If you mean phpMyAdmin, the database managing tool, it’s most likely that your service provider disabled the privileges feature. In that case, the database should already be set up by your provider and username and password for this database should have been sent to you. Enter those into wp-config.php under “MySQL settings”.
For a more detailed instruction, this page in the WP codex might help:
Installing WordPress
Sanne
Thanks for the help. Yes, I did mean phpMyAdmin. I thought that it might be the case that I already set the prvileges when setting up the database on my service providers page, but when I enter the user and password in the wp-config.php, that I set , and try the intall, I get the error “Error establishing a database connection”
Any ideas?
thanks,
~peter
Hmm, that could mean that the entries in wp-config.php are somehow not correct or maybe mistyped, please re-check them just to be safe. Also, the database user needs sufficient privileges to create the tables during WP install, though I don’t know if the error message you got suggests that this could be the problem.
In any case, either version of phpMyAdmin should work, I used several versions without problems.
You said that you entered the user and password in wp-config.php, did you also set the database name?
Sanne
Thanks again. The full error message was:
“Error establishing a database connection – This either means that the username and password information in your wp-config.php file is incorrect or we can’t contact the database server at localhost. This could mean your host’s database server is down.”
I did try many times checking and rechecking the username and password, and the database name as well. Is there any way to find out if it’s because I don’t have privileges to create the tables?
Thanks,
~peter
I just checked, no, it would be another error message. I made a user in phpMyAdmin, set a password, created a new database “wptest”, and gave the user no rights. I then attempted a WP install and got this error message:
“Can’t select database
We were able to connect to the database server (which means your username and password is okay) but not able to select the wptest database.”
So it’s not that, it should be a problem with the settings in wp-config.php, or some other weird issue.
At this point I run out of ideas for fixing this problem remotely. I think your next options are either asking your provider for help, or giving somebody you trust and who is familiar with WordPress your account details and let him/her try.
If anybody else has an idea, just jump in 🙂
Of course, if you want me to try any other things with my WP install, just tell me.
Sanne
Thanks again. Do you think, since I’ve tried with the user and password many times and so I don’t think that is incorrect, that maybe it’s the host isn’t “localhost”? I guess I’ll ask my provider but they don’t seem very helpful. Maybe I should just change providers.
~peter
Maybe it isn’t localhost, only your provider would know this. If you ask your provider about the database connections details for a php application, they really should at least try to help you.
To reinforce my trust in WP again, I just did a quick install of the current WP version 1.5.1.3 in something like 1 minute… it really is that easy usually.
I hope you get it sorted with your provider. If I can help in any other way, just ask.
Sanne
Thanks very much for your help. I finally got it figured out, hurrah!! It was the localhost thing. I guess this was the 1% of the time that it is not localhost and so I just got the IP address of the database from the service provider and now I am on my way. What a relief.
Thanks again,
~peter
Hey cool! I’m glad you got it sorted out. Have fun with WordPress 🙂
Sanne
