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Change the WordPress Table Prefix

Adding an extra layer of security to your WordPress website is crucial in the face of potential SQL injections and other database-related attacks. One way to deter these types of attacks is to change your WordPress table prefix, which is set to 'wp_' by default.

Change the Table Prefix in wp-config.php

The wp-config.php file contains the configuration details for your WordPress installation, including the table prefix.

  1. Use SFTP to access the root directory of your WordPress site. 
  2. Locate the wp-config.php file in the root directory and open it for editing.
  3. Once the file is open, look for the line of code that reads: $table_prefix = 'wp_';. This represents your current table prefix.
  4. Replace wp_ with your new desired prefix. Ensure your new prefix ends with an underscore _. For example, $table_prefix = 'newprefix_';.
  5. Save your changes and close the file.

Change the Table Prefix in the Database

The next step involves renaming the tables in your database to match the new prefix.

  1. Sign in to your Atomic control panel and open phpMyAdmin.
  2. Select your WordPress database from the left sidebar and account for the tables with the wp_ prefix.
  3. Use a text editor to prepare the following query, replacing newprefix with your desired table prefix and your_database_name with the name of your WordPress database:
    SELECT GROUP_CONCAT(
    CONCAT('RENAME TABLE ', table_name, ' TO ', REPLACE(table_name, 'wp_', 'newprefix_')) SEPARATOR '; '
) AS batch_rename_statement
    FROM information_schema.tables
WHERE table_schema = 'your_database_name' AND table_name LIKE 'wp_%';
  4. In phpMyAdmin, select the SQL tab.
  5. Paste query you prepared into the SQL query box and select Go to run it.
  6. From the Extra options, select Full texts, then click Go.
  7. Select Copy to clipboard, paste the batch rename statement into the query box, then select Go.

Take a moment to look over the table names in the left sidebar to ensure they’ve been updated successfully.

Note: You may need to refresh the page or close and re-enter phpMyAdmin to see the update.

Update References to the Old Prefix

The final step is to update any stored data that references the old table prefix.

  1. Return to the SQL tab in phpMyAdmin.
  2. Enter the following, replacing the new and old table prefixes with your own:
    UPDATE `newprefix_usermeta` SET `meta_key` = REPLACE(`meta_key`, 'wp_', 'newprefix_') WHERE `meta_key` LIKE 'wp_%';
UPDATE `newprefix_options` SET `option_name` = REPLACE(`option_name`, 'wp_', 'newprefix_') WHERE `option_name` LIKE 'wp_%';
  3. Select Go to run the query.

After submitting your updates, make sure to double-check that everything is functioning as expected.

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