Site works fine when logged on directly to the server

Your description and the errors seem to suggest that the issue may be related to installing WordPress using “localhost” in your WordPress URL’s. – I’m assuming you might have installed WordPress from the browser located on the server itself, using the //localhost/wordpress/wp-admin path to run the install routine.

That’s probably why it works okay from the server, but not from the LAN. I’m guessing it (WordPress) might need at least a static ip address (the static internal network ip address of the server?) or a resolvable domain name in order to display properly from your LAN.

Hello

Thank you for your response CJ and I’m sure that you are absolutely correct. Since the installion steps for WordPress are so sparce I don’t remember where I might have defined “Localhist” rather than the server’s static IP adress as the server has always had a static IP number reserved for this machine as you do with most servers. I would have been looking for the opportunity to assign WordPress the host name of the server however the WordPress installation procedure does not run an install wizard you just get suggestions about copying files to a location and written in a way that is open to misinterpretation.

I followed the instruction as written and do you know what file I need to edit to assign WordPress the host name or static IP of my server so that all clients can connect? I have not found any Apache2 file that would hold such a setting and the WP-Conf.php file only has a setting for the MySQL dB which is “Localhost”. Should I change this to the host name or the IP number of the server. Can I use just the host name or does it have to be the FQDN?

There is nothing in the WordPress doco that says that this should ever be anything other than “localhost” but the documentation is not very comprehensive.

Thanks for your assistance and kindest regards.

I followed the instruction as written and do you know what file I need to edit to assign WordPress the host name or static IP of my server so that all clients can connect?

There are no configuration files in WordPress where you would normally define a static ip or hostname. The WordPress URL is set at the time of installation, and then will be reflected in the General settings afterward. It can be changed from there after installation, but that includes some detail that we may not want to be concerned with at this point. Reference: Changing The Site URL – and – Moving WordPress

This is the often the point where the line that distinguishes the difference between server administration and configuration issues, and WordPress installation, gets blurred. Without knowing what you’ve done to prepare your server, and if – or – how your Apache virtual host containers are configured, (which are server preparation issues, rather than WordPress issues) I might suggest two things that could get you pointed in the right direction.

– If you have a domain name that already properly resolves to your server, then try installing WordPress from a machine other than the server itself – or if you must install from the server, try using your domain name in the browser when you run the install.

Example: If you’ve installed all of your WordPress files at /var/www/wordpress, then point your browser to //yourdomainname.com/wordpress/wp-admin and install WordPress from there.

– If you don’t have a domain name that will resolve to the server, then you might try doing the same thing using the internal ip address of the server instead.

Example: Point your browser to //192.x.x.x/wordpress/wp-admin and run the install. Then you should probably be able to access your WordPress site just from your LAN.

WP-Conf.php file only has a setting for the MySQL dB which is “Localhost”. Should I change this to the host name or the IP number of the server

No. If MySQL is running on the same machine/server as Apache, don’t change it. localhost in this case, refers to where your database can be found.

Some pretty straight forward installation ideas and tips that should apply to any properly configured web server can be found here: Famous 5-Minute Install

I hope something I mentioned helps point you in a productive direction.

Hello CJ

I can get the client machines to connect to the WordPress site if on each client machine I manually write a hosts files entry reassigning Localhost to the servers IP number. This should not need to be done but is a work-a-round. This would prevent a client from ruuning HTTP applications locally with wold be an issue for one machine in particular as it is used for web development.

You wrote “you would normally define a static ip or hostname. The WordPress URL is set at the time of installation” which I presume is part of step 4 in the installation instructions – running the installation script. It appears to me that I cannot rerun the same script to correct this entry so i need to know where that script writes to. It must be in a file somewhere. Most installation scripts have reinstall options that I cannot find in ths case.

I agree with your comment that this is more an administration issue than installation however the instructions seem to assume no one has their own environments and are all are using ISP hosted services. A small section covering possible Apache2 configurations would not go amiss.

My VirtualHost *:80 settings are all in proper order or else it would not be working OK even when logged on to the server.

Your feedback and suggestions have been very helpful and I am most grateful for your assistance.

I will review the links you have provided and I feel close to a resolution.

Many Thanks

It appears to me that I cannot rerun the same script to correct this entry so i need to know where that script writes to.

You can’t re-run the installer because you’ve already completed the routine and added the information you provided to your database. You can of course, edit that information using your database administration tools. Reference: Changing The Site URL. But if you’ve just installed and have no content yet, it’s much more convenient to simply delete the tables in your WordPress database. That will allow you to run the install routine again.

It must be in a file somewhere. Most installation scripts have reinstall options that I cannot find in ths case.

It’s not in a file. The information is stored in the database you created for wordpress.

Just changing the host name in the admin interface from Localhost to the actual server name fixed this issue thanks