Back Up Your Website Files And Databases
After youve purchased your new hosting plan and before you cancel your old one, youll need to back up your website in its entirety and move it over to your new server. Download all of your files from the old host they should have specific instructions for doing this in their platform and then migrate them to the new host via FTP. Databases must also be backed up by downloading the files, uploading them, and then restoring the database using a control panel or SSH. Emails can sometimes be transferred but at the very least should be archived so they can be preserved. This step is crucial to maintaining the integrity of your site just as it was on the old host.
Master Of Your Own Domain
Switching your domain registration and hosting isnt a simple matter, even though it should be the equivalent of a change-of-address card at the post office. Instead, you must reach your hands deep down into the ancient guts of the Internet to effect what you want. With preparation, deliberation, and an attention to detail, you can swap your registrar without a hiccup.
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- Related:
- Servers
- Publishing
Things To Do After Changing The Domain Name
1. Remember to clear cache when the site is live:
- For guidance on how to clear WordPress domain and WooCommerce domain cache:
Congratulations! Your site is now live on Nexcess!
Common Issues
1: Some URLs are Still Using the Old Domain Name or Temporary NameIs the old domain still being used?
- For WordPress: Run a search-replace from the old domain name to your new domain
- For Magento: Update the database URL using phpMyAdmin
2: Site Appears Insecure or Some Assets Do Not LoadAre some assets not loading? This could be due to SSL or mixed content errors.
- Check if the SSL has been enabled for both the www and non-www domain names.
- Check the site using WhyNoPadlock.
3: Redirect Issue
- Make sure the domain is not redirecting to another domain before modifying the master domain.
- Check .htaccess for any redirects rules added within it.
4: 404 Page
Is the site resulting in a 404 page?
- Make sure youve used the correct spelling while modifying the domain name.
- Check if you have pointed the DNS correctly.
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Let The Support Team Handle The Transfer To The New Host
If you arent sure how to do the entire transfer to the new host by yourself, or you simply dont have time to waste on such technicalities that you dont really care for, you can leave everything to the skillful hands of professionals at Bluehost.
Well, yes, you will have to pay for the transfer. But in that case, you will be able to relax, go for a walk or soak some sun on your skin if youre lucky enough to live near the beach while the support team does everything for you.
Bluehost can move the site to their servers for you and it will cost you $149. 99. This price includes migration of up to 5 websites and 20 email accounts. Yes, the support team will take care of all the files, databases, and everything thats essential for your site to work & look the same way it did on the old host.
It doesnt really matter where you hosted the site if you choose this option, but please note that Bluehost currently does not offer migration support for Reseller, VPS, or Dedicated Server accounts.
One of the great things about this is that theres no risk involved. If you are ready to start the migration to Bluehost, their experts know what they do. Even with that in mind, they understand that your site is important to you so they will review everything and make sure its fully functional before you get your hands on it.
If you are ready to start the migration to Bluehost, please see more details here.
Switching Domain Providers: What To Keep In Mind
Domains are often purchased from hosting providers that offer the required online storage space for your website. However, that doesnt mean that the domain is inextricably linked to the domain provider. In fact, provider services offer standalone deals where the domain and the provider are completely independent of one another. So theres good news if youre dissatisfied with your current domain provider: you can easily transfer your domain to another internet service provider. Read on to find out more about how to move your domain to a new hosting provider.
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Quick
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How To Move A Website To A New Host
Trying to figure out how to move a website to a new host without breaking anything, causing downtime or any other issues that could hurt your Google rankings?
As with any move, moving your site to a new host can feel a little daunting, especially if you havent done it before. However, it doesnt have to be, and with the tutorial that well share in this post, you should be able to move virtually any website to a new host.
A quick note here in this post, were focused on a generic process for how to move a website to a new host that will work for all websites, including WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, etc.
Web hosting must-know:
Go to our WordPress-specific guide for moving web hosts
Point Your Domain Name To The New Server
Lets recap what weve completed so far. You now have a new host and have transferred your websites files and database to a new account. You also have access to your new hosting accounts control panel.
Now youve reached the final step in your hosting transfer process pointing your sites domain name to the new server. To do this, you need to update your Domain Name System settings.
This is a critical step when switching web hosts. If you dont point your sites domain to the new server, visitors wont be able to access your website.
To put it simply, DNS translates websites domain names into IP addresses. A websites DNS record essentially provides instructions to web browsers and informs them where to go to load web pages.
If youre transferring to Hostinger, youll know that your domain is not yet pointing correctly if a message is displayed at the top of your hPanel saying, Your domain is not pointing to Hostinger.
Click Learn more to view Hostingers nameservers, then select Go to tutorial to be redirected to our guide that shows you how to point your domain to Hostinger.
If you dont receive this pop-up message, follow the next steps to change your domains nameservers manually via hPanel. This will update your sites DNS record to match the new IP address.
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How To Change Your Hosts File
When you modify your computers hosts file, youre basically tricking it by overriding the DNS for a specific domain. Your computer will only send requests to the IP address youve specified for the domain in the hosts file.
