Welcome to part 5 of 8 in a series on Kick-Ass WordPress Optimization. This guide covers database and WordPress installation on a Digital Ocean droplet following server and DNS setup.
Installing MySQL and Configuring Your Database
Actually Installing MySQL
The foundation for WordPress requires a database to store posts, settings, and content. Installation begins with a console command:
sudo apt-get -y install mysql-server
During installation, you’ll be prompted to set a root password—this is critical to record for future access.
Creating a MySQL Database
After logging into MySQL with your root credentials, create a database with a command like:
CREATE DATABASE yourblog;
Creating a MySQL User
Rather than using the root account (a security risk), establish a dedicated user:
CREATE USER 'yourblog'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'yourpassword';
Granting User Permissions
Grant your new user database access:
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON yourblog.* TO 'yourblog'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;
Tuning MySQL for WordPress
Optimize performance by editing /etc/mysql/my.cnf and adding InnoDB configuration parameters for buffer pooling, flush methods, and file-per-table settings. Restart MySQL to apply changes.
Installing and Configuring WordPress
Use the wget utility to download WordPress files directly to your server, then follow the standard installation wizard.
Read next.
Parts 6 through 8 were never published. The working set is the roadmap, then nginx and CloudFlare DNS.