How to Reinstall WordPress and Why You Should Do It?

If you’re having some bugs with your WordPress website, whether there are some errors you can’t fix, or you’ve been hacked—don’t get in a fluster, we got you! The solution is simple—reinstall WordPress. If you want to learn how to reinstall WordPress through various different methods, stick around for the next few minutes.

How to Reinstall WordPress Using FTP Method

If you decide to use this method, you’ve made a risk-free choice, since this is one of the safest ways to reinstall WordPress without losing any content. Basically, this is the manual equivalent of the Automatic reinstallation with the Dashboard, which we’ll talk about next. Also, if you are unable to access or log in to your Admin page, this is the way to go. So, how to do it?

Steps to Reinstalling With the FTP Method

Take a look at the following WordPress reinstallation steps:

Step 1:

First thing first, you need to download the latest version of the WordPress file from WordPress.org.

Step 2:

After it’s been downloaded, find the file on your PC (or laptop), extract all the files after unzipping it, and delete the WP-content folder after you’ve extracted them—don’t panic, this is a how to reinstall WordPress without losing data guide.

Step 3:

Connect to your server using an FTP program such as FileZilla and begin transferring files from the WordPress folder to your website, which is commonly titled public_html.
The core WordPress files will be replaced with the most recent version of the WordPress file without affecting your website data, themes, or plugins.

Step 4:

When you begin uploading files, a warning message will pop up asking, “Are you sure you want to overwrite the files?”
Check “Overwrite,” and then “Always use this action” before clicking the “Ok” button.

Tadam! You’ve successfully reinstalled WordPress via FTP.

Reinstallation via WordPress Dashboard

If you only want to reinstall the core WordPress files, you may do so directly from your WordPress dashboard. This is one of the neatest and quickest techniques to reinstall WordPress that will keep and maintain all of your website’s contents. Let’s see what the steps are.

Step 1:

Log in to your WordPress admin page

Step 2:

Click on Dashboard > Updates > re-install Now

That’s it!

When you click the button, WordPress will automatically download and reinstall the most recent version. When you update WordPress from your admin dashboard, you’re basically manually re-running the normal update process that WordPress performs.

Reinstalling WordPress With WP-CLI Command

WP-CLI, often known as WordPress command line, is a tool used by many developers to alter WordPress installations. Reinstalling WP using the command line can be a bit tricky, but it’s definitely worth learning. Not only is it faster and more efficient than using the WordPress dashboard, but it can also come in handy if your site ever goes down. How’s it done, you ask?

Step 1:

Download and install the WP-CLI if you haven’t already.

Step 2:

In the command line, type wp core download –skip-content –force.

Please keep in mind that the above command line is not for inexperienced users, and should only be utilized by developers or IT experts who are well-versed with WP-CLI and their servers, and know how to change the PHP code in WordPress.

Complete Uninstall and Reinstall of WordPress

Before you even start, make sure you create an emergency backup of your existing content from your WordPress site using a WordPress backup plugin, since this method won’t save your content. Make sure your backup data is stored on your computer or in a cloud storage service such as Google Drive or Dropbox. Now, to the actual method.

Step 1: Export Your WordPress Content

You can do this by creating a WordPress export file in the following way: Log in to your WordPress admin area and navigate to the Tools » Export page. Select all the content and click the “Download Export File” option.

Step 2: Download WP-Content Folder

WordPress themes, plugins, pictures, and uploads are all kept on your website in the /wp-content/ area. To successfully reinstall WordPress without losing content, you must first download this folder to your computer. Use an FTP program or the File Manager in cPanel to connect to your WordPress site. Once connected, navigate to the wp-content folder and save it to your PC.

Step 3: Uninstall WordPress

To properly uninstall WordPress, log in to your WordPress site through an FTP client or the File Manager in cPanel and remove all WordPress core files. Most WordPress hosting companies enable you to establish an unlimited number of databases and users, so you can create a new database with a different login and password instead of destroying the old one.

To create a new database:

• Log in to your cPanel account and choose the “MySQL Databases“ icon.
• Give your new database a name and click the “Create Database“ button.
• Scroll down to the “MySQL Users” area and create a new user by providing a username and password before clicking the ‘Create User‘ button.
• Next, add the user to the database you already created.
• Scroll down to the “Add user to database” area and choose the login and database you’ve created before clicking on “Add.”