To do this, your hosts file needs to have two additional entries. One contains the IP address you want your machine to use and the other is the domain name itself.
For example, adding the two lines shown below will point both www.mysite.com and mysite.com to the IP address 65.187.312.189.
65.187.312.189 www.mysite.com65.187.312.189 mysite.com
The following instructions explain how to locate and edit the hosts file on three major operating systems.
After youve made the desired domain changes and saved them, your machine will begin sending requests for that domain to the specified IP. After testing is complete, dont forget to delete, or comment out, these entries in your hosts file to avoid confusion.
Changing Hosts File on Mac OS X 10.6 Current
$ dscacheutil -flushcache
Changing Hosts File on Windows 8 and Windows 10
Verify That The Domain Name Is Eligible For Transfer
To make sure your domain name can be transferred, sign in to your current Registrar and check the following:
- The initial registration of the domain name was at least 60 days ago and the domain has been with your current Registrar for at least 60 days:
Per ICANN’s Policy on Transfer of Registrations between Registrars, domains that are less than 60 days old or were transferred between Registrars within the last 60 days cannot be transferred. Please wait at least 60 days before transferring.
- The domain name is not on hold with your current Registrar.
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Getting Your Epp/auth Code
The next step is to obtain your EPP code. Your new web host will require this code to authenticate the transfer. To get the code, go to the Domains » Security tab.
Scroll down to find the Transfer Authorization / EPP Code section. Here click on the send button. Your code will be sent to the registered email address.
Keep your code safe. Youll need it in the following steps.
Export Your Sites Database From Your Existing Host
There are two parts to most websites:
If you just have a static HTML website, you dont need to move your database because your site doesnt have a database.
However, most content management systems rely on a database to store your content. This includes:
- WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, Magento, etc.
To move your database, youll first need to export your database from your existing host. Then, youll import it to your new host in the next step.
To export your database, you can use phpMyAdmin, which is a database admin tool that most hosts offer. If your current host uses cPanel, you should see a phpMyAdmin tool in the Databases section.
Once you open phpMyAdmin, youll need to select the database for the site that you want to move on the left .
Then:
- Go to the Export tab
- Select Quick for the Export method
- Choose SQL for the format
- Click Go to export your database
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Pointing Domain Dns To Your New Web Host
Next, you’ll need to switch your websites DNS record to the new web hosts servers at your registrar.
Your DNS record is a list of instructions that specifies where to send the user moving your DNS record to the new servers ensures that visitors will find your site as intended, rather than receiving an error or misdirect. This is a critical step make sure you get the right DNS info from your new web host.
Here are the step-by-step instructions on changing your website DNS at Godaddy, Name Cheap, and Domain.com.
If your domain is currently registered at your old web host, consider transferring the domain to a third party so that in case you do ever need to switch hosts again, your domain can come with you more easily and without any potential complications.
What Should My New Domain Name Be
While we cant tell you exactly what your new domain should be, we can give you some advice. Our article How to Choose the Best Domain covers this topic in-depth and our bulk name generator can offer suggestions, inspire you, as well as give you the chance to buy it there and then.
Here are some more tips to help you on your hunt.
Reflect on your product
The last thing you want to do is feel panic and regret, right after you buy a domain name. If youre selling a product, take some time to reflect on what youre selling, whether its a service or physical object. Jot down some related words and brainstorm ideas.
Try not to pigeonhole your website. For example, if you register chairs.com and later you want to start selling tables, visitors might be confused. Consider a neutral name and consider any future plans.
Describe the brand
Think about what your brand is. What do you aim to achieve? How do you want your product to be perceived? Ask focus groups, look for common words or phrases in customer feedback, emails, testimonials.
Keep it short and clear
Try to be concise when picking a domain name. Understandably, common words and popular phrases can be more expensive, but if you have the funds, a short and clear domain name will give you an advantage on long-winded, rambling ones.
They are likely to be memorable, marketable, and therefore strengthen brand recognition.
Check its legit
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Connect Your Domain To Shopify
To avoid any interruption in service, you need to connect your domain to Shopify. If you don’t connect your domain before you transfer it, then visitors to your domain might experience connection errors during the transfer process.
Note
Changes to a domain can take up to 48 hours to complete. Make sure that the connection process is complete before you begin the transfer.
Conduct A Final Check And Qa
Dont forget to perform a thorough test of your site once the operation is complete. If there were any issues during the migration, its important to identify them quickly so you can fix the problem before deleting your old hosting account. Of course, you should also keep the files you exported during the migration process.
First, check every page from the old site to confirm that its still accessible at the same URL. The page count should match that of the original site, and your database and files should also be accounted for. Consider using a link checker to look for broken links on your newly transferred site.
Furthermore, your host may have added code to your site thats specific to their practices. If they were responsible for your ads, for example, youll need to remove any code thats associated with their activity. Finally, go through your scripts and forms to ensure that nothing has been lost in translation. You should only cancel your old hosting account when youre sure that everything is as it should be.
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