WordPress Self-Hosted

Manage a self-hosted WordPress site via SSH+WP-CLI (primary) and WP REST API (when direct HTTPS access is available). Use when asked to write, draft, publish, update, or delete posts/pages on a self-hosted WordPress installation — including SEO optimization, categories/tags, featured images, author assignment, and proper post formatting. Designed for WordPress running on LXC, VPS, or bare-metal (not WordPress.com hosted). Requires: ssh, scp, curl, jq, wp (WP-CLI). Optional: op (1Password CLI for credential hydration via SSH agent socket). Network: SSH to user-configured WordPress host (LAN IP or public domain). Credentials: SSH key (via ssh-agent or 1Password SSH agent on macOS), WP application password (stored in 1Password, item name configurable via WP_1P_ITEM). Required env vars (gated; set via openclaw.json skills.entries or shell environment): WP_HOST, WP_SSH_USER, WP_ROOT. Optional config (TOOLS.md or env): WP_USER, WP_1P_ITEM. File writes: /tmp/post-content.html, /tmp/*.html (temporary content files SCP'd to host, created mode 600, cleaned up after use). Uses -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new for SSH by default (trust-on-first-use); see Security Notes for alternatives.

Manage a self-hosted WordPress site via SSH+WP-CLI (primary) or WP REST API (when direct HTTPS access is available).

Configuration — set via openclaw.json skills.entries.wordpress-selfhosted.env (preferred) or shell environment. Falls back to TOOLS.md if set there.

• WP_HOST — LAN IP or domain, e.g., myblog.com (required, gated)
• WP_SSH_USER — SSH user, e.g., dev (required, gated)
• WP_ROOT — WordPress root path, e.g., /var/www/html/wordpress (required, gated)
• WP_USER — WordPress username (optional; set in TOOLS.md or env)
• WP_1P_ITEM — 1Password item name for app password (optional; set in TOOLS.md or env)

Connection Decision Tree

Use SSH+WP-CLI when:

• WordPress is on a LAN IP (HTTP only)
• Site is behind Cloudflare or a reverse proxy that strips Authorization headers
• SITEURL is https:// but you're connecting over HTTP (SSL mismatch blocks app passwords)
• You need plugin/theme/DB/cache operations (REST can't do these anyway)

Use REST API when:

• You have direct HTTPS access to the WordPress host (no proxy stripping headers)
• SITEURL matches the URL you're calling (no SSL mismatch)
• Verify first: curl -s "https://<wp-host>/wp-json/" | jq '.authentication' — must return non-empty

⚠️ Common blockers for REST API auth:

• Cloudflare (and most reverse proxies) strip Authorization headers — REST API auth will fail via public domain
• WordPress requires SSL for application passwords — HTTP LAN access fails even if app passwords are created
• Wordfence can disable application passwords entirely (wf_prevent_application_passwords option)

SSH + WP-CLI (Primary)

Use for all content operations when REST API is unavailable. Also the only option for plugin installs, cache flush, DB operations, file management.

bash

# macOS with 1Password SSH agent
# Remove -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new if host key is in known_hosts (see Security Notes)
SSH_AUTH_SOCK="$HOME/Library/Group Containers/2BUA8C4S2C.com.1password/t/agent.sock" \
  ssh -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new <ssh-user>@<wp-host> \
  'cd <wp-root> && wp <command>'

# Linux / other SSH agents — SSH_AUTH_SOCK is already set in most environments
# Remove -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new if host key is in known_hosts (see Security Notes)
ssh -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new <ssh-user>@<wp-host> \
  'cd <wp-root> && wp <command>'

⚠️ macOS + 1Password users: Always use pty: true on exec tool calls — the 1Password agent needs a PTY for Touch ID signing. Without it: communication with agent failed.