After successfully uninstalling WordPress, let’s look at how to reinstall it and recover your website.

Step 4: Reinstall WordPress

Download a new copy from the WordPress website and unzip the file. Within it, you’ll discover a WordPress folder containing all of the WordPress files. Next, we’ll explain how to install WordPress using FTP.

• You must use an FTP client to upload these files to your website. Go ahead and view your website after you’ve uploaded the WordPress files.
• WordPress will now prompt you to input your database credentials: the previously generated database name, username, and password. Your hostname will very likely be ‘localhost.’ After this is done, click on “Submit” to continue.
• WordPress will now try to establish a connection to your database and display a success message if the connection is successful. To continue the process to uninstall and reinstall WordPress, click the “Run Install” option.
• Next, you need to provide your site information like site title, description, admin email address and password. Fill in the info and click the ‘Install WordPress’ button to continue.
• Log in to the WordPress administration section with the previously created username and password. After you’ve signed into WordPress, you’ll have to remove the default content. Go to “Posts“ and remove the “Hello World”’ message, and delete the default comment in the “Comments” area. Finally, navigate to “Pages” and delete the sample page.

There you go, now you know how to reinstall WordPress without losing content.

Key Takeaways

How to Reinstall the WordPress Theme and Plugins

If you’ve just installed WordPress and you’re having trouble with your theme or plugins, don’t worry—help is on the way. First things first, make sure you’ve backed up all your files and data. Once the backup is done, follow these steps:

Step 1:

Open a web browser and navigate to the WordPress dashboard. Next, click on the “Appearance” tab and select “Themes.”

Step 2:

From here, you can either restore a previous theme or install a new one. If you’re restoring a previous theme, click on “Upload Theme” and select the theme file. Once the theme has been uploaded, click on “Activate” to start using it.

Step 3:

Next, navigate to the WordPress dashboard and click on the “Plugins” tab. From here, you can either install a new plugin or restore a previous one. If you’re restoring a previous plugin, click on “Upload Plugin” , select the plugin file, and click on “Activate.”

That’s it! You’ve now successfully reinstalled WordPress themes and plugins.

Why You Should Consider Reinstalling WordPress

There are a few reasons why you might want to consider reinstalling WP. Maybe your site is feeling a little sluggish, you’ve had some issues with making your site secure, or you’re just starting out and want a clean slate to work from—either way, it will give your site a fresh start. Here are a few particular reasons for reinstallation:

• Plugins or Theme Having Issues

If you’re experiencing problems with a plugin or theme, trying to remove and then reinstall the WordPress theme or plugin again can sometimes fix the issue.

• WordPress Compatibility Issues

Once you install WordPress on your web host, you may encounter plugin compatibility bugs, as WordPress can sometimes exhibit strange behavior. For example, WooCommerce is a well-known business plugin that has caused many users serious compatibility concerns with WordPress because WordPress keeps rolling out regular updates to maintain security and fix bugs. To resolve this issue, most users choose to reinstall a previous version of WordPress.

• Cyberattacks

If your website has been compromised by hacking system files, you must remove everything and reinstall WordPress without losing content to restart your website from scratch. It’s also possible to get locked out of WordPress due to cyberattacks.

• Practicing While Developing

Many developers utilize WordPress as a testing platform to run and evaluate the performance of their plugins. As a result, they have to reinstall previous versions of WordPress to test the compatibility of plugins. Moreover, many newcomers who attempt to learn web design and explore WordPress capabilities frequently make blunders such as deleting important WordPress core files or using poor site design. In such cases, WordPress reinstallation is the easiest solution that doesn’t require prior technical expertise.

Conclusion

Reinstalling WP can be a great way to freshen-up your site, overcome security issues, speed up your site, and get a clean slate to work from. In addition, if you’re moving to a new host or domain name, reinstallation is the best way to ensure a smooth transition. We showed you a few methods of WordPress reinstallation to choose from if need be. Just make sure you have a backup of your site’s data before starting the process, and don’t forget to download the latest version of WordPress. Happy reinstalling!