You say you uploaded the files to mydomain.com/, yes? If you didn’t upload them to public_html folder, where do you upload them to?
With (very) few exceptions, nothing outside of your domain’s public_html folder is visible to the outside world. So if you want people to see (and you to be able to use) your WP site, you need to upload it to public_html or to a sub-folder inside public_html.
The root folder (on all the web hosts that I know of) is public_html.
If you are uploading elsewhere, that will be your trouble (note: some web hosts have a www or other named alias of public_html)
Personally, I think it is a bad idea to install WordPress into the root directory. This works a lot better and still gets WordPress when you go to the domain name:
http://codex.wordpress.org/Giving_WordPress_Its_Own_Directory
Esmi thanks for your clear, easy to understand response. I’m doing exactly that!
Personally, I think it is a bad idea to install WordPress into the root directory.
Just out of curiosity, why? The only reason I can think of for a sub-dir install is that it makes 2nd or 3rd installs on the same domain a lot easier. Or have you had experience with a problem that I’ve not encountered yet?
(1) I’ve seen neophytes delete files they shouldn’t in the root. Either deleting everything in preparation for a WordPress re-install, including files needed for non-Wordpress purposes. Or deleting one or two WordPress files when they are cleaning up “other stuff” that also resides in the Root.
(2) It allows really rapid switches from one WordPress instance to another, by having each in a subfolder, rather than one in the root.
(3) It encourages initial testing of WordPress in a subfolder, rather than the root, which reduces conflicts with index.html and other files that take precedence on most hosts. Especially on a new domain where the web host has installed its own index.html as a placeholder.
(1) and (3) are why I generally don’t encourage clients to use FTP. 🙂
It will all depend on how many domain names you have set up. For instance, if you have multiple domain names on your hosting account, the directory location you need to install your wordpress installation may be: public_html/yourdomainname (note there is no “.com”)
If that is the only domain name you have set up, then it would, indeed, need to be in the public_html/ location.
Multiple domains on a single hosting account varies widely, in terms of directory structure, depending on the web hosting company. And even the type of account package you have with them.
alwayswordpress has described one structure. But I can assure you that there are plenty of others. I, for example, have an infinite number of domain names possible on my hosting package, each with its own FileSpace. But, in the past, I have had hosting where all domains share the same FileSpace, but each domain had its own public_html folder, and the domain name was the parent folder to the public_html folder.
Point is: it is important to see how your web host has things laid out, in terms of directory/folder structure.
I would like to thank all participants of this thread who have been generous with my ignorance and who have helped me install my very first WordPress Blog. Thank you very much to all of you!!!