SCP (file upload)

Large content bodies should be written to a local temp file, SCP'd over, then passed via $(cat /tmp/file) — avoids shell quoting issues with HTML/special chars.

bash

SSH_AUTH_SOCK="$HOME/Library/Group Containers/2BUA8C4S2C.com.1password/t/agent.sock" \
  scp -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new /tmp/file.html <ssh-user>@<wp-host>:/tmp/

Temp File Handling

Content files written to /tmp/ should use restrictive permissions and be cleaned up after use:

bash

# Write with restrictive permissions (owner-only read/write)
umask 077 && cat > /tmp/post-content.html << 'CONTENT'
...your HTML content...
CONTENT

# SCP to host (file is already mode 600 due to umask)
SSH_AUTH_SOCK="$HOME/Library/Group Containers/2BUA8C4S2C.com.1password/t/agent.sock" \
  scp -o StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new /tmp/post-content.html <ssh-user>@<wp-host>:/tmp/

# After use, clean up local and remote temp files
rm -f /tmp/post-content.html
ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'rm -f /tmp/post-content.html'

Temp files contain post HTML content only — not credentials. App passwords retrieved via op are captured into shell variables and never written to disk.

WP REST API (When Direct HTTPS Available)

No PTY, no Touch ID, single HTTP call. Use only when connection decision tree above confirms it will work.

bash

WP_USER="<wp-username>"
WP_PASS=$(op item get "<1p-item-name>" --fields password --reveal)
WP_BASE="https://<wp-host>/wp-json/wp/v2"

# Verify auth works before proceeding
curl -s -u "$WP_USER:$WP_PASS" "$WP_BASE/users/me" | jq '{id, name}'

# List posts
curl -s -u "$WP_USER:$WP_PASS" "$WP_BASE/posts?per_page=20&status=any" | jq '[.[] | {id, title: .title.rendered, status}]'

# Get post content (raw blocks)
curl -s -u "$WP_USER:$WP_PASS" "$WP_BASE/posts/<ID>?context=edit" | jq -r '.content.raw'

# Create post (draft)
curl -s -X POST -u "$WP_USER:$WP_PASS" "$WP_BASE/posts" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"title":"Post Title","content":"<p>Body</p>","status":"draft"}'

# Update post content
curl -s -X POST -u "$WP_USER:$WP_PASS" "$WP_BASE/posts/<ID>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"content\": $(cat /tmp/content.html | python3 -c 'import json,sys; print(json.dumps(sys.stdin.read()))')}"

# Publish
curl -s -X POST -u "$WP_USER:$WP_PASS" "$WP_BASE/posts/<ID>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"status": "publish"}'

To create an app password:

bash

wp user application-password create <username> "MyAgent" --porcelain

Store output in 1Password. Note: passwords are hashed in the DB — you can't recover them later.

Quick Start Workflow (WP-CLI)

0. Pre-Write (gather context)

bash

ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'cd <wp-root> && wp post list --post_status=publish --fields=ID,post_title,post_name --format=json 2>/dev/null' | jq '[.[] | {id: .ID, title: .post_title, slug: .post_name}]'

Pick 2–3 related posts to link contextually in the content body.

1. Write content to temp file locally

Write Gutenberg HTML to /tmp/post-content.html, then SCP to host.

2. Create Draft

bash

ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'cd <wp-root> && \
  wp post create /tmp/post-content.html \
  --post_title="Post Title" \
  --post_status=draft \
  --post_author=<user-id> \
  --porcelain 2>/dev/null'
# Returns post ID

3. Set Metadata

bash

POST_ID=123
ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'cd <wp-root> && \
  wp post term set '"$POST_ID"' category <slug> && \
  wp post term set '"$POST_ID"' post_tag <tag1> <tag2> && \
  wp post meta update '"$POST_ID"' _yoast_wpseo_metadesc "Meta description 120-155 chars" && \
  wp post meta update '"$POST_ID"' _yoast_wpseo_focuskw "focus keyphrase" 2>/dev/null'

4. SEO Checklist

Before publishing, verify:

• Meta description set (120–155 chars)
• Focus keyphrase set
• 2–3 internal links to related posts
• 5–7 tags
• Categories assigned
• Featured image set (optional but recommended)

5. Publish

bash

ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'cd <wp-root> && wp post update '"$POST_ID"' --post_status=publish 2>/dev/null'

Authors

bash

ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'cd <wp-root> && wp user list --fields=ID,user_login,display_name --format=json 2>/dev/null'

Common pattern for AI-assisted blogs: separate author accounts for human posts vs. agent-authored posts.

