What Softaculous is and where the icon sits
Softaculous is a one-click installer that runs inside cPanel and builds a working application — files, database and admin login — from a single form. Open the Software section on the cPanel home screen and click Softaculous, or type Softaculous into the panel search box. WebJi® Linux shared plans ship cPanel with the installer included.
- The library holds WordPress, Joomla, PrestaShop, Drupal, phpBB, MediaWiki, Moodle and Elgg, all installed through the same form.
- It keeps an inventory of what you installed, which is what powers updates, backups, staging and removal.
- It does not design, secure or speed up the site. It only deploys it.
If the icon is missing on a cPanel hosting plan, the package may have the feature switched off rather than the server missing it. Search first, then ask support to confirm the package.
Install WordPress with Softaculous, field by field
The form asks for nine things and most people read only the first two. Here is what each one decides.
- Open Softaculous, then WordPress, then Install Now.
- Choose Installation URL: pick the domain from the list, and leave In Directory empty for the site root or type blog to install at /blog.
- Set Site Name and Site Description. Both can be changed later inside WordPress.
- Admin Account: type your own username rather than admin, and a password you have stored somewhere else.
- Admin Email: use a mailbox you actually read, because the reset link goes there.
- Choose Language, then leave the database name and table prefix at their defaults unless two installs will share one database.
- Leave Auto Upgrade untouched for now; set it deliberately once the first backup exists.
- Click Install. The progress bar moves through download, database creation and configuration.
- On the success screen, copy the site URL and the admin URL before you close the tab.
How you know the install worked
The success screen is not proof. Three checks take under a minute and each catches a different failure.
- Open https://yourdomain/wp-admin in a private window and log in with the username you typed, not one the installer generated.
- In cPanel, open MySQL Databases: the database and user appear in the list and the user is attached to that database.
- Return to Softaculous and open Current Installations: the row shows the site, the version and the install path. If the row is missing, the install did not finish.
A 500 on /wp-admin straight after install is usually permissions: files 644, folders 755, no 777 anywhere. A blank page behind a working login is a PHP memory or version question, not an installer failure.
What Softaculous writes to your account
Every install touches the same five places, which is why a half-finished install leaves debris behind.
| Where | What appears |
|---|---|
| public_html or the folder you named | The application files, including wp-config.php on WordPress |
| MySQL Databases | A database and a database user, already attached to each other |
| wp-config.php | The database name, user, password and table prefix |
| Cron Jobs | A scheduled task for the installer's own maintenance, where the app needs one |
| Softaculous inventory | A row in Current Installations holding the version and install path |
Copy the database name and user into your notes now. They are the two fields you need when a host migration or a manual restore goes wrong, and they are easier to read here than to recover later.
Backups, auto-upgrade and staging in Softaculous
All three sit behind one button: Current Installations, then the Edit link on the row. Auto Upgrade has a separate setting for core, plugins and themes, and each can be automatic or ask first.
- Backup: Backup Installation writes the files and a database dump, and the panel prints the path it used.
- Auto Upgrade: automatic core updates are reasonable; automatic plugin updates on a site with old add-ons are how white screens happen.
- Staging: Create Staging builds a copy to test on, then pushes the tested files back. Never point the public domain at the staging copy.
- Clone: cloning to a new domain or folder is how a second site starts from a working one, database included.
None of that replaces a backup held off the account. A dump in the same home directory goes down with the account.
Install a second site in a folder or addon domain
Use the same form and change two fields. Pick the addon domain or subdomain in Choose Installation URL, and type the folder name in In Directory. A second WordPress at /blog needs its own database or its own table prefix.
Two installs in one folder overwrite each other's index file and configuration. If you are unsure which folder a site already uses, open File Manager and look for wp-config.php before installing again.
Remove or reinstall without losing the database
Remove Installation asks three separate questions, and the answers decide what survives. Tick only what you mean to delete.
| Checkbox | What it deletes |
|---|---|
| Remove Directory | The application files in that folder, including uploads |
| Remove Database | The tables, so posts and orders go with them |
| Remove Database User | The MySQL user, which another site on the account may also be using |
For a clean reinstall, take a backup, remove the files and keep the database, then install again into the same folder and point the new configuration at the old tables. For a fresh start, remove all three.
Softaculous missing or an install failing
Five messages cover most of what the panel returns. Each has one fix, and none of them is "upgrade the plan".
| What you see | Fix |
|---|---|
| No Softaculous icon | Search the panel for it. If it is still absent, the package feature is off; email support with the domain. |
| Maximum installs reached | The account has hit a package limit on databases or addon domains. Remove an unused install, or ask about the limit. |
| Could not connect to the database | The database quota is full or the user is not attached. Check MySQL Databases, then retry. |
| Installation timed out | Partial files remain in the folder. Remove the partial install in Softaculous, then retry once. |
| 500 error after a successful install | Set files to 644 and folders to 755, then check the PHP version for that domain. |
A failed install retried without removing the partial one usually fails again, because the folder is no longer empty. Clear it first.
When to email support
Email support@webji.services with the domain, the application, the folder and the exact error text, and say whether the install completed. Support is 24/7 by email in Hindi and English, and the average first reply is under 60 minutes. The office phone is a business-hours line, not a support queue.
Step-by-step articles for routine tasks sit in the knowledgebase, and WordPress hosting covers what a managed install adds. Anything the installer cannot fix — a hacked site, a plugin that breaks the admin — belongs in a ticket, not a reinstall.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Softaculous in cPanel?
On the cPanel home screen, scroll to the Software section and open Softaculous. If the icon is not there, type Softaculous in the panel search box. WebJi Linux shared plans include cPanel with Softaculous, so a missing icon on those plans is a package setting.
How long does a Softaculous install take?
Usually under a minute for WordPress on a shared plan. The progress bar runs through download, database creation and configuration, then stops on a screen with the site URL and the admin URL. A timeout longer than five minutes is a failure, not a slow install.
Can Softaculous update WordPress automatically?
Yes. Open Current Installations, click Edit next to the site, and set Auto Upgrade for core, plugins and themes. Automatic is convenient, but take a backup in the same panel first, because an automatic update on a site with an old plugin is the usual cause of a white screen.
Does a Softaculous backup include the database?
Yes. A backup from the installation screen writes the files and a database dump together, and the panel shows the path it used. Keep a second copy off the account: a backup sitting in the same home directory disappears with the account.
What do I do if Softaculous is not showing in cPanel?
Search the panel for Softaculous first, since some themes hide it under Software. If it is still absent, email support@webji.services with the domain and the plan name. On WebJi Linux plans the installer is part of the cPanel stack, so the desk can check the package.