How to Install and Use WP-CLI on Windows VPS

Introduction

WP-CLI is a command-line interface for WordPress, which allows you to manage your WordPress installations from the command line. This guide will show you how to install and use WP-CLI on a Windows VPS.

Step 1: Install Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

WP-CLI is a PHP-based tool, and it’s easier to install on a Linux environment. Therefore, we’ll use the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) to run a Linux distribution on your Windows VPS.

1. Open PowerShell as Administrator and run the following command:

wsl --install

1. Restart your system after installation is complete.
2. Install a Linux distribution, such as Ubuntu, from the Microsoft Store.
3. After installation, launch the Linux distribution and set up your user account.

Step 2: Update Package Lists

Now that you have a Linux environment via WSL, open the terminal and update your package lists:

sudo apt update

This ensures you are using the latest available software packages.

Step 3: Install WP-CLI

Next, install WP-CLI by following these steps:

1. Download the WP-CLI Phar file:

curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wp-cli/builds/gh-pages/phar/wp-cli.phar

1. Make the file executable:

chmod +x wp-cli.phar

1. Move it to a directory in your PATH, such as /usr/local/bin:

sudo mv wp-cli.phar /usr/local/bin/wp

At this point, WP-CLI should be installed. To verify the installation, you can run:

wp --info

This will display information about your WP-CLI installation.

Step 4: Use WP-CLI to Manage WordPress

Now that WP-CLI is installed, you can use it to manage your WordPress site. Here are some basic commands:

• Navigate to your WordPress directory: Make sure you’re in the root directory of your WordPress installation:

cd /path/to/your/wordpress

• Check WordPress status: To see basic information about your WordPress site, run:

wp core is-installed

• Update WordPress: To update WordPress to the latest version:

wp core update

• Install a plugin: To install a WordPress plugin, for example, the popular “Hello Dolly” plugin:

wp plugin install hello-dolly --activate

• Create a new post: To create a new post in WordPress:

wp post create --post_title="My New Post" --post_content="This is the content of my post." --post_status=publish

WP-CLI has a wide range of commands for managing themes, plugins, users, and more. You can view the full list of commands by typing:

wp --help

Step 5: Manage WordPress Multisite (Optional)

If you’re running a WordPress Multisite network, WP-CLI can manage it as well. Here are some useful commands for Multisite:

• Create a new site in the network:

wp site create --slug=newsite --title="New Site" --email="[email protected]"

• Enable a plugin on the entire network:

wp plugin activate plugin-name --network

Refer to the WP-CLI documentation for more details on managing Multisite installations.

Step 6: Automating Tasks with WP-CLI

WP-CLI can be integrated into cron jobs or scheduled tasks to automate WordPress management. For example, you can automate updates with a cron job:

0 3 * * * /usr/local/bin/wp core update --path=/path/to/your/wordpress

This cron job would update WordPress every day at 3 AM.

Step 7: Troubleshooting

If you encounter any issues while using WP-CLI, here are some common troubleshooting tips:

• Command not found: Make sure that WP-CLI is installed properly and located in a directory that is included in your system’s PATH.
• Permissions issues: Ensure that the user running WP-CLI has the necessary permissions to access and modify the WordPress files.

For further assistance, refer to the WP-CLI Handbook.

Conclusion

By following this guide, you have successfully installed WP-CLI on your Windows VPS. WP-CLI is a powerful tool for managing WordPress from the command line and can greatly simplify many administrative tasks.