1. Get Joomla

Download the most recent zip version from http://www.joomla.org/ onto your own computer using and then extract the files. This creates a folder named something like "Joomla_2.5.6-Stable-Full_Package" on your computer. For your convenience, you might want to rename this folder to something simpler like "joomla".

2. Create a MySQL database

Joomla uses a MySQL database to store the blog entries. We recommend creating a new database specifically for Joomla, rather than using an existing one. To create the database on our servers, follow our instructions explaining how to create a MySQL database.

There's no specific format you need to follow when naming the database. The rest of these instructions will assume that your database is called "jmexample" — if you use a different name, just use that name instead of "jmexample" when following the instructions below.

3. Move the Joomla files to your Web site

Use an FTP program to publish the "contents" of the "joomla" folder (not the actual folder itself) to whatever location on your Web site you want to use for your Joomla files (usually the top level of your Web site). This process can take several minutes since Joomla is a large software platform that contains thousands of individual files.

Please note that the folder (directory) into which you upload your Joomla files should not contain any other files named index.html, index.htm, or index.shtml. This is necessary because otherwise those default pages would be served before Joomla's index.php page. In particular, if you upload Joomla into the top level of your Web site, be sure to delete (or rename) any conflicting default page file.

4. Start the installer

If you uploaded Joomla to the top of your Web site you can start the installer by going to http://example.com/. The following page should then appear:

Choose your preferred language and click Next to continue. The "Pre-installation Check" page appears:

Click Next to continue. The "License" page appears:

Read through the license and click Next if you agree to its terms. The "Database Configuration" page appears:

Enter the following for the database "Basic Settings":

• Database Type: MySQLi
• Host Name: localhost
• Username: enter the "MySQL User Name" that you created in step 2 above (for example, jmexample)
• Password: enter the password for the MySQL database that you created in step 2 above
• Database Name: enter the "MySQL User Name" that you created in step 2 above (this must be the same value as you entered for "Username" two fields above it)
• Table Prefix: accept the suggested default value, unless you have a specific reason to change it.
• Old Database Process: Backup

Click Next. The "FTP Configuration" page appears:

Make sure "Enable FTP Layer" is set to No, and leave the other fields empty. The FTP option is only needed on servers that don't allow scripts to change file permissions, which isn't the case on our servers. In fact, using the FTP option is a security risk, because any Joomla security problem (of which there have been several in the past) would expose your FTP password to hackers.

Click Next. The "Main Configuration" page appears:

Enter the following settings:

• Site Name: enter anything you want
• Your Email: enter an e-mail address that can be used for administrative purposes
• Admin Username: choose a name for administrator user, such as admin
• Admin Password: choose a strong password for the administrator user
• Confirm Admin Password: re-type the administrator password

If you would like to install the sample data, which is recommended if you are not familiar with Joomla, click Install Sample Data.

Click Next. The "Finish" page appears:

Before viewing your Web site, you'll need to delete the installation folder. Click the button labeled Remove installation folder.

After you have removed the installation folder, click Administrator at the top of the page to continue. The "Administration Login" page appears:

Type in the username you chose, such as admin, enter the administrator password, then click Log in.

See the Joomla documentation for full details on how to configure Joomla.