Creating Directories in WordPress
WordPress is an open-source content management system that allows you to have complete control over your website. As such, there may come a time when you need to create a new directory for your website files. Lucky for us, PHP, the programming language that powers WordPress, has a built-in function for doing exactly this – mkdir()
The mkdir() function creates new directories. It requires you to specify the path and name for the directory in this format: mkdir(‘path/to/directory’). Let’s break that down and understand it in context.
Let’s say, for instance, that you want to create a new directory inside your theme’s folder to hold custom scripts you’re developing for your WordPress site. Here’s how you’d do it:
You would first run a check to see if the directory exists yet. If it’s present, nothing will happen. If it’s not, your code will create it. Below is an example of how it’s done:
if (!file_exists('path/to/directory')) {
mkdir('path/to/directory', 0777, true);
}
The 0777 part of the code refers to the permissions the new directory will have. In this case, 0777 means that the directory will be readable, writable and executable by all users. Generally speaking, this should be fine but depending on your server settings, it can be a security risk. With a permission of 0777, it means everyone can read, write and execute files in the directory.
It’s also worth noting that even though 0777 is the default mode, the actual resulting permissions will still depend on your current umask – a setting that can modify these defaults.
On the flip side, if you set the permissions too low (for example, 0600 – only the owner can read and write, no one else), you may encounter errors if WordPress needs to access any files in that directory and it doesn’t have permission to.
Now let’s explain the true argument. It’s known as the recursive parameter. When set to true, it means that mkdir() will create not just the final directory, but any necessary parent directories as well. In other words, if you specify a whole path of non-existent folders, it will create all of them, not just the last one.
While this method does involve working with code, it requires little programming knowledge and can be quite useful for managing your WordPress files and directories effectively. Remember, the better organized your content, the easier your WordPress site is to manage!
However, before diving into any coding, make sure to back up your site. While creating directories is generally safe, it’s always crucial to have a recent backup should anything go awry. Finally, always remember to replace ‘path/to/directory’ with the actual path where you want the new directory to reside.