How to Migrate a WordPress Site to a New Host
A safe WordPress hosting migration process covering backups, staging, DNS, validation and rollback.
Key takeaways
- A hosting migration should be treated as a change-management project, not just a file copy.
- Back up first, migrate into a testable environment, validate critical workflows, then change DNS.
- Keep the old host available until the new environment has been verified.
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Treat migration as a controlled change. Inventory the current site, preserve a restorable backup, build the destination, test it before public cutover and keep a rollback path until the new environment is proven.
WPX currently offers site migration as part of its hosting service. Even when a host performs the move, you should still validate forms, ecommerce flows, DNS, SSL, analytics, email and any scheduled jobs that matter to the business.
Backup
Security should be evaluated as prevention, detection and recovery. No single firewall, plugin or host feature can remove every risk, so layered controls and recoverable backups matter.
WPX currently advertises malware scanning and removal, brute-force protection, a web application firewall, hybrid DDoS protection, SSL certificates and daily backups. Those are useful hosting-layer controls, but site owners still remain responsible for credentials, plugins, themes and application-level decisions.
Copy site
Copy site matters because it changes either the amount of work your hosting environment must do or the amount of work you must do yourself. Evaluate it in the context of your actual site rather than treating it as a checkbox.
A good hosting decision is usually the result of several moderate advantages working together: suitable resources, reliable recovery, clear support, manageable workflows and a cost structure that still makes sense when the introductory term ends.
Validate
Validate matters because it changes either the amount of work your hosting environment must do or the amount of work you must do yourself. Evaluate it in the context of your actual site rather than treating it as a checkbox.
A good hosting decision is usually the result of several moderate advantages working together: suitable resources, reliable recovery, clear support, manageable workflows and a cost structure that still makes sense when the introductory term ends.
DNS cutover
Treat migration as a controlled change. Inventory the current site, preserve a restorable backup, build the destination, test it before public cutover and keep a rollback path until the new environment is proven.
WPX currently offers site migration as part of its hosting service. Even when a host performs the move, you should still validate forms, ecommerce flows, DNS, SSL, analytics, email and any scheduled jobs that matter to the business.
Post-migration checks
Treat migration as a controlled change. Inventory the current site, preserve a restorable backup, build the destination, test it before public cutover and keep a rollback path until the new environment is proven.
WPX currently offers site migration as part of its hosting service. Even when a host performs the move, you should still validate forms, ecommerce flows, DNS, SSL, analytics, email and any scheduled jobs that matter to the business.
Rollback
Treat migration as a controlled change. Inventory the current site, preserve a restorable backup, build the destination, test it before public cutover and keep a rollback path until the new environment is proven.
WPX currently offers site migration as part of its hosting service. Even when a host performs the move, you should still validate forms, ecommerce flows, DNS, SSL, analytics, email and any scheduled jobs that matter to the business.
WPX migration option
Treat migration as a controlled change. Inventory the current site, preserve a restorable backup, build the destination, test it before public cutover and keep a rollback path until the new environment is proven.
WPX currently offers site migration as part of its hosting service. Even when a host performs the move, you should still validate forms, ecommerce flows, DNS, SSL, analytics, email and any scheduled jobs that matter to the business.