CLI / Terminal Access on WordPress - Technical SEO Playbook

Easy

Installing CLI

Setting up the environment.

1

Method 1: WP-CLI (Direct)

1

Download: curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wp-cli/builds/gh-pages/phar/wp-cli.phar

2

Make Executable: chmod +x wp-cli.phar

3

Move: sudo mv wp-cli.phar /usr/local/bin/wp

4

Verify: wp --info

Example

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

2

Method 2: Docker (For wp-env)

1

Required for the wp-env workflow.

2

Mac: brew install --cask docker or download Docker Desktop.

3

Windows: Download Docker Desktop for Windows.

4

Linux: sudo apt-get install docker.io

5

Start Docker and verify: docker -v

Example

docker -v
docker-compose -v

3

Method 3: wp-env (Wrapper)

1

Once Docker is running, install the wrapper: npm -g i @wordpress/env

Example

npm -g i @wordpress/env

Intermediate

Running Localhost

Choose: wp-env (Docker) or wp server (PHP).

1

Option A: wp-env (Recommended)

1

Navigate to project root

2

Run wp-env start (Starts WordPress + MySQL in containers)

3

Access: http://localhost:8888

Example

wp-env start

2

Option B: wp server (No Docker)

1

Requires local PHP and MySQL installation.

2

Configure wp-config.php manually to connect to your local MySQL.

3

Run wp server to start a PHP web server.

4

Access: http://localhost:8080

Example

wp server --port=8080

Intermediate

Backup Files

Database and file backup using WP-CLI + Shell.

1

Database Export

1

Run wp db export to dump SQL

2

Compress for easier transfer

Example

wp db export backup.sql
gzip backup.sql

2

File Backup

1

Archive uploads and themes/plugins

2

Typically wp-content folder is sufficient if core is standard

Example

tar -czf wp-content.tar.gz wp-content/

Intermediate

Restore a Backup

Import database and files.

1

Database Import

1

Drop existing tables (optional, for clean slate)

2

Import SQL file

Example

wp db reset --yes
wp db import backup.sql

Easy

Update Sites

Managing updates via CLI.

1

Core & Plugins

1

Update Core: wp core update

2

Update Plugins: wp plugin update --all

3

Update Themes: wp theme update --all

Example

wp core update
wp plugin update --all
wp theme update --all

Advanced

Platform Specifics

Moving to a new URL/Server.

1

Search & Replace URLs

1

Critical step when changing domains (e.g., localhost to production)

2

Updates database fields correctly (handles serialized data)

Example

wp search-replace 'http://localhost:8888' 'https://production-site.com' --all-tables

2

Validation

1

Flush cache after migration

2

Verify Rewrite rules

Example

wp cache flush
wp rewrite flush

CLI / Terminal Access

Prerequisites

Installing CLI

Method 1: WP-CLI (Direct)

Method 2: Docker (For wp-env)

Method 3: wp-env (Wrapper)

Running Localhost

Option A: wp-env (Recommended)

Option B: wp server (No Docker)

Backup Files

Database Export

File Backup

Restore a Backup

Database Import

Update Sites

Core & Plugins

Platform Specifics

Search & Replace URLs

Validation

Verification Checklist

Pro Tips

Common Issues & Fixes