Resetting the WordPress administrator password

If you forget your WordPress administrator password and cannot use the email recovery option, you can still reset it using alternative methods. On ruachost.com, there are three main approaches: via Softaculous, WP‑CLI, or directly in the database.

Why Reset the Password?

• Regain access if locked out of the admin dashboard.
• Fix issues when email recovery is unavailable.
• Maintain site security by updating compromised credentials.

Methods to Reset the Administrator Password

Method 1: Reset via Softaculous

1. Log in to cPanel.
2. In the Softaculous Apps Installer section, click the icon.
3. At the top right, click the All Installations icon.
4. Locate your WordPress installation and click the Admin icon.
5. Softaculous logs you in automatically.
6. In WordPress, go to Users → All Users.
7. Locate the administrator account → Click Edit.
8. Under Account Management, click Generate Password or type a new one.
9. Click Update Profile.

✅ You can now log in with the new password.

Method 2: Reset via WP‑CLI

If WP‑CLI is installed on your server:

1. Log in via SSH.

2. Navigate to your WordPress directory.

3. Run the following command:

   wp user update admin_username --user_pass=new_password

   Replace admin_username with your admin login and new_password with the new password.

Method 3: Reset via Database (phpMyAdmin)

1. Log in to cPanel.

2. Under Databases, click phpMyAdmin.

3. Select your WordPress database (usually username_wpXXX).

4. Click the wp_users table.

5. Locate the administrator account.

6. Click Edit.

7. In the user_pass field, enter:

   MD5('new_password')

   Replace new_password with your chosen password.

8. Click Go to save changes.

✅ You can now log in with the new password.

Note

• WordPress stores passwords as MD5 hashes in the database.
• Some WordPress versions may use a different table prefix (e.g., wpe6_users instead of wp_users).
• Always choose a strong password to protect your site.