Post on 12-Aug-2015
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Multisite Network Do’s & Don’ts
Experiences From Some Enterprise Solutions
presented by Taylor McCaslin at WordCamp Seattle March 28, 2015
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Product Manager
UX Designer
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BA Theatre & DanceCertificates in Business, Computer Science, Digital Art & Media
Taylor McCaslin
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Disclaimer
● My advice is based on my experience with what has worked for me in the past
● Every project is unique
● There is an exception to every rule I makeup
● Plugins will do everything I say multisite won’t or shouldn’t
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
What people are saying
● “I tried to use multisite to manage multiple sites and just got myself confused”
● “Multisite is amazing, why would anyone not use it?”
● “Multisite is hard”
● “We had a project that was running multisite and we converted it to a standard wordpress install”
● “I don’t use anything but multisite”
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
How it’s being used
“multisite is now a utility for managing multiple sites using one installation, where as the original vision was to enable blogging networks“
@jjj on make.wordpress.org/core
Multisite
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
What is Multisite?
● A multisite network is a collection of sub-sites that all share the same single WordPress installation
● Terminology ○ Install: an instance or installation of WordPress○ Network: a set of websites that operate within the single
WordPress install configured for multisite○ Site: one of the subsites on the multisite network
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
What ISN’T Multisite?
● A network of sites that can be moved to separate hosts
○ 1 host. 1 install of WordPress. Many sites.
● A set of sites that can easily be separated into their own WordPress installs
○ just trust me here. modifying serialized data is not fun
● A set of sites that can have different IP addresses○ see the first point
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
The Network Admin
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Open or Closed Site?
● Terminology is hard…. and confusing.
Public Network / Untrusted● Anyone can signup and create a
site (sometimes paid)o WordPress.como Happytables.como University Student Blogs
● Concerts: o file types / uploadso scripts/embedso copyrighto DMCA
Private Network / Trusted● Limited site and user creation
o Wordcamp.orgo Company intranetso University network
colleges ,department, etc● Concerns:
o too many cooks (wanting super admin)o or none at all (no one to manage network)o code changes affect all sites!
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Subfolders, Subdomains and Domain Mapping
● 1 primary network domaino sub-domain (I prefer this one)
mysite.com site2.mysite.com site3.mysite.com
o sub-folder
mysite.com/site1
mysite.com/site2
mysite.com/site3
● Domain Mappingo wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-mu-domain-mapping/
sunrise.php
o Pro-tip: Always use CNAMES!
o Premium plugins exist for selling domains to users (wpmudev.org)
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Unified Site Management
● Super Admin Role● manage_network● manage_sites● manage_network_users● manage_network_plugins● manage_network_themes● manage_network_options● unfiltered_html
codex.wordpress.org/Roles_and_Capabilities
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Shared Users
● All blogs have central user management
● Users login once to access all sites on the networko Doesn’t play well with alternative login plugins (Duo2, 2FA,
Google Auth) - you’ll login for every site
● Caution: User profiles are the same for all sites
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Shared Themes
● Add a themeo Network Enable (all sites)o Restrict themes available
to use per site Done through the Site -> Edit
Site menu
● Remember to add Child Themes!
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Shared Plugins
● Install plugin on the networko Activate per siteo Network Activate
● Must Use Pluginso Can’t be deactivated through the admin
● Caution: Some plugins have their own network settings!
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
File Structure Differences
❏ /root of WordPress Install
❏ wp-config.php has extra lines
❏ .htaccess has extra lines
❏ wp-content has extra subfolders
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
❏ /wp-content/uploads ❏ /2015/
❏ /2014/
❏ /sites/
your primary (first site) site’s media directories
File Structure Differences
❏ 2 ← site ids (second site you made)❏ /2015/❏ /2014/
❏ 3/2015//2014/
❏ ...
Pro tip: rely on host to allow you to grant your site admins access to only specific site directories
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
DB Structure Differences
● 17 tables instead of 11● 6 extra tables:
○ wp_blogs○ wp_blogs_versions○ wp_sitemeta
o wp_siteo wp_signupso wp_registration_log
● 9 prefixed tables per every new site!!!
○ wp_6_posts ← prefixed with site id
○ wp_posts ← first site isn’t prefixed
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Tables in ONE multisite DB
8 + (9 * n) where n is number of sites 1 site = 17 tables 10 sites = 98 tables 100 sites = 908 tables 1,000 sites = 9,008 tables10,000 sites = 90,008 tables
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Hosting
● Use a managed host● Pro-Tips:
o automatic backups with 1 click restore (ability to download backup)
o built in staging sites (that magically with the networked sites)o granular deploy to production controls (deploy only specific
tables)o look for extra security features (automatic ip blacklisting)o know limitations (some hosts don’t allow subdomains or
subfolders)o use version control
● MMSN (massive multisite network) o plan to spend $$$$ or hire a sysadmin
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Pro Dev Tips
● define( 'DISALLOW_FILE_MODS', true );o disable the Admin File Editor
● define( 'DO_NOT_UPGRADE_GLOBAL_TABLES', true );o Prevents upgrade functions from doing expensive database
queries on global tables
● add_action( ‘network_admin_menu’, ‘my-settings’ );o add extra submenus and menu options to the network admin
panel'
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Pro Dev Don'ts
● current_user_can(‘unfiltered_html’)o Just don’t. You will regret this.
● loop through your network siteso Unless you know what you’re doing, you’ll cripple your site
performance, if not crashing your site altogether.
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Use Cases
Experiences From Some Enterprise Solutions
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I want to allow users to create their own sites within some constraints”
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I want to allow users to create their own sites within some constraints”
● Use Multisite!o This is what multisite was made to do, and it does it well!
● Pro-Tip: customize the admin! o WordPress.como Happytables.com
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I want to centrally manage all my client’s sites”
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I want to centrally manage all my client’s sites”● Don’t use Multisite
● Alternatives:o Jetpack Site Management (update plugins across your site)
o Manage WP (premium)
o Infinite WP (free with paid addons)
o WP-CLI (script your way to site nirvana)
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I want to have a multisite network where each site is in a different language”
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I want to have a multisite network where each site is in a different language”● Maybe Multisite, Maybe Not
● SEO optimization can be difficult when similar content is across a network of siteso Pro-tip: hreflang tags and canonical links are your friend
● Plugins like WPML are built specifically to do this
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I have a lot of content that is very different, and I want all my sites to look different, but it’s still all my stuff”
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
To multisite or not?
“I have a lot of content that is very different, and I want all my sites to look different, but it’s still all my stuff”● Maybe Multisite, Maybe Not
● Why not map domains to categories and tags and create custom templates for theme archives and categories
@taylor4484 #multisite #WCSEA
Multisite Network Do’s & Don’ts
Experiences From Some Enterprise Solutions
presented by Taylor McCaslin at WordCamp Seattle March 28, 2015