Setting up WordPress with Docker

Duration: 60 minutes

Module 4: Session 5.2

Learning Objectives

Create a complete docker-compose.yml for WordPress
Configure WordPress, MySQL, and phpMyAdmin containers
Implement persistent volumes for data storage
Set up container networking and environment variables

Introduction

Docker Compose simplifies WordPress deployment by orchestrating multiple containers with a single configuration file. We'll build a complete WordPress development environment step by step.

💡

What We're Building

A complete WordPress stack with MySQL database, phpMyAdmin for database management, and persistent storage for all data.

Project Structure

First, let's create our project directory structure:

# Create project directory
mkdir wordpress-docker
cd wordpress-docker

# Create subdirectories
mkdir -p config/php
mkdir -p wp-content/themes
mkdir -p wp-content/plugins
mkdir -p wp-content/uploads
mkdir -p database/backup

# Create configuration files
touch docker-compose.yml
touch .env
touch .env.example
touch config/php/uploads.ini

graph TD A[wordpress-docker/] --> B[docker-compose.yml] A --> C[.env] A --> D[config/] D --> E[php/] E --> F[uploads.ini] A --> G[wp-content/] G --> H[themes/] G --> I[plugins/] G --> J[uploads/] A --> K[database/] K --> L[backup/]

Creating docker-compose.yml

Let's build our docker-compose.yml file step by step:

Step 1: Basic Structure and Version

# docker-compose.yml
version: '3.8'

services:
  # Our services will go here

volumes:
  # Named volumes for data persistence

networks:
  # Custom network for container communication

Step 2: WordPress Service Configuration

version: '3.8'

services:
  wordpress:
    image: wordpress:6.4-php8.2-apache
    container_name: wp-site
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "${WP_PORT:-8080}:80"
    environment:
      WORDPRESS_DB_HOST: mysql:3306
      WORDPRESS_DB_NAME: ${DB_NAME:-wordpress}
      WORDPRESS_DB_USER: ${DB_USER:-wpuser}
      WORDPRESS_DB_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD:-wppass}
      WORDPRESS_TABLE_PREFIX: ${WP_PREFIX:-wp_}
      WORDPRESS_DEBUG: ${WP_DEBUG:-false}
      WORDPRESS_DEBUG_LOG: ${WP_DEBUG_LOG:-false}
      WORDPRESS_DEBUG_DISPLAY: ${WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY:-false}
    volumes:
      - wordpress_data:/var/www/html
      - ./wp-content:/var/www/html/wp-content
      - ./config/php/uploads.ini:/usr/local/etc/php/conf.d/uploads.ini
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    networks:
      - wp-network

Step 3: MySQL Database Configuration

mysql:
    image: mysql:8.0
    container_name: wp-mysql
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: ${DB_ROOT_PASSWORD:-rootpass}
      MYSQL_DATABASE: ${DB_NAME:-wordpress}
      MYSQL_USER: ${DB_USER:-wpuser}
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD:-wppass}
    volumes:
      - mysql_data:/var/lib/mysql
      - ./database/backup:/backup
    ports:
      - "${DB_PORT:-3306}:3306"
    command: [
      '--default-authentication-plugin=mysql_native_password',
      '--character-set-server=utf8mb4',
      '--collation-server=utf8mb4_unicode_ci'
    ]
    networks:
      - wp-network

Step 4: phpMyAdmin Configuration

phpmyadmin:
    image: phpmyadmin:latest
    container_name: wp-phpmyadmin
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "${PMA_PORT:-8081}:80"
    environment:
      PMA_HOST: mysql
      PMA_PORT: 3306
      PMA_USER: ${DB_USER:-wpuser}
      PMA_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD:-wppass}
      UPLOAD_LIMIT: 300M
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    networks:
      - wp-network

Step 5: Volumes and Networks

volumes:
  wordpress_data:
    driver: local
  mysql_data:
    driver: local

networks:
  wp-network:
    driver: bridge

Complete docker-compose.yml

Here's the complete configuration file:

