Testing a new plugin? Running a big update? Or just tinkering with your site without crashing your entire website for your visitors? Then you need a staging environment. In this guide we explain how to create one with Installatron.

Why a staging environment is indispensable

A WordPress staging environment is really just a safe copy of your live website. Here you can experiment, change, test and fiddle to your heart's content without bothering your real visitors. No more moments of panic when you make a mistake. Lovely, right?

Step 1: How to create a staging environment

Do you have WordPress hosting at Theory7? Then you can create a staging environment in no time through Installatron in your hosting panel. Here is how:

  1. Log in to DirectAdmin.

  2. Go to Subdomain Management and create the subdomain staging.yourdomain.nl. (This can also be a different subdomain)

  3. Next, go to Installatron in DirectAdmin.

  4. Find your WordPress installation and click Clone.

  5. Choose the subdomain you just created (staging.yourdomain.nl)

  6. Then tick the staging checkbox, so Installatron knows you are creating a staging site from your clone.

  7. Click confirm, and within a minute your staging site is live!

Step 2: Test and develop like a pro

Your staging website is now ready to use. You log in just like on your normal site, only now you are in the staging environment. Here you can:

  • Update plugins and see whether they work well together

  • Test theme changes

  • Build new features or add content

  • Preview major redesigns

Important: remember that your staging environment is separate from your live site. Changes you make here only show up live once you push them back yourself.

Keep your staging site out of Google

Super important: you obviously don't want your staging site (such as staging.yourdomain.nl) to show up in Google next to your real website. That causes confusion and duplicate content, and it can hurt your SEO.

Fortunately, this is easy to prevent:

  • Log in to your staging WordPress dashboard.

  • Go to Settings > Reading.

  • Tick: “Discourage search engines from indexing this site” (the option is officially called: Search Engine Visibility).

  • Save your settings.

This sends Google and other search engines a friendly request to ignore your staging site. Don't worry: this has no effect on your live website.

Extra tip: if you want to be extra safe, you can also protect your staging site with a password through your hosting panel. That way it really stays a private test environment. You can do this in DirectAdmin with the feature: "Password Protected Directories".

Step 3: Push your staging environment back to live

Happy with your changes? Time to move them to your real website. At Theory in Installatron you can do this with one click:

  1. In Installatron: click your staging site and choose ‘Push or Sync to live’.

  2. Confirm that you want to overwrite the live site.

Note: this really replaces your live site. So make a backup first or use the Theory7 backup system.

Check that you are not taking along test data, dummy content or plugins you don't want on your live site. 

Why you should never work directly on your live site

Without a staging environment you work with sweaty palms. One wrong click and your entire homepage is down. No joke, and really annoying. And then there is that update that turns out not to be compatible after all. In short: staging is the smart choice. It is safer, more professional and simply a relaxed way to work.

Can't figure it out?
No worries! Feel free to contact our helpdesk and we will help you right away!

💡 Bonus: do you use our WordPress hosting? Then staging is included as standard. No hassle, just well taken care of.

Further reading