Now that you have decided on your web hosting plan and provider and have paid for the package, it is time to transfer all of your files from your old web host to the new one.
What are the things that you need to do during the process of migrating your files into the new web server? We have summarized the basic steps below and this should be pretty easy to understand and execute, even for first timers in the migration department.
How to Migrate from Old to New Web Hosting Provider?
There are many reasons why you want to transfer from one web host to the other. Regardless of the reason, transition should be easy and can be done in just a few hours (depending on the size of your files and the speed of your net connection).
Step 1: Backup All of Your Static Files:
Start by backing up all of your static files. What are static files? These are files that are not dependent on other files to serve their purpose like:
- Applications and kits like WordPress
- All images contained in your site
- All multimedia files from videos to sound clips
- Certificates (especially security certificates)
- Content such as articles and copy for the entire site
- Your databases, for example, user lists, customer profiles etc.
- Emails stored in your old server
These files can be backed up using your old admin panel. You can also back them up in another type of storage like your own computer or a web-based back up platform like SugarSync or even iCloud.
When you have backed up your files, you will not be too worried if something happens in transit. At least you know you have them stored safely elsewhere as a security feature for your contents.
Step 2: Transfer or Migrate Your Database to the New Server:
Transfer your database contents by using the tools provided by your new host. This should be one of the features that you should look for when you are scouting for a new host – the ease of migration of your database.
Some developers just recreate their database in the new server if they find it too difficult to download and then transfer. For hosting solutions that don’t have a built in migration feature you can use tools like phpMyAdmin to do this for you.
The process is quite the same whether you are using MySQL or MS SQL.
Step 3: Redirect Web Traffic:
Check and double check the contents of your site. Check ALL pages such as:
- Landing page or home page
- Main menu
- Product listing
- Contact us
- About us
- Galleries
- All popups and ads in your site
- All forms and features
To make sure that there are no left out images or content that you forgot to transfer.
Point your old DNS settings to your new web hosting settings. This will redirect your old traffic from the old site to the new one, even if they use the same URL.
From here, it is just a matter of checking everything that needs to be visible and then doing some tests on basic functions in your site such as creation of an account, making a purchase or sending an inquiry.
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