# docker-compose.yml
version: '3.8'

services:
  wordpress:
    image: wordpress:6.4-php8.2-apache
    container_name: wp-site
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "${WP_PORT:-8080}:80"
    environment:
      WORDPRESS_DB_HOST: mysql:3306
      WORDPRESS_DB_NAME: ${DB_NAME:-wordpress}
      WORDPRESS_DB_USER: ${DB_USER:-wpuser}
      WORDPRESS_DB_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD:-wppass}
      WORDPRESS_TABLE_PREFIX: ${WP_PREFIX:-wp_}
      WORDPRESS_DEBUG: ${WP_DEBUG:-false}
      WORDPRESS_DEBUG_LOG: ${WP_DEBUG_LOG:-false}
      WORDPRESS_DEBUG_DISPLAY: ${WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY:-false}
    volumes:
      - wordpress_data:/var/www/html
      - ./wp-content:/var/www/html/wp-content
      - ./config/php/uploads.ini:/usr/local/etc/php/conf.d/uploads.ini
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    networks:
      - wp-network

  mysql:
    image: mysql:8.0
    container_name: wp-mysql
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: ${DB_ROOT_PASSWORD:-rootpass}
      MYSQL_DATABASE: ${DB_NAME:-wordpress}
      MYSQL_USER: ${DB_USER:-wpuser}
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD:-wppass}
    volumes:
      - mysql_data:/var/lib/mysql
      - ./database/backup:/backup
    ports:
      - "${DB_PORT:-3306}:3306"
    command: [
      '--default-authentication-plugin=mysql_native_password',
      '--character-set-server=utf8mb4',
      '--collation-server=utf8mb4_unicode_ci'
    ]
    networks:
      - wp-network

  phpmyadmin:
    image: phpmyadmin:latest
    container_name: wp-phpmyadmin
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "${PMA_PORT:-8081}:80"
    environment:
      PMA_HOST: mysql
      PMA_PORT: 3306
      PMA_USER: ${DB_USER:-wpuser}
      PMA_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD:-wppass}
      UPLOAD_LIMIT: 300M
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    networks:
      - wp-network

volumes:
  wordpress_data:
    driver: local
  mysql_data:
    driver: local

networks:
  wp-network:
    driver: bridge

Environment Variables (.env)

Create a.envfile to store sensitive configuration:

# .env
# WordPress Configuration
WP_PORT=8080
WP_PREFIX=wp_
WP_DEBUG=true
WP_DEBUG_LOG=true
WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY=false

# Database Configuration
DB_NAME=wordpress
DB_USER=wpuser
DB_PASSWORD=SecurePassword123!
DB_ROOT_PASSWORD=RootPassword456!
DB_PORT=3306

# phpMyAdmin Configuration
PMA_PORT=8081

⚠️

Security Notice

Never commit.envfiles to version control. Add it to.gitignoreand provide.env.exampleinstead.

# .env.example
# WordPress Configuration
WP_PORT=8080
WP_PREFIX=wp_
WP_DEBUG=false
WP_DEBUG_LOG=false
WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY=false

# Database Configuration
DB_NAME=wordpress
DB_USER=wpuser
DB_PASSWORD=ChangeThisPassword
DB_ROOT_PASSWORD=ChangeThisRootPassword
DB_PORT=3306

# phpMyAdmin Configuration
PMA_PORT=8081

PHP Configuration

Create custom PHP settings for WordPress:

