This is a tutorial that will guide you through a couple methods to install your premium theme and then show you how to add your website to be associated with your license key.
Download Theme
The first thing you will need to do is log into Shaped Pixels and get your theme:
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Go to Support >> Purchase History
- Click on the “View Details and Downloads” text link. This will take you to your Purchase Confirmation page.
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Near the bottom is your product. We will use the “Senses” theme as an example here. Simply click on it to get the zip file downloaded to your computer.
- The next step is to install it…
Method 1 - Adding Themes with the Installer
Similar to the tutorial above, when installing themes from Shaped Pixels, you will use the “Upload Theme” button to add your new theme. This particular tutorial is for our Pro version themes because they are not part of the WordPress theme respository.
- Log into your WordPress dashboard
- Go to Appearance >> Themes
- Click “Add New Theme“
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At the top of the window, click “Upload Theme” and browse for the theme file (zip) that can be found in the downloaded package that you got from Shaped Pixels. For example, the Senses theme will have a file name of
senses.zip
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Once uploaded, click on the “Activate” link.
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Once the theme is activated, your theme should now show the active label, including the “Customize” button that leads you to the options and settings for WordPress and the theme you just installed.
Method 2 - Adding Themes Manually (FTP)
There may be times when you will upload and install themes manually, such as downloading a new theme or when you are updating a theme.
- Download the theme to your computer — normally to the desktop — and extract (unzip) the file. Make sure a folder is created with the theme files inside of it exists after extraction. One way to find out, is to look for the style.css file and to make sure it’s inside that folder.
- Using an FTP application (program) to access your host web server, browse to wp-content/themes directory where your WordPress is installed. For example, the default theme named Twentysixteen should be in wp-content/themes/twentysixteen.
- Upload the folder where your theme files are located and put them into the “themes” directory where your WordPress is. For example, after you upload our Senses theme, it should look like this wp-content/themes/senses
- Now you can log into your WordPress dashboard and activate your theme.
FTP Programs
Everyone has their preferences, for example, I use WS_FTP Professional for over 10 years because it has a nice easy interface, yet gives me exactly what I need. Of course, there are other options available such as CuteFTP, but another popular one that is free is called “FileZilla”. You also have the option to use your web host’s file manager, although I find their file managers are too limited in functionality and a pain in the butt to log into your host every time you need to use it.
Using the New License Key System
This is a new system that was added when I converted the Shaped Pixels website from Joomla to WordPress. We are now using the same membership/purchase system that many of our fellow top theme sites have. When you install your theme, a license key is used to manage your auto theme updates, as well, it manages when your theme expires (although you can always renew your membership to keep receiving updates and support).
Three things to know about when using this new system and the license key:
- There is now a unique license key for every theme
- You will need to add your websites where this license key will provide updates and keep support going for you
- For individual themes, you get up to 5 websites per theme, 10 for the Premium Membership, and unlimited for the Lifetime Membership
The number of domain license keys does not limit you to just 5 or 10 website installs of the theme, you can still put the theme on as many websites as you want, but the only difference is, updates will only be available for the 5 or 10 website counts respectively. All other sites that you install the theme on do not get updates, unless you opt in for an upgrade to the Premium or Lifetime Memberships.
Associating Your Website to Your License Key
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Go to Support >> Purchase History
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Click on the text link “View Licenses” and then “Manage Websites“
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You will see your license key (blurred out) at the top, but near the bottom is where you will add your website(s)
- Once done, these websites will receive update notices and give you the one-click update like you get with WordPress plugins.
Assign Your License Key to Your Theme
Now that you’ve added a website to your license key, now we need to perform one more step once your theme is activated, you will find a “Theme Key” link on the popup window when you click on the theme’s details after you activated it. But you also have a link added to the Appearance menu group…which might be easier to get to.
- On the main site menu, go to your Purchase History and click on the View Licenses link
- Click on the key icon under the “Key” column and copy your license key. You can also get this from going to the “View Details and Downloads” area too.
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Go to Appearance >> Theme License
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Paste the key into the field and click “Activate License“
- Once done, click “Save Changes” and now you are set to receive auto updates for your theme.
About Your Purchase History
This shows your purchase history, themes and/or memberships.
- ID - This is the ID of the purchased item
- Date - This is the date you made your purchase
- Amount - This is the amount you paid
- Details - This gives you more information about your purchase, and it also gives you your download link for the theme(s)
- License Keys - This lets you view your license keys and also add websites to get updates