This tutorial is part of our WordPress Management tutorial series. In this tutorial, you will learn how to create a system on your hard drive for keeping all of your downloaded WordPress backups, plugins, updates, and themes organized and archived for fast and easy retrieval.

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WordPress Maintenance System – Getting Organized

Not all web server settings or hosting environments allow you to update your plugins and WordPress application automatically. If you need to manually update your plugins and new versions of WordPress, it is important to have an organized system on your hard drive for downloading and archiving your WordPress plugins, updates and themes.

Also, keeping your WordPress downloads folder organized will help you quickly and easily locate older versions of WordPress updates and plugins if you ever need to reinstall these.

The second part of getting organized (how to keep your data and file backups stored safely and securely) is covered in another tutorial.

Checklist: Create An Organized System For Website Information

Follow the steps below to create a simple system for easy organization, archiving, and retrieval of your website information:

1. Create a Centralized Folder Structure

• On your computer or cloud storage, create a main folder named after your website (e.g., “MyWebsite”).
• Inside this folder, create subfolders for different types of information:
  • Backups: Store all website backups here. Include a copy of your WordPress installation files, security salt keys, etc.
  • Plugins: Keep copies of plugin .zip files and documentation.
  • Themes: Store theme files and customization notes.
  • Updates: Document the dates and details of major WordPress, plugin, and theme updates.
  • File Downloads: Archive important files available for download on your website.

2. Set Up Automated Backup and Archiving

• Use a WordPress backup plugin to schedule regular backups and save them directly to your Backups folder in cloud storage.
• Automate the download of backup files to your local Backups folder for redundancy.

3. Document and Archive Plugins and Themes

• Each time you install or update a plugin or theme, download the .zip file and store it in the corresponding Plugins or Themes folder.
• Create a text file in each folder summarizing the plugin/theme version, purpose, and settings used.

4. Track Updates

• In the Updates folder, maintain a document (e.g., “Update_Log.txt”) listing each update:
  • Date of update
  • What was updated (WordPress core, specific plugins, or themes)
  • Any issues encountered or resolved
  • A link to the official update documentation, if available.

5. Organize File Downloads

• If your website offers file downloads, store the original files in the File Downloads folder.
• Include metadata like upload date, download count, and links where the files are available on your site.

6. Regularly Review and Update Your Archive

• Periodically go through your folders to remove outdated files and ensure everything is up-to-date.
• Verify that all backups are complete and accessible.

7. Secure Your Archive

• Ensure that your archive folders are backed up in multiple locations (e.g., local drive, external hard drive, cloud storage).
• Implement access controls if necessary, particularly for sensitive information like backups.

This system will ensure that all your critical WordPress site information is organized and easily retrievable, reducing the risk of data loss and simplifying site management.

For additional information about different types of content about your website you will want to store and keep organized, see this tutorial:

• Keeping Website Records

WordPress Maintenance System – Getting Organized: Step-By-Step Tutorial

Complete the steps below to create a system on your hard drive for keeping all your downloaded WordPress backups, plugins, updates and themes organized and archived for fast and easy retrieval:

For this tutorial, we’ll create a folder in our hard drive called “WordPress” and add the following subfolders inside the “WordPress” folder:

• wp plugins
• wp updates
• wp themes (optional – use this folder to store different WordPress themes)
• latest-plugins (optional – create this folder if you manage multiple WordPress sites)
• “Data Backups” folder (to store backups of your data and files) Note: this folder doesn’t have to be in the “WordPress” folder, it can be anywhere in your hard drive.

Your WordPress folder structure should look like this …

Updating WordPress Plugins

The process below will help you stay organized and save you time, especially if you need to manually update your WordPress software and plugins …

Create a folder for each plugin used in your site inside your “plugins” folder:

Each time you download a new plugin update, create a new folder (use the update version number as the folder name) inside the main plugin folder, and download your updated plugin zip file into this folder:

Locate the plugin folder and unzip (uncompress) the plugin:

To extract files from a zipped compressed folder in Windows:

1. Locate the compressed folder.
2. Right-click the compressed folder, and then click Extract All. In the Compressed (zipped) Folders Extraction Wizard, specify where you want to store the extracted files.
3. Most Windows-based PCs have a built-in extraction utility. If your system doesn’t have this, consider using an extraction utility like Winzip. Winzip is available for Windows and Mac users.

Mac Users: Go here to learn how to unzip files

(Optional) If you are managing multiple WordPress sites, then copy the unzipped plugin folder you have just downloaded containing the updated plugin files …

… and paste it into the “latest-plugins” folder to replace the older version of the plugin in that folder.

If you need to perform manual updates to multiple WordPress sites, a “latest-plugins” folder containing all of the latest updates of your plugins will help to considerably speed up your maintenance and upgrading process.

Updating WordPress Software

WordPress has a built-in function that lets you automatically update your site to the latest version. Some server settings and hosting environments, however, will not let you perform automatic updates and trying to update WordPress automatically will lead to errors and failed upgrades.

The process below will help you stay organized and speed up your maintenance process – especially if you need to manually update your WordPress installation …

Downloading The Latest WordPress Version

The latest WordPress version can be downloaded a number of different ways. You can download it by visiting wordpress.org …

Or from inside your WordPress administration area …

Each time you download a new version of WordPress, create a new folder inside your “wp updates” folder. Name the folder with the new version you are downloading (e.g. “WP 3.2.1.”), then save the new WordPress version zip file inside this folder:

Once you have downloaded the new WordPress upgrade file, extract (unzip) it into the same folder …

Open the unzipped folder and delete the “wp-content” folder from the your upgrade file …

Important: Deleting the “wp-content” ensures that you cannot accidentally overwrite your plugin or theme settings when you update your WordPress site to the latest version.

After deleting the “wp-content” folder from the file, compress (zip) the file again …

The latest version of WordPress is now ready to be uploaded to your site.

Note: In the above screenshot, you can see that there are two “wordpress” folders inside the latest version folder:

1. Use the uncompressed file if uploading the contents of the folder via FTP.
2. Use the compressed (zipped) file if uploading the contents of the folder via cPanel.

Both of these options are covered in separate tutorials.

WordPress Themes

Use the “wp themes” folder to store all of your WordPress theme files …

For more information about WordPress themes, including where to find professional FREE themes for your WordPress site(s), go here: WordPress Themes

Getting Organized – Video Walthrough

The 2-part video series below walk you through the tutorial described above.

WordPress Maintenance: Getting Organized – Video Tutorial Part 1

WordPress Maintenance: Getting Organized – Video Tutorial Part 2

Next Step:

After creating a system for keeping your WordPress plugins, installation updates, themes, and data backups organized for easy access and retrieval (in case you ever need to restore your data or reinstall your site), the next step is to learn how to set up an offsite data backup storage system.

To learn how to set up an offsite data backup storage system, see the tutorial module below:

• How To Set Up An Offsite Data Backup Storage System

(Source: Pixabay)

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