Support Archives

How to Install WordPress on Plesk Obsidian: A Beginner’s Guide

September 12, 2024

Installing WordPress on your UK Cheapest Plesk Obsidian server is incredibly easy, even if you’re new to web hosting. With Plesk’s user-friendly interface, you can set up WordPress in just a few clicks. Follow this guide to get your WordPress site up and running!

Step 1: Log In to Your Plesk Control Panel

Start by logging into your Plesk Obsidian control panel. You’ll find the login details in the welcome email from UK Cheapest, or you can log in at:

URL: https://your-domain.com:8443

Enter your username and password to access the dashboard.

Step 2: Go to the WordPress Toolkit

Once inside the Plesk dashboard, find the WordPress Toolkit on the left-hand menu. The WordPress Toolkit makes it simple to install, manage, and update your WordPress sites.

If you don’t see the WordPress Toolkit, navigate to Extensions in the menu and install the WordPress Toolkit extension for free.

Step 3: Install WordPress

With the WordPress Toolkit open, follow these steps to install WordPress:

Click on Install WordPress in the top right corner.
Select your domain or subdomain from the dropdown where you want to install WordPress.
Choose installation path (leave blank if you want WordPress to be installed in the root directory of your domain).
Under Installation Settings, enter your site title, admin username, password, and email. These will be used to log in to your WordPress dashboard.
For security, make sure Enable HTTPS is checked if you have an SSL certificate installed. This will ensure that your site uses HTTPS.
Click Install.

The installation process will begin, and within a few moments, your WordPress site will be ready!

Step 4: Access Your WordPress Admin Dashboard

Once WordPress is installed, you can access your WordPress admin dashboard:

In the Plesk dashboard, navigate to the WordPress Toolkit.
Under the list of installed WordPress sites, find your domain.
Click on the Log in to Admin Dashboard button. This will take you directly to the WordPress admin panel.

You can also access your dashboard by going to https://your-domain.com/wp-admin and entering your WordPress admin username and password.

Step 5: Customise Your WordPress Site

Now that you’re inside the WordPress dashboard, you can start customising your site:

Choose a theme by going to Appearance > Themes.
Install plugins by navigating to Plugins > Add New.
Create pages and posts from the Pages and Posts sections.

WordPress gives you complete control over your site, and with Plesk’s toolkit, managing updates, plugins, and security is easy.

Step 6: Enable Automatic Updates (Optional)

To keep your site secure and up to date, you can enable automatic updates for WordPress core, themes, and plugins:

In the Plesk WordPress Toolkit, find your site and click Manage.
Under Updates, enable automatic updates for WordPress core, plugins, and themes if desired.

Step 7: Install SSL (Optional but Recommended)

If you haven’t already enabled SSL during the WordPress installation, you can do so now to secure your site with HTTPS:

Go to Websites & Domains in the Plesk dashboard.
Click on SSL/TLS Certificates under your domain.
Select Let’s Encrypt to issue a free SSL certificate for your site.
Once installed, Plesk will automatically configure your site to use HTTPS.

Congratulations! Your WordPress Site is Ready

That’s it! You’ve successfully installed WordPress on Plesk Obsidian. From here, you can start customising your site, installing plugins, and adding content. Thanks to Plesk’s easy-to-use interface, managing your WordPress site will be smooth and efficient.

Need further help? Don’t hesitate to reach out to our support team for assistance!

Access logs are not rotated on Plesk server: Rotation of files with multiple hard links is not allowed

September 12, 2024September 12, 2024

This Plesk Obisidian issue was initially handled by Plesk Support, but the solution wasn’t ideal, as it applied changes to all configuration files, including those that didn’t require it. This resulted in duplicated options being added to the files.

Symptoms

Log rotation doesn’t rotate logs, resulting in no compressed .gz files being created.
Forcing log rotation for a specific domain results in the following error:

/usr/local/psa/logrotate/sbin/logrotate -v -f /usr/local/psa/etc/logrotate.d/example.com
(...)
considering log /var/www/vhosts/system/example.com/logs/access_log.processed log 
/var/www/vhosts/system/example.com/logs/access_log.processed has multiple (2) hard links. 
Rotation of files with multiple hard links is not allowed for 
/var/www/vhosts/system/example.com/logs/*.processed -- skipping.
(...)

Cause

This issue is due to product bugs, resolved in the following updates:

#PPPM-13562: “Fixed the issue where log rotation failed for files with two or more hard links.”
Fixed in: Plesk Obsidian 18.0.60 (02 April 2024)
#PPPM-13473: “Log rotation now works correctly after updating to Plesk Obsidian 18.0.42.”
Fixed in: Plesk Obsidian 18.0.43 (12 April 2022)
#PPPM-13519: “Log rotation now works correctly after updating to Plesk Obsidian 18.0.43 even if /usr/local/psa/etc/logrotate.conf was customized.”
Fixed in: Plesk Obsidian 18.0.44 (24 May 2022)

Resolution

It is recommended to update your server to the latest Plesk version. For guidance, see: How to install Plesk updates.