Post Content Format

Use WordPress block format (Gutenberg):

html

<!-- wp:paragraph -->
<p>Paragraph text here.</p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->

<!-- wp:heading -->
<h2>Section Heading</h2>
<!-- /wp:heading -->

<!-- wp:code -->
<pre class="wp-block-code"><code>code here</code></pre>
<!-- /wp:code -->

<!-- wp:list -->
<ul>
<li>List item</li>
</ul>
<!-- /wp:list -->

Author Signatures (optional)

Append at end of AI-authored posts:

html

<!-- wp:separator -->
<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>
<!-- /wp:separator -->

<!-- wp:paragraph {"style":{"typography":{"fontSize":"14px"},"color":{"text":"#888888"}}} -->
<p style="font-size:14px;color:#888888"><em>Written by <strong>Your Agent Name</strong> — AI agent (OpenClaw / Claude)<br>First-person perspective from an AI execution engine</em></p>
<!-- /wp:paragraph -->

Security Notes

StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new: Used throughout SSH/SCP commands as the default. This trusts a host on first connection and rejects changed keys on subsequent connections — protecting against MITM attacks after the initial connect. Suitable for user-configured hosts on trusted LANs (e.g., Proxmox LXC containers).

Best security — pre-populate known_hosts: Pre-populate the host key once, then remove -o StrictHostKeyChecking=... from all commands entirely:

bash

ssh-keyscan -H <wp-host> >> ~/.ssh/known_hosts

Ephemeral/CI environments only: Use -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no to skip host verification entirely. This disables MITM protection and should only be used in isolated, trusted environments (e.g., CI pipelines with known, ephemeral hosts). Not recommended for interactive or persistent use.

1Password SSH agent socket: On macOS, SSH commands reference SSH_AUTH_SOCK="$HOME/Library/Group Containers/2BUA8C4S2C.com.1password/t/agent.sock" to authenticate via the 1Password SSH agent. This is the standard macOS 1Password agent path — it allows SSH key signing via Touch ID without writing private keys to disk. The agent socket is only accessed when pty: true is set on exec calls (required for Touch ID prompt). On Linux or when using a different SSH agent, the standard SSH_AUTH_SOCK is used instead.

Credentials used:

• SSH key — via ssh-agent (1Password agent on macOS, standard agent on Linux). Never written to disk by this skill.
• WP application password — retrieved at runtime via op item get --reveal (1Password CLI) when using the REST API path. The --reveal flag outputs the plaintext password to stdout, where it is captured into a shell variable (WP_PASS). It is not written to disk but is visible in the agent's execution context during the session. This is standard for 1Password CLI workflows; op:// secret references are not supported by curl. Not cached to disk.
• Config values (WP_HOST, WP_SSH_USER, WP_ROOT) — declared as required env vars via requires.env in metadata. Set in skills.entries.wordpress-selfhosted.env in openclaw.json, or as shell environment variables. Falls back to TOOLS.md if present. WP_USER and WP_1P_ITEM are optional and can also be set via TOOLS.md or env.

Featured Images

bash

# SCP image to host first, then import
ssh <ssh-user>@<wp-host> 'cd <wp-root> && \
  ATTACH_ID=$(wp media import /tmp/image.png --title="Image Title" --porcelain 2>/dev/null) && \
  wp post meta update POST_ID _thumbnail_id $ATTACH_ID 2>/dev/null'