A web host can make or break your website. This is because your web host affects the performance and security of your site. If you’re dissatisfied with your web hosting provider’s quality, then it’s time to choose a new one. To do so, you’ll have to migrate your website from your old hosting provider to your new one. This may sound intimidating, but it’s actually fairly simple. Just follow the steps we’ve laid out below:
1. Choose a New Host
This seems like an obvious step, but it’s a crucial one. You need to find a web host that meets all the criteria that the previous host failed to meet. Take your time and do your research. Look at customer feedback and professional reviews. Then select three that you like and compare their pricing, features, and server configurations.
2. Find and Download Your Website
The next step when changing hosting providers is to find out where your current web host is storing your website. Furthermore, if your site has multiple databases, you should see if you can obtain backup copies of those files. Once you’ve located the files, you need to download them to your desktop so they’ll be available to give to your new host.
3. Export Your Site’s Database
As we mentioned above, if you have databases for storing visitor data or managing forms, you’ll have to obtain and export them. Doing this can vary depending on the database, so you need to work out these details with your hosting provider. However, in most cases, hosts offer phpMyAdmin as a tool for exporting and importing website databases. If you’re using cPanel, you will find phpMyAdmin on the interface. Once you’ve opened phpMyAdmin, you select a database and find the “Export” button and click on it. Then choose your export method and format (SQL). Click on the “Go” button to start the export and then select where you want to store your exported files on your desktop. Now your database is ready to be imported to your new host. You also can use dbForge Studio for MySQL. This GUI tool provides a fast and convenient way to export and import databases, making it a great choice for developers, database administrators, and anyone else who needs to manage their databases efficiently.
4. Upload Your Website and Import Your Databases
The way you upload your website and import your databases will largely depend on your new host. You should always check with them to see if there’s a particular way they want you to do things before you do anything yourself. However, in most cases, if you’ve exported your database in SQL form, then you can import it through phpMyAdmin using MySQL.
If you have a static website, you can upload all your files through cPanel using the File Manager. You can also upload with FTP. File Managers are usually used to upload or modify a single file or when you can’t set up an FTP client. FTP is the ideal way to upload your files. All you have to do is install FileZilla, which is a free FTP client, and connect to the server by using the login credentials provided by your new host. Once you’ve logged in, you should see the small part of the server that contains all the folders. Find the public_html folder and drop them into this folder.
If you have a dynamic website, you will need to transfer your database along with your website files. You can do this through PhpMyAdmin. In cPanel, find and open the database tab. Then click on the phpMyAdmin icon to open it. You should then see a tab or button labeled “Import.” Select the “Browse” button and find the database that you’d exported previously. If the file is zipped, make sure you unzip it first. Then click the “Go” button.
5. Test Your Website
Once your files have finished uploading, and your databases are imported, it’s time to test your website. The ideal way to do this is by using a temporary URL. This will let you access your site even though your domain name isn’t pointing to the new server. To find your temporary URL, log into your account management panel, select “Account Technical Details,” and look for the section called Temp. You should see your temporary URL displayed next to it.
If your website looks good, then you’re all set! You just have to wait for the host to point your domain name to its servers, and then you’re good to go.
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