Workaround

If updating is not possible, you can try adding the allowhardlink directive in the log rotation configuration files as a workaround.

Workaround: Adding the “allowhardlink” Directive to Log Rotation Files

If updating is not an option, you can manually add the allowhardlink directive to log rotation configuration files as a workaround. Follow these steps:

1. Create a Backup (Optional but Recommended)

Before making any changes, it’s recommended to back up the existing configuration files. Run the following command:

cp -r /usr/local/psa/etc/logrotate.d/ /usr/local/psa/etc/logrotate.d_backup/

2. Create and Run a Script to Add the Directive

You can create a script that checks if the allowhardlink directive is missing in each log configuration file, and add it only if necessary.

1. Open your terminal and create the script:

nano /root/add_allowhardlink.sh

1. Paste the following script into the file:


#!/bin/bash

# Directory containing the logrotate configuration files
LOGROTATE_DIR="/usr/local/psa/etc/logrotate.d/"

# Loop through each configuration file in the directory
for config_file in "$LOGROTATE_DIR"/*; do
  # Check if the file contains "allowhardlink"
  if ! grep -q "allowhardlink" "$config_file"; then
    # If not, append "allowhardlink" after "copytruncate"
    sed -i '/copytruncate/a allowhardlink' "$config_file"
    echo "Added 'allowhardlink' to $config_file"
  else
    echo "'allowhardlink' already exists in $config_file"
  fi
done

1. Save and exit the file by pressing CTRL + X, then Y, and Enter.
2. Make the script executable by running:

chmod +x /root/add_allowhardlink.sh

1. Run the script to apply the changes:

/root/add_allowhardlink.sh

3. Verify the Changes

Once the script has run, you can manually check some configuration files to ensure the allowhardlink directive has been correctly added. Run the following command to check a specific file:

cat /usr/local/psa/etc/logrotate.d/your-config-file

This solution ensures that the allowhardlink directive is only added to files where it’s missing, preventing duplicate entries.

Mail Autodiscover Feature in Plesk Obsidian for Linux

October 11, 2024July 11, 2024

The Mail Autodiscover feature in Plesk Obsidian for Linux is designed to simplify the process of configuring mail clients, such as Outlook, Thunderbird, and mobile devices. It automatically detects and configures the email server settings (IMAP, POP, SMTP) for a domain’s mail accounts, reducing manual input.

Key Points about the Mail Autodiscover Feature

1. Purpose of Autodiscover

The autodiscover feature helps end-users by automatically setting up their mail clients without the need to manually enter server settings (such as the IMAP/POP and SMTP server names, ports, and security settings). It simplifies email account configuration by automatically supplying the correct mail server details based on the user’s email address.

2. How Autodiscover Works

When a user adds their email account to a mail client, the client sends an Autodiscover request (usually to autodiscover.domain.com or domain.com/autodiscover/autodiscover.xml) to fetch the server configuration. The mail client receives the necessary settings, such as:

Incoming mail server (IMAP or POP).
Outgoing mail server (SMTP).
Port numbers and security settings (SSL/TLS).
Username and other optional settings.

3. Autodiscover for Domains in Plesk

In Plesk, Autodiscover is enabled by default for email services and can be managed per domain. Plesk creates DNS records for autodiscover.yourdomain.com and related services during domain setup to enable mail autodiscovery.

4. Protocols Supported by Plesk Autodiscover

IMAP, POP3, and SMTP server settings are supplied by the Autodiscover feature. It also supports SSL/TLS settings for secure mail communication.

5. DNS and SRV Records for Autodiscover

To ensure that Autodiscover works properly, Plesk creates DNS SRV records for the domain’s mail service. These records point mail clients to the correct servers for IMAP/POP and SMTP. The typical DNS SRV records created for Autodiscover are:

_autodiscover._tcp.yourdomain.com
_imaps._tcp.yourdomain.com
_pop3s._tcp.yourdomain.com
_smtps._tcp.yourdomain.com

6. Supported Mail Clients

Autodiscover works with various popular mail clients that support this feature, such as:

Microsoft Outlook (for automatic email account setup).
Mozilla Thunderbird.
Apple Mail.
Mobile devices like Android and iOS.

7. SSL/TLS and Autodiscover

Plesk ensures that mail autodiscovery can work over secure connections. When properly configured, clients will receive SSL/TLS settings, ensuring that the email communication is encrypted.

8. Customising Autodiscover

If you need to adjust or customise the Autodiscover behavior in Plesk (for instance, for a different domain setup or custom mail server), you can modify the DNS SRV records or Autodiscover configuration.

9. Troubleshooting Autodiscover

If Autodiscover is not working correctly:

Verify that the correct DNS SRV records are in place.
Ensure that your mail server’s SSL certificates are correctly configured.
Check your firewall settings to make sure the mail ports (IMAP/POP and SMTP) are open.
Test using the Microsoft Remote Connectivity Analyser to see if Autodiscover is working for your domain.

