# WordOps Dev Panel A lightweight internal control panel for managing WordOps WordPress sites without forcing developers onto the CLI. ## What this does - Lists WordOps sites (hides `dev-panel.local`) - Create / delete sites via WordOps - Optional bootstrap step after site creation (`wp-dev-bootstrap.sh`) - User auth + roles: - `admin` can see/manage all sites + manage users - `dev` can only see/manage sites they created - SQLite-backed storage (no external DB required) - Password change modal + logout under a username dropdown - Streaming output for long-running bootstrap (WordOps output may still arrive in chunks) ## Requirements ### Server - Up-to-date Linux OS (built and tested on Ubuntu 24.04) - [WordOps](https://wordops.net/) installed and working (`/usr/local/bin/wo`) - [WP-CLI](https://wp-cli.org/) installed and working (`wp` in PATH) - Nginx + PHP-FPM (WordOps provides this) ### PHP packages Install SQLite support for PHP (required): ```bash sudo apt update sudo apt install -y php-sqlite3 sudo systemctl restart php8.3-fpm || true sudo systemctl restart php-fpm || true ``` > Adjust `php8.3-fpm` to your PHP version if needed. ### File layout Panel site lives at: - `/var/www//htdocs/index.php` - `/var/www//htdocs/includes/db.php` - `/var/www//htdocs/includes/functions.php` - `/var/www//htdocs/style.css` - `/var/www//htdocs/panel.sqlite (auto-created)` Scripts live at: - `/usr/local/bin/wp-dev-bootstrap.sh` - `/usr/local/bin/wo-fix-perms.sh` (optional) ## Install steps 1. Create the WordOps “panel” site `sudo wo site create --php` Add host entry on your workstation (or internal DNS), then confirm you can load the site. 2. Drop in the panel files Copy: - `index.php` → `/var/www//htdocs/index.php` - `style.css` → `/var/www//htdocs/style.css` Make sure the web server can write the SQLite DB (the panel will create it on first load): `sudo chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www//htdocs` > Optional: lock down later once seeded; see permissions section below 3. Install bootstrap + helper scripts Copy: - `wp-dev-bootstrap.sh` → `/usr/local/bin/wp-dev-bootstrap.sh` (custom bootstrap script) - `wo-fix-perms.sh` → `/usr/local/bin/wo-fix-perms.sh` (optional) Then: - `sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/wp-dev-bootstrap.sh` - `sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/wo-fix-perms.sh` 4. Allow www-data to run WordOps + scripts via sudo Create sudoers file: `sudo visudo -f /etc/sudoers.d/dev-panel` Contents: ```text www-data ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/local/bin/wo * www-data ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/local/bin/wp-dev-bootstrap.sh * www-data ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/local/bin/wo-fix-perms.sh * ``` This lets the panel (running as www-data) execute the exact commands it needs as root. Do not add `www-data` to the sudo group. Test: `sudo -u www-data sudo /usr/local/bin/wo site list` ## First login / seeding On first load, if there are no users, the panel auto-creates: ```text Username: admin Password: change-me ``` Log in and change it immediately using the user dropdown → “Change password”. ### Ownership & permissions strategy You have two competing needs: 1. WordPress / PHP needs to write certain files 2. Developers need to edit themes/plugins without being root A safe, simple model is group-based permissions. ```bash # Create a shared dev group sudo groupadd webdev || true # Add all devs to group sudo usermod -aG webdev sudo usermod -aG webdev ... # Add web server user sudo usermod -aG webdev www-data ``` Log out and back in for group membership to apply. ### Set group ownership + setgid under `/var/www` ```bash sudo chown -R root:webdev /var/www # Directories: 2775 (setgid + group writable) sudo find /var/www -type d -exec chmod 2775 {} \; # Files: 664 (group writable) sudo find /var/www -type f -exec chmod 664 {} \; ``` ### Ensure new files stay group-writable Make sure your bootstrap script starts with `umask 0002` If WordOps creates files with different perms, run the optional fixer after site creation: `sudo /usr/local/bin/wo-fix-perms.sh example.local` ### SSH keys for private repos (bootstrap theme cloning) If your bootstrap clones private repos, you’ll need a key that can access them. **Option A** (recommended): deploy key or bot account key for the server Create `/var/www/.ssh/` or `/home//.ssh/` depending on your model **Ensure correct perms:** - `/var/www/.ssh` or `/home//.ssh` = 700 - private key = 600 Add to GitHub as a deploy key or bot account key Ensure `known_hosts` contains github.com to avoid prompts: `sudo -u www-data ssh-keyscan github.com >> /var/www/.ssh/known_hosts` **Option B:** keep bootstrap theme cloning optional and run theme cloning from a dev account via VSCode Remote. **Don’t store a personal private key in a shared server environment.** ## Daily workflow **Option A:** (recommended) [VSCode Remote - SSH](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/remote/ssh) - Devs connect via SSH to the server - Edit project files directly under `/var/www//htdocs` - Panel handles provisioning + bootstrap + ownership metadata - No need for tooling (`node`, `php`, etc) on user machines beyond VSCode + SSH **Option B:** SMB shares (with SSH tunnel) - Export `/var/www` (or per-site roots) via Samba - Use group permissions (webdev) so edits behave identically to SSH - Map network drives on dev machines - Requires tooling (`node`, `php`, etc) on user machines for composer, Tailwind, etc ## Troubleshooting ### “PDOException: could not find driver” PHP SQLite extension missing: ```bash sudo apt install -y php-sqlite3 sudo systemctl restart php8.3-fpm || sudo systemctl restart php-fpm ``` ### WordOps fails when run as www-data Don’t run wo as www-data directly: **Correct** (what the panel does): `sudo -u www-data sudo /usr/local/bin/wo site list` **Incorrect**: `sudo -u www-data /usr/local/bin/wo site list` ### WordOps delete prompts / EOFError Use `--no-prompt` on deletes (panel already does). ### Panel isn’t streaming output Bootstrap output streams (proc_open + flush) WordOps sometimes buffers; that’s normal. The panel will still show output when it arrives. ## Security notes The panel’s `sudoers` file is the main security boundary: - Keep it as narrow as possible - Avoid wildcarding unrelated commands - Consider restricting panel access by: - Internal network only - VPN only - HTTP basic auth in front of it - Keep OS patches current - Regularly audit panel users + roles ## Backups (minimum viable) At minimum, back up: - /var/www (all site roots) - Databases (WordOps MariaDB/MySQL) - `/etc/nginx` and WordOps configs (optional but helpful) - Panel SQLite DB: - `/var/www/dev-panel.local/htdocs/panel.sqlite` ## Next steps / nice-to-haves - “Fix perms” button in the panel post-create - Per-site notes (who/why) for management visibility - Audit log for create/delete/bootstrap actions - Optional “clone template site” support