WordPress on the Stanford Web Service
On this page:
WordPress is an open source blog tool and publishing platform. IT Services provides easy-to-install, centrally supported WordPress instances, at no charge, to Stanford departments and officially-recognized groups for use in www.stanford.edu web space.
Features and Benefits
When implemented on the Stanford Web Service using the Stanford Collaboration Tools Installer, WordPress provides the following added benefits:
- Easy installation via a web-based form.
Install as many as 20 separate WordPress sites in your organization’s AFS web space, depending on the number of other web applications installed there. (Each WordPress installation automatically creates one MySQL database and organizations are allowed up to a total of 20 databases.) - Database backups, application maintenance/upgrades, and up-to-date Stanford look-and-feel are provided by IT Services.
- An HTTP Authentication WordPress plugin allows users to login with their SUNetIDs and have a WordPress account set up under their name automatically (via LDAP integration).
- Visit WordPress.org to see a list of WordPress features.
Examples — WordPress in Use at Stanford
Compare: Centrally Installed vs. D-I-Y
Initializing a WordPress site with the Collaboration Tools Installer requires a few minutes of filling out a web-based form as opposed to a do-it-yourself install (configured properly for the Stanford environment) which requires many more steps, command-line expertise, and takes more than 30 minutes.
Centrally installed WordPress sites come with a “Stanford Modern” theme — enabled by default that matches the University’s current look-and-feel for official department web sites. Do-it-yourselfers are welcome to install the themes that IT Services maintains and distributes, but the installation and updates will always be D-I-Y.
For centrally installed sites, IT Services provides updates to the WordPress software as well as the plugins provided. With independently installed WordPress, the site owner needs to maintain and upgrade their particular WordPress instance manually.
Does it cost anything?
There is no charge for installing and running an instance of WordPress on the Stanford Web Service.
Support Resources
Support is available on all WordPress topics from the members of the WordPress Users email list (see below) and also via HelpSU for issues involving the proper function of WordPress application instances installed via the Collaboration Tools Installer — and the installer itself. IT Services does not provide HelpSU support or comprehensive documentation on how to use the applications (however, training courses are already available from IT Services and other providers on WordPress).
Note: Because WordPress is a popular application that has been in use at Stanford for several years, there is community support available for the pieces not provided by IT Services.
- WordPress Users Email List
- Tech Commons Topic Page
- HelpSU Request (for problems with application and installer only)
Get WordPress
If you belong to the “-admin” group for your department’s or group’s AFS space, you can use the Collaboration Tools Installer to install WordPress:
→ Collaboration Tools Installer
To request membership in an “-admin” group, submit a HelpSU request.
Details about the requirements and default configuration of the centrally installed WordPress service are available on the University Web Services Wiki: WordPress Service Details page.
