WordPress Multisite Network is a feature in WordPress that allows you to easily create and manage multiple WordPress websites using a single installation. So if you own 10 websites and want to use a common WordPress then it is completely possible. You don’t have to install WordPress 10 times for managing this.

Many people want to use WordPress Multisite Network but you may have many doubts regarding WordPress Multisite. You may also be facing challenges with Installation of WordPress Multisite Network & many other issues. So in this article I help you to Install WordPress Multisite Network in very easy steps.

But before that, let’s find out what really is WordPress Multisite Network?

What Is WordPress Multisite Network?

WordPress is a feature in WordPress lauched since its version 3.0. This feature allows you to create multiple websites on a single WordPress Installation. Hence it is called as “WordPress Multisite Network”.

With WordPress Multisite Network you can create many website and manage them all from the same WordPress dashboard. All the websites can have the same plugins, theme and same features. This is the great benefit of WordPress Multisite if you manage different websites but don’t have the time to create them all differently.

If you are one of the above users then, you just need to install WordPress multi on your hosting account and as the Network administrator you will have the access to create and manage multiple WordPress websites under the same dashboard.

Pros and Cons of WordPress Multisite Network:

WordPress Multisite Network has many pros and some cons, depending on who you are. I have tried my best to list all the pros and cons of WordPress Multisite Network. Read them all below:

Benefits Of WordPress Multisite Network:

1) Create Multiple Websites with Ease: You can create multiple WordPress websites on a single WordPress.
2) Easy Updates: If you own multiple website and you are managing them all with WordPress Multi, then you don’t have to worry about updating every single website. With WordPress Multisite updating only the main WordPress will update all the websites under the Network automatically.

3) Manage Multiple Users: You can create individual users for all the websites in your Network. All the users will have their own login details and can manage the websites just like the owners can, but with restricted access to Admin features.

Disadvantages Of WordPress Multisite Network:

1) If main WordPress is down then all the sites created on WordPress will be down.
2) Not all plugins provide support for WordPress Multisite. So in WordPress Multisite Network some plugins may not work for you.
3) All the websites under WordPress Multisite Network use a common database. But different tables will be created for each website. If main website is hacked or there is some issue with the database then all the websites created in the Network will have the same issue.

Steps to Install WordPress Multisite Network

The installation of WordPress Multisite Network is almost similar to the normal WordPress installation, with just a few additional changes that you need to make during the installation process. In this tutorial I’ll cover the steps to Install Multisite Network in WordPress from cPanel.

The steps for installing WordPress Multisite Network are listed below below:
Step 1: Login to your Hosting account cPanel
Step 2: Go to WordPress Installer under Softaculous section in cPanel
Step 3: Configure settings in Softaculous for WordPress Multisite Network Installation

I’ll now explain each step to you in detail. Read on for complete installation process.

Login to your Hosting account cPanel.

For installing WordPress Multisite network you first need to login to your Hosting cPanel. cPanel is the Hosting account Login panel. We will be install WordPress Multisite Network via cPanel.

Go to WordPress Installer under Softaculous section in cPanel.

In the cPanel locate “Softaculous App Installer” section. By default this section has situated at the bottom of the cPanel. So you can simply find it by scrolling down. Once you found this section then click on “WordPress”.

Configure settings in Softaculous for WordPress Multisite Network Installation.

After clicking on WordPress from Step 2, a page will open. On this page you will see “Install” button at the top left side. Click on Install button for starting WordPress installation. A new page will open where you need to enter the details shown as follows.

Fill “Software Setup” section shown as below:
In this section you need to configure all the settings that you want in your WordPress. So let’s get started!
Choose Protocol: Here you need to select “http://www.” from the drop down menu. It means that your WordPress Multisite Network will install on “www.yourdomain.com”. If you have installed SSL on your website then you have to select “https://www.” protocol.
Choose Domain: Now you need to select your domain name from drop down menu on which you want to install WordPress.
In Directory: Here you need to remove “wp” text which is already there by default. On Removing the wp your WordPress will install in the root directory of your website. If WP is not removed then your WordPress will install in wp folder and your website’s URL will appear like this: www.yourdomain.com/wp.

Under “Site Settings” section you need to enter the following details:
Site Name: In site name you need to enter the name of your website or blog which you want to run. You can enter ABC here if your Blog’s name is abc.com.
Site Description: Here you need to write a basic description of your website. Just briefly summarize what your website is all about.
Enable Multisite (WPMU): This is the important option for installing “WordPress Multisite Network”. You have to check mark the check box for installing “WordPress Multisite Network” on your domain.

Use the following details in “Admin Account”:
Admin Username: Enter the username which you want to set for your WordPress Login. You will need this username to enter to your WordPress Dashboard.
Admin Password: Enter a secure password which you want to set for your admin login. We recommend you to use the Password Generator because it generates a secure password which is quite difficult to be hacked.
Admin Email: Here you need to enter that Email address which you want to use for your WordPress.

This email will also be used if you would want to reset your WordPress login details in the future. You can use a normal Email address (created on Yahoo or Google or Hotmail or any other email service) or a custom Email address (created with your domain). You can easily create a custom email account from your cPanel.

Overview of other options available in WordPress:
Select Language: In this section, English language is already selected by default. You can change the language from the drop down menu in case you want to install the WordPress in some other language.

Limit Login Attempts (Loginizer): You need to keep this checkbox unchecked. We don’t recommend you to use this option. You should only use this option only if you want to set a limit on your WordPress login attempts.

If this option is enabled, if anyone tries to login to your WordPress and exceeds the limit of login attempts because of Failed Login, then WordPress will automatically block that IP & user from which multiple Failed login attempts were made. So this is a great security feature.

Advanced Options: You don’t need to make any changes here. Please leave this field as it is.
Select Theme: This is an optional field where you can select the theme for your website. If none of the themes is selected then the default WordPress theme will automatically be installed on your website.

Email Installation details to: Here you need to enter the email address on which you want to receive your WordPress Installation details for your Multisite Network once the installation is complete. You can use your Gmail or Yahoo account as well as your custom email account.

Click on Install button:
Now click on Install button at the bottom as shown in above image. Now you will see your WordPress installation would be started. Wait till the installation process is completed.

Once the setup is complete then you will see a message “Congratulation, the software was installed successfully”.

After the completion of installation you can login to your WordPress dashboard using the login details which you had entered during the installation of WordPress Multisite Network.That’s it!