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WordPress Multisite enables managing multiple WordPress sites from single installation sharing plugins, themes, and users centrally. From university networks and corporate intranets to SaaS platforms and franchise websites, Multisite reduces administrative overhead while maintaining site independence. This comprehensive guide teaches network activation, subdomain versus subdirectory configuration, site management, user roles, domain mapping, and performance optimization for enterprise-level WordPress deployments.<\/p>\n
What is Multisite<\/strong>: Single WordPress installation running multiple sites sharing:<\/p>\n Use Cases<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Benefits<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Limitations<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Subdomain Structure<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Advantages<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Requirements<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Subdirectory Structure<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Advantages<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Limitations<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Checklist<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Test Environment First<\/strong>: Always test Multisite on staging before production.<\/p>\n Step 1: Enable Multisite Feature<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Add to Step 2: Access Network Setup<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Step 3: Choose Network Type<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Select subdomain or subdirectory structure (cannot change later).<\/p>\n Step 4: Network Details<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Click Install.<\/p>\n Step 5: Update wp-config.php<\/strong>:<\/p>\n WordPress provides configuration code. Add to Step 6: Update .htaccess<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Replace existing WordPress rewrite rules with network rules:<\/p>\n Subdirectory .htaccess<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Subdomain Configuration<\/strong>: Requires wildcard DNS pointing *.example.com to server IP.<\/p>\n Access Network Admin<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Top admin bar: My Sites \u2192 Network Admin<\/p>\n Network Dashboard Sections<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Add New Site<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Site Automatically Created<\/strong>:<\/p>\n User Roles in Multisite<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Super Admin<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Administrator<\/strong> (per-site):<\/p>\n Other Roles<\/strong>: Editor, Author, Contributor, Subscriber (same as standard WordPress)<\/p>\n Add User to Site<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Grant Super Admin<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Network Admin \u2192 Users \u2192 Edit User \u2192 check \u201cGrant this user super admin privileges\u201d<\/p>\n Network Activate vs Site Activate<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Network Activation<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Enables plugin on all sites automatically.<\/p>\n Site-Specific Activation<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Then individual sites can activate from their dashboard.<\/p>\n Must-Use Plugins<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Create Example mu-plugin<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n
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Subdomain vs Subdirectory<\/h2>\n
site1.example.com\nsite2.example.com\nsite3.example.com<\/code><\/pre>\n\n
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example.com\/site1\nexample.com\/site2\nexample.com\/site3<\/code><\/pre>\n\n
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Pre-Installation Requirements<\/h2>\n
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Enabling WordPress Multisite<\/h2>\n
wp-config.php<\/code> (above \/* That's all, stop editing! *\/<\/code>):<\/p>\n<\/a>\/* Multisite *\/<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'WP_ALLOW_MULTISITE'<\/span>,<\/span> true<\/span>);<\/span><\/span><\/code><\/pre>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Network Configuration<\/h2>\n
wp-config.php<\/code>:<\/p>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'MULTISITE'<\/span>,<\/span> true<\/span>);<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'SUBDOMAIN_INSTALL'<\/span>,<\/span> false<\/span>);<\/span> \/\/ true for subdomains, false for subdirectories<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'DOMAIN_CURRENT_SITE'<\/span>,<\/span> 'example.com'<\/span>);<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'PATH_CURRENT_SITE'<\/span>,<\/span> '\/'<\/span>);<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'SITE_ID_CURRENT_SITE'<\/span>,<\/span> 1<\/span>);<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>define<\/span>(<\/span>'BLOG_ID_CURRENT_SITE'<\/span>,<\/span> 1<\/span>);<\/span><\/span><\/code><\/pre>\n<\/div>\n<\/a>RewriteEngine<\/span> <\/span>On<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule .* - [E=HTTP_AUTHORIZATION:%{HTTP:Authorization}]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteBase \/<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule ^index\\.php$ - [L]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a><\/span>\n<\/a># add a trailing slash to \/wp-admin<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule ^([_0-9a-zA-Z-]+\/)?wp-admin$ $1wp-admin\/ [R=301,L]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -f [OR]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -d<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule ^ - [L]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule ^([_0-9a-zA-Z-]+\/)?(wp-(content|admin|includes).*) $2 [L]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule ^([_0-9a-zA-Z-]+\/)?(.*\\.php)$ $2 [L]<\/span><\/span>\n<\/a>RewriteRule . index.php [L]<\/span><\/span><\/code><\/pre>\n<\/div>\nNetwork Administration<\/h2>\n
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Creating New Sites<\/h2>\n
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newsite<\/code> (becomes newsite.example.com or example.com\/newsite)<\/li>\n\n
User Management<\/h2>\n
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Plugin Management<\/h2>\n
Network Admin \u2192 Plugins \u2192 Network Activate<\/code><\/pre>\nNetwork Admin \u2192 Plugins \u2192 Enable (not Network Activate)<\/code><\/pre>\nwp-content\/mu-plugins\/<\/code> folder. Plugins here auto-activate network-wide (cannot deactivate).<\/p>\n