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Installing ExpressionEngine¶

Important

If you need to update your installation from an earlier version, see the Update Instructions instead.

Before getting started, make sure your web host and your browser meet all the System Requirements to run ExpressionEngine.

1. Prep the Database¶

You’ll need an empty database and the following credentials handy to install ExpressionEngine. If you’re not sure how to create a new database or find this information, ask your web host.

MySQL Database Name
MySQL Server Address (often localhost or the server IP address)
MySQL Username
MySQL Password

2. Upload the Files¶

After purchasing ExpressionEngine, download it from your account (or grab a copy of the free, feature-limited ExpressionEngine Core), and unzip the files to a folder on your computer. Then use your favorite FTP client to upload the files to a publicly-accessible directory on your server.

3. Set File Permissions¶

Apache¶

These permissions are typical for PHP-based applications running on Apache, though you may want to check with your web host to see if more restrictive permissions can be used to allow PHP to write to files and directories.

Set these files to 666:

system/expressionengine/config/config.php
system/expressionengine/config/database.php

Set these directories to 777:

system/expressionengine/cache/
images/avatars/uploads/
images/captchas/
images/member_photos/
images/pm_attachments/
images/signature_attachments/
images/uploads/

IIS¶

Provide all permissions to the IIS user for these directories:

system/expressionengine/cache/
images/avatars/uploads/
images/captchas/
images/member_photos/
images/pm_attachments/
images/signature_attachments/
images/uploads/

4. Run The Installation Wizard¶

Point your browser to the URL of the admin.php file you uploaded. For example: http://example.com/admin.php

Follow the on-screen instructions to install ExpressionEngine.

Tip

If you choose the None - Empty Installation Site Theme, your site’s homepage will appear blank because no templates or content has been created yet.

Once the Installation Wizard is finished, you must remove the system/installer/ directory from your server.

Welcome to ExpressionEngine!¶

You can now log in to your Control Panel at http://example.com/admin.php!

If you’re new to ExpressionEngine, get started with the classic Hello, World! example.

Post-Installation Best Practices¶

Once you are confident that ExpressionEngine is working normally on your server, we recommend a few best practices for protecting your installation against common security risks.