wordpress-setup

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Translated

Connect to a WordPress site via WP-CLI over SSH or REST API. Workflow: check CLI, test SSH connection, set up auth, verify access, save config. Use when connecting to a WordPress site, setting up WP-CLI access, creating application passwords, or troubleshooting WordPress connection issues.

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Sourcejezweb/claude-skills

Added on2026-02-22

NPX Install

npx skill4agent add jezweb/claude-skills wordpress-setup

SKILL.md Content

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WordPress Setup

Connect to a WordPress site and verify working access via WP-CLI or REST API. Produces a verified connection config ready for content management and Elementor editing.

Workflow

Step 1: Check WP-CLI

bash

wp --version

If not installed, guide the user:

bash

# macOS/Linux
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wp-cli/builds/gh-pages/phar/wp-cli.phar
chmod +x wp-cli.phar
sudo mv wp-cli.phar /usr/local/bin/wp

Also ensure the SSH extension is available (needed for remote sites):

bash

wp package install wp-cli/ssh-command

Step 2: Connect to the Site

Option A: WP-CLI over SSH (preferred)

bash

wp --ssh=user@hostname/path/to/wordpress option get siteurl

Common patterns:

Rocket.net:

wp --ssh=user@hostname/www/sitename/public option get siteurl

cPanel:

wp --ssh=user@hostname/public_html option get siteurl

Custom: Ask user for SSH user, host, and WordPress path

Test with a simple command first:

bash

wp --ssh=user@host/path core version

Option B: REST API with Application Password

If SSH isn't available:

Navigate to

https://example.com/wp-admin/profile.php

(or use browser automation)

Scroll to "Application Passwords" section
Enter a name (e.g. "Claude Code") and click "Add New Application Password"
Copy the generated password (spaces are part of it but optional in auth)

Test the connection:

bash

curl -s https://example.com/wp-json/wp/v2/posts?per_page=1 \
  -u "username:xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx" | jq '.[0].title'

Step 3: Store Credentials

For WP-CLI SSH — create a

wp-cli.yml

in the project root:

yaml

ssh:
  sitename:
    cmd: ssh -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no %pseudotty% user@hostname %cmd%
    url: /path/to/wordpress

Then use:

wp @sitename option get siteurl

For REST API — store in

.dev.vars

:

WP_SITE_URL=https://example.com
WP_USERNAME=admin
WP_APP_PASSWORD=xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx

Ensure

.dev.vars

is in

.gitignore

. For cross-project use, store in Vault:

Use mcp__vault__secret_set with:
  name: "wordpress-{sitename}-credentials"
  value: JSON with url, username, app_password
  tags: ["wordpress", "api"]

Step 4: Verify Full Access

Run a comprehensive check:

bash

# Site info
wp @sitename option get siteurl
wp @sitename option get blogname

# Content access
wp @sitename post list --post_type=page --posts_per_page=5 --fields=ID,post_title,post_status

# Plugin status (check for Elementor)
wp @sitename plugin status elementor

# Theme info
wp @sitename theme status

Step 5: Save Site Config

Create

wordpress.config.json

for other skills to reference:

json

{
  "site": "example.com",
  "siteUrl": "https://example.com",
  "accessMethod": "ssh",
  "sshAlias": "sitename",
  "wpPath": "/path/to/wordpress",
  "hasElementor": true,
  "elementorVersion": "3.x.x"
}

Critical Patterns

SSH Connection Issues

Symptom	Fix
`Permission denied (publickey)`	Check SSH key: `ssh -v user@host`
`wp: command not found` via SSH	WP-CLI not in remote PATH — use full path: `/usr/local/bin/wp`
`Error: This does not appear to be a WordPress installation`	Wrong path — check `wp-path` argument
Timeout on large operations	Add `--ssh=user@host/path --allow-root` or increase SSH timeout

WP-CLI Aliases

Define aliases in

~/.wp-cli/config.yml

for frequently-accessed sites:

yaml

@client1:
  ssh: user@client1.example.com/www/public
@client2:
  ssh: user@client2.rocketcdn.me/www/client2/public

Then:

wp @client1 post list

REST API Gotchas

Application passwords require HTTPS (won't work on HTTP)
Some security plugins block REST API — check for 401/403 responses
Caching plugins may serve stale REST responses — use
```
?_=${timestamp}
```
cache buster
Custom post types need
```
show_in_rest: true
```
to appear in API

Reference Files

```
references/wp-cli-essentials.md
```
— SSH alias patterns, common flags, and troubleshooting

wordpress-setup

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

WordPress Setup

Workflow

Step 1: Check WP-CLI

Step 2: Connect to the Site

Step 3: Store Credentials

Step 4: Verify Full Access

Step 5: Save Site Config

Critical Patterns

SSH Connection Issues

WP-CLI Aliases

REST API Gotchas

Reference Files