Terminal or PuTTY.<\/p>\n grep \u2013 Search for a Specific Phrase<\/strong><\/p>\n In case the file you need to examine is long and the contents you\u2019re looking for, use the grep command to search for specific content.<\/p>\n In the below example, a search is done for the word \u2018asp_tags\u2019 in the php.ini file in a theme:<\/p>\n With this command, all the lines containing the search term will get displayed<\/p>\n If you want to search for a string containing more than one word, enclose it in speech marks:<\/p>\n The grep command also comprises of multiple parameters that can be used to customize your search:<\/p>\n head \u2013 Read the First 10 Lines of a File<\/strong><\/p>\n To simply read the opening lines of a file, use the head command as below:<\/p>\n tail \u2013 Read the Last 10 Lines of a File<\/strong><\/p>\n The tail<\/strong> command and the head<\/strong> command work in the same way, but the tail command reads the last ten lines of a file:<\/p>\n find \u2013 Search Files and Directories<\/strong><\/p>\n With the find command, you can search through files and directories and return those that fulfill the criteria that you specify. You can search the current directory for all files whose name includes \u2018index\u2019 using the below command:<\/p>\n The syntax is:<\/p>\n You can use the below operators:<\/p>\n So, if the above command is changed to this, str<\/strong> would search the whole system as well as the current directory:<\/p>\n The criteria you can use comprise of:<\/p>\n The search term can be any string that you want to use. But make sure you enclose it in speech marks.<\/p>\n du \u2013 Get File Size<\/strong><\/p>\n To check the size of one or more files in your WordPress installation, use the du (Disk Usage) command as below:<\/p>\n Here -h<\/strong> represents the disk usage to be displayed in human-readable format, instead of blocks.<\/p>\n You can also use the below extra parameters:<\/p>\n chmod \u2013 Change a File\u2019s Permissions<\/strong><\/p>\n With the chmod<\/strong> command, you can change a file\u2019s permissions:<\/p>\n In order to find which permissions to use, use the Unix Permissions Calculator and copy the number you get into the command.<\/p>\n nano \u2013 Edit a File with the Nano Text Editor<\/strong><\/p>\n In case you have created a new file using the touch<\/strong> command, or maybe the cat<\/strong> command for displaying the contents of an existing file, you might want to then edit the file.<\/p>\n This can be done using the nano text editor with the nano command as below:<\/p>\n You can edit your files right from the command line using this syntax.<\/p>\n It is very hard to undo your work as compared to using a code editor or a version control system. Just make minor changes, if you are confident about it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Using the cursor keys along with the keyboard shortcuts listed at the bottom of the screen to navigate the file. Use Ctrl-X<\/strong> to exit the file and return to the Terminal.<\/p>\n vim \u2013 Edit a File with the Vim Text Editor<\/strong><\/p>\n The vim text editor works similar to the nano editor and it can be accessed using the vim command. Which one to use, depends on personal preference:<\/p>\n wget \u2013 Download Files<\/strong><\/p>\n Using the wget command you can download files from the internet. The files will get downloaded to the directory that you are currently in. It is needed to include the full path to the file that needs to be downloaded:<\/p>\n With this the filename.ext file will get downloaded from site.com and it can be stored in your current directory.<\/p>\n This category includes some of the most commonly used commands for helping you to work with the Terminal (or PuTTY) interface.<\/p>\n clear \u2013 Clear Screen<\/strong><\/p>\n In case screen is cluttered, just type in clear<\/strong> to clear it and see yourself at the top of a blank screen again. To have a clean working environment or hiding your work if you\u2019re in a public place use the below command:<\/p>\n reset \u2013 Remove Output from Terminal<\/strong><\/p>\n With the reset<\/strong> command all of your commands will get removed along with the output from the terminal screen and will clear the screen.<\/p>\n history \u2013 Show last 50 used commands<\/strong><\/p>\n The history<\/strong> command can be used to see your most recent task and repeat or undo something. It outputs a list of the most 50 recent commands used by you.<\/p>\n The below commands don\u2019t fit under the headings but can be useful for working with your WordPress site via SSH:<\/p>\n netstat \u2013 Display Network Connections<\/strong><\/p>\n Use the netstat command to see details of your network connection and status as below:<\/p>\n exit \u2013 Exit the Remote Server<\/strong><\/p>\n After completing the work with your remote WordPress site, use the exit<\/strong> command to exit the server and return to your local machine.<\/p>\n This should be always done when you finish working, so no one else can access your server via SSH.<\/p>\n When you can access your WordPress site via SSH, you get a secure and convenient way to work with the files on your site without the need to open a FTP client or a web browser.<\/p>\n Fortunately the commands listed here help you to carry out most of the tasks required to do in WordPress over SSH and get more work done faster.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When you use SSH with WordPress, it can be one of the most secure and convenient methods of accessing your website. SSH is a protocol that helps to access the files on your site which means \u2018Secure Shell\u2019. You can use it to access your site from wherever you are if you have your login […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[121,1471,1472,78],"class_list":["post-9521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","placeholder-for-hentry","category-wordpress-faq","tag-ssh","tag-ssh-commands","tag-ssh-commands-for-wordpress","tag-wordpress-2"],"yoast_head":"\n26 SSH Commands to Use with WordPress<\/h2>\n
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Directory Commands<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/pwd-min.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ls-a-min.png\")
<\/p>\n\n
cd public<\/pre>\n
\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/cd-styles-min.png\")
\nmkdir \u2013 Creates a New Directory<\/strong><\/p>\nmkdir styles<\/pre>\n
mkdir \/plugins\/myplugin\/styles<\/pre>\n
rmdir styles<\/pre>\n
rmdir \/plugins\/myplugin\/styles<\/pre>\n
\n
File or Directory Commands<\/h3>\n
cp filename.extension \/dir\/<\/pre>\n
cp filename.extension \/dir\/filename.extension<\/pre>\n
\n
\n
\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/zip-min.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/zip-m-min.png\")
\nunzip \u2013 Decompress a Folder<\/strong><\/p>\nunzip twentyseventeen.zip<\/pre>\n
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tar cvzf archivename.tar.gz directoryname<\/pre>\n
tar xvzf archivename.tar.gz<\/pre>\n
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File Commands<\/h3>\n
touch style.css<\/pre>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/cat-min.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/grep-min.png\")
<\/p>\ngrep \"nav class\" footer.php<\/pre>\n
\n
head filename.extension<\/pre>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/head-min.png\")
<\/p>\ntail filename.extension<\/pre>\n
find . -name \u201cindex\u201d<\/pre>\n
find operator criterion string<\/pre>\n
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find \/ -name \u201cindex\u201d<\/pre>\n
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du -h wp-config.php<\/pre>\n
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chmod 464 filename.extension<\/pre>\n
nano filename.extension<\/pre>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/nano-min-1024x390.png\")
<\/p>\nvim filename.extension<\/pre>\n
wget https:\/\/site.com\/filename.ext<\/pre>\n
Terminal Commands<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/clear-min-1024x391.png\"){kind=spacer}
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/history-min.png\")
<\/p>\nOther Useful Commands When Working via SSH<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/netstat-min-1024x665.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.milesweb.in\/hosting-faqs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/exit-min.png\")
<\/p>\nSummary<\/h3>\n