10. Enabling/Disabling Autodiscover

In some cases, you may want to disable Autodiscover for specific domains. You can do this by removing or adjusting the DNS records in the Plesk DNS settings.

Example of an Autodiscover SRV Record in Plesk

Here is an example of how an SRV record for autodiscovery might look in Plesk:

Service	Protocol	Port	Target
_autodiscover	_tcp	443	autodiscover.yourdomain.com
_imaps	_tcp	993	mail.yourdomain.com
_smtps	_tcp	465	mail.yourdomain.com

How to Enable/Manage Autodiscover in Plesk

1. DNS Setup

Go to Domains > DNS Settings and ensure that the correct SRV and A records for Autodiscover are present.

2. Mail Server Settings

Ensure your mail server (Postfix/Dovecot) is correctly configured to support Autodiscover. You can check mail server settings in Tools & Settings > Mail Server Settings.

3. SSL Configuration

Ensure that SSL certificates for the mail server and Autodiscover domain are valid and properly set up.

Conclusion

The Mail Autodiscover feature in Plesk Obsidian for Linux simplifies the setup of email accounts by automatically detecting mail server settings and configuring mail clients accordingly. It works with popular clients like Outlook and Thunderbird and relies on DNS SRV records and proper mail server configurations. To ensure it works, ensure correct DNS, mail server, and SSL setups.

Web Hosting: How to Install WordPress

January 15, 2024

All UK Cheapest Web Hosting and Website Builder packages come with one-click WordPress installation support. The installation process is not as complex as you might think!

To install WordPress as a client using Plesk Obsidian for Linux, follow these steps:

Log In to Plesk:

Open your web browser and navigate to your Plesk control panel URL provided in your Web Hosting Settings email (usually https://your-domain-or-IP:8443).
Log in with your client or administrator credentials.

Access Your Domain:

Once logged in, click on the “Websites & Domains” tab.

Select the Domain:

Choose the domain where you want to install WordPress.

Install WordPress:

Scroll down to the “Web Applications” section.
Click on “View” under the “WordPress” option.

Install WordPress:

On the WordPress page, click the “Install” button.

Configure WordPress Installation:

You will be prompted to configure your WordPress installation:
- Choose the version of WordPress you want to install.
- Select the domain where you want to install WordPress.
- Set the directory where WordPress will be installed (usually leave it empty to install in the root directory).
- Enter a name for your WordPress website.
- Create an administrator username and password.
- Provide an administrator email address.
- Configure additional settings like language and database prefix if needed.

Install WordPress:

Click the “Install” button to begin the installation process.

Completion and Access:

Once the installation is complete, you will see a confirmation message.
You can now access your WordPress site by going to your domain URL (e.g., https://your-domain.co.uk).

Login to WordPress Admin:

To access the WordPress admin dashboard, go to https://your-domain.co.uk/wp-admin.
Log in using the administrator username and password you created during installation.

Start Building Your Website:

You can now start customising your WordPress website, installing themes, plugins, and creating content through the WordPress admin dashboard.

That’s it! You have successfully installed WordPress using Plesk Obsidian for Linux. You can now build and manage your website with ease.

What are the 5 most popular email clients?

January 14, 2024

As of December 2023, the five most popular email clients were:

Microsoft Outlook: Widely used in the corporate world due to its integration with Microsoft Office Suite and advanced organizational capabilities. It offers a range of features including calendar, task management, and contact management. The official website for Microsoft Outlook is https://outlook.live.com/. This site is used for accessing Outlook as a webmail service. For more information about the Outlook application that’s part of the Microsoft Office Suite, you would visit https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/outlook/email-and-calendar-software-microsoft-outlook.

Gmail: Google’s free email service, popular for its user-friendly interface and seamless integration with other Google services like Google Drive, Calendar, and Meet. It’s known for its robust spam filtering and substantial free storage space. The official website for Gmail, which is Google’s email service, is https://mail.google.com/. This URL takes you directly to the Gmail inbox if you’re already logged in, or to the login page if you’re not.

Apple Mail: The default email client for macOS and iOS devices. It’s popular among Apple product users for its simplicity, integration with iCloud, and synchronization across all Apple devices. Apple Mail is an application that comes pre-installed on Apple devices, so it doesn’t have a dedicated URL like web-based email services. For more information about Apple Mail, you can visit Apple’s official support page at https://support.apple.com/mail.

Yahoo Mail: Known for its large storage capacity and robust search capabilities. It offers a user-friendly interface and is integrated with Yahoo’s other services. The official website for Yahoo Mail is https://mail.yahoo.com/. This is where you can log in to your Yahoo email account, or get more information about the service.

Thunderbird: A free and open-source email client developed by the Mozilla Foundation. It’s known for its customization options, strong security features, and support for various add-ons. As a free and open-source email client, the official website for Mozilla Thunderbird is https://www.thunderbird.net/. This site provides download links for the software, as well as additional information and support resources.

These clients vary in terms of features, interface, and integration capabilities, catering to different user needs and preferences. The popularity of these email clients can vary based on the region and specific user groups.