Gear Up For WordPress And WPMU Changes
When the announcement was made about the changes scheduled for WordPress and WordPress Mu, I decided to go to my friend Andrea Rennick to learn more about WPMU. Since you couldn’t be privy to our conversation, Andrea has graciously consented to help me gear up for WordPress and WPMU changes as well as introduce you to WordPress MU with the following article. Thanks Andrea!
Introduction To WordPress MU
Since the recent news from WordCamp San Francisco about WordPress and WordPress MU merging, many people have wondered what exactly WordPress MU is.
In simplest terms, it is a multi-user version of WordPress and is used to host multiple blogs with one codebase or application. The most well known example of this in action is the WordPress.com site. With WPMU installed, many people have been able to run their own sites and offer free blogs to users.
WordPress MU Uses
While that type of use is the most common, and the reason the multi-user version was built, it is definitely not the only use. Many people have set up WPMU to run multiple blogs for their own use, or as complicated sections of an existing site. A WPMU-based site may be used to run multiple departments of the same company. It may also be used to run a series of niche sites, which have their own sub-domain, as part of a bigger site, as seen in the WordPress.com example.
The most useful part of WPMU is the ability to have separate blogs. Each blog, while a part of the main site, is completely independent of the other blogs. Each blog can run different plugins, use different themes, and with the addition of a domain mapping plugin, be run off a completely separate domain. Built in to the system is the ability to choose (on installation) sub-domain blog or subfolder blogs.
WordPress And WordPress MU Differences
Over 90% of WordPress code is shared by WPMU, but there are some significant differences to be aware of. The first notable one is the installation process. Many people may be used to WordPress’ famous 5-minute install, and WPMU can be done in the same time frame, but you let the install create the config file for you. There are also special settings in Apache and your DNS records that you need to have done so the sub-domains will work.
Note: This is one reason more and more shared hosts are disallowing WPMU on their systems. Please check with your provider before installing.
Another difference is the plugins. While most plugins work on WPMU, many don’t work at all, or behave unpredictably. The most popular plugins have either started to roll in WPMU support, or there are WPMU-compatible versions of them.
WPMU has an extra plugins folder called mu-plugins. This folder is for WPMU-specific plugins, and these one are auto-executed. This means any code placed in this folder does not need to be activated. They will not show up in a list on the backend.
By default, WPMU strips out embedded code. If you have ever blogged at WordPress.com, you will know exactly what I mean. This is a security feature. On a system that is open to the public, allowing people to paste whatever code they like could bring down the entire site, not just their blog. As a WPMU admin, you may choose to install plugins that will allow you to embed certain code functions, if you need it.
The backend areas of WordPress and WordPress Mu are the same in most cases. The biggest difference is the addition of the Site Admin menu. This is like an additional layer of administration over the entire site. Here, you can control site wide features, add new blogs and users, and change details of the member blogs. Some items like the plugin editor and the theme editor have been disabled in WPMU.
While there can be a steep learning curve when transitioning from WordPress to WordPress MU, the possibilities of a multi-blog system are worth checking out, especially if you can’t wait for the code to be officially merged into WordPress at some point in the future.
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Need help getting started with WordPress MU? Discover the secrets of using and profiting with WordPress MU as Andrea Rennick shares her expert tips at WPMU Tutorials.
While you’re there, grab a free copy of her e-book Installing WordPress MU For Beginners, in which Andrea walks you step-by-step through installing WordPress MU.
