{"id":130,"date":"2018-09-06T17:15:37","date_gmt":"2018-09-06T17:15:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/docs\/user-guides\/getting-started\/installation-and-updates\/"},"modified":"2025-01-09T13:27:26","modified_gmt":"2025-01-09T18:27:26","password":"","slug":"installation","status":"publish","type":"docs","link":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/kb\/core\/getting-started-with-learndash\/installation\/","title":{"rendered":"Installation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you have not already, please take a moment to review the technical requirements<\/a> before you continue with installation. The minimum server requirements should be met <\/strong>before you install and can run LearnDash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NOTE:<\/strong> You must enter a valid license key to receive support and updates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Install LearnDash<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"How<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Navigate to Plugins > Add New<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Click Upload Plugin<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Browse for and select the .zip<\/code> file that you downloaded after purchase. You can also download from your account<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Click Install Now<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Click Activate Plugin<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Repeat these same steps for ProPanel<\/a> if you have purchased the add-on. LearnDash Cloud users will not need to install ProPanel as it comes pre-installed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Activate Your License<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    To activate your license during your first LearnDash install, follow the steps on our OnBoarding Wizard<\/a> article. If you want to update your license without having to go through the wizard, you can go to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Navigate to LearnDash LMS > Settings<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Click on LMS License tab. If the license shows as invalid, see these resolution steps<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      You should be able to see your existing license, sign out, or change is as you want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      A separate license key is required for ProPanel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Primary Domain vs. Sub-Domain<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      We are often asked whether it is better to install LearnDash on a sub-domain (ex: courses.yoursite.com<\/code>) versus a top-level domain (ex: yoursite.com<\/code>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The short answer is that both options are viable and we have seen successful elearning programs take both approaches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The benefit to building on a separate domain or sub-domain is that it separates all elearning-related components from those of your main site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      This is useful in case you need to troubleshoot compatibility issues, and it helps to limit any potential conflicts that could occur with the theme\/plugins used on your primary domain versus the sub-domain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      However, you can certainly use LearnDash on your primary domain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      If your site is currently focused on training and e-learning, then this probably makes sense. If you have multiple offerings (services, products, e-learning, etc.), then perhaps it is best to separate the e-learning component altogether so as to present a cleaner offering to visitors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      If you have not already, please take a moment to review the technical requirements before you continue with installation. The minimum server requirements should be met before you install and can run LearnDash. NOTE: You must enter a valid license key to receive support and updates. Install LearnDash Repeat these same steps for ProPanel if…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_helpful_status":1,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_swpsp_post_exclude":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"doc_category":[179],"doc_tag":[],"knowledge_base":[154],"class_list":["post-130","docs","type-docs","status-publish","hentry","doc_category-getting-started-with-learndash","knowledge_base-core"],"year_month":"2026-04","word_count":350,"total_views":"8475","reactions":{"happy":"0","normal":"0","sad":"0"},"author_info":{"display_name":"Matt Cromwell","author_link":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/author\/mattc\/"},"doc_category_info":[{"term_name":"Getting Started with LearnDash","term_url":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/kb\/core\/getting-started-with-learndash\/"}],"doc_tag_info":[],"taxonomy_info":{"doc_category":[{"value":179,"label":"Getting Started with LearnDash"}],"knowledge_base":[{"value":154,"label":"LearnDash Core"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"comment_info":0,"knowledge_base_info":[{"term_name":"LearnDash Core","term_url":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/kb\/core\/","term_slug":"core"}],"knowledge_base_slug":["core"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs\/130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/docs"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=130"}],"version-history":[{"count":36,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs\/130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9544,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/docs\/130\/revisions\/9544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"doc_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/doc_category?post=130"},{"taxonomy":"doc_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/doc_tag?post=130"},{"taxonomy":"knowledge_base","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learndash.com\/support\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledge_base?post=130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}