# config/php/uploads.ini
; Maximum allowed size for uploaded files
upload_max_filesize = 64M

; Maximum size of POST data
post_max_size = 64M

; Maximum execution time
max_execution_time = 300

; Maximum input time
max_input_time = 300

; Memory limit
memory_limit = 256M

; Maximum input variables
max_input_vars = 3000

; File uploads
file_uploads = On

; Session configuration
session.gc_maxlifetime = 1440

Managing Persistent Volumes

Understanding volume management is crucial for data persistence:

graph LR subgraph "Named Volumes" V1[wordpress_data] V2[mysql_data] end subgraph "Bind Mounts" B1[./wp-content] B2[./database/backup] B3[./config/php] end subgraph "Containers" C1[WordPress] C2[MySQL] end V1 --> C1 V2 --> C2 B1 --> C1 B2 --> C2 B3 --> C1 style V1 fill:#e3f2fd style V2 fill:#e3f2fd style B1 fill:#e8f5e9 style B2 fill:#e8f5e9 style B3 fill:#e8f5e9

Volume Commands

# List all volumes
docker volume ls

# Inspect a volume
docker volume inspect wordpress-docker_wordpress_data

# Backup WordPress files
docker run --rm \
  -v wordpress-docker_wordpress_data:/data \
  -v $(pwd)/backup:/backup \
  alpine tar czf /backup/wordpress-backup.tar.gz -C /data .

# Backup MySQL database
docker exec wp-mysql mysqldump \
  -u root -pRootPassword456! \
  wordpress > ./database/backup/wordpress-backup.sql

# Remove unused volumes
docker volume prune

Best Practices for Docker WordPress Setup

Use specific image versions:Never uselatesttags in production
Separate data volumes:Keep WordPress files and database data in separate volumes
Network isolation:Use custom networks instead of the default bridge
Environment variables:Store all configuration in.envfiles
Regular backups:Implement automated backup strategies for volumes
Resource limits:Set memory and CPU limits in production

Real World Example: Multi-Site Setup

Setting up WordPress Multisite with Docker:

# docker-compose-multisite.yml
version: '3.8'

services:
  wordpress-multisite:
    image: wordpress:6.4-php8.2-apache
    container_name: wp-multisite
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8080:80"
    environment:
      WORDPRESS_DB_HOST: mysql:3306
      WORDPRESS_DB_NAME: multisite
      WORDPRESS_DB_USER: wpuser
      WORDPRESS_DB_PASSWORD: wppass
      WORDPRESS_CONFIG_EXTRA: |
        /* Multisite configuration */
        define('WP_ALLOW_MULTISITE', true);
        define('MULTISITE', true);
        define('SUBDOMAIN_INSTALL', false);
        define('DOMAIN_CURRENT_SITE', 'localhost');
        define('PATH_CURRENT_SITE', '/');
        define('SITE_ID_CURRENT_SITE', 1);
        define('BLOG_ID_CURRENT_SITE', 1);
    volumes:
      - multisite_data:/var/www/html
      - ./multisite-content:/var/www/html/wp-content
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    networks:
      - wp-multisite-network

  mysql:
    image: mysql:8.0
    container_name: wp-multisite-mysql
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: rootpass
      MYSQL_DATABASE: multisite
      MYSQL_USER: wpuser
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: wppass
    volumes:
      - multisite_mysql:/var/lib/mysql
    networks:
      - wp-multisite-network

volumes:
  multisite_data:
  multisite_mysql:

networks:
  wp-multisite-network:
    driver: bridge

Practice Exercise

Let's get your WordPress Docker environment running:

💻

Try It Now

Create the project directory structure as shown above
Copy the completedocker-compose.ymlconfiguration
Create your.envfile with secure passwords
Create theuploads.iniconfiguration
Start the stack:docker-compose up -d
Access WordPress athttp://localhost:8080
Access phpMyAdmin athttp://localhost:8081
Complete the WordPress installation wizard

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Port Already in Use

# Check what's using port 8080
sudo lsof -i :8080

# Change port in .env file
WP_PORT=8082

Permission Issues

# Fix ownership for wp-content
docker exec wp-site chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html/wp-content

# Set correct permissions
docker exec wp-site chmod -R 755 /var/www/html/wp-content

Database Connection Failed

# Check if MySQL is running
docker-compose ps

# View MySQL logs
docker-compose logs mysql

# Test connection
docker exec -it wp-mysql mysql -u wpuser -p

PHP WordPress Development

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