When I transfer WordPress websites from one hosting company to another or even one server to another, I tend to install and use a limited set of WordPress plugins to assist in the transfer. Which plugins are used depends on the website’s set up, but, here’s a list of the plugins that help developers like myself transfer WordPress websites.
The existing website hosting area is the ‘source‘, and, the hosting area to which the website is being transferred is the ‘destination‘.
- UpdraftPlus
- Before doing anything else, backup the source website to remote storage. I have used this plugin for WordPress websites as large as 2.5 GB – with no problems. (Yes, gigabyte.)
- Duplicator is an alternative for smaller websites. Remember to download the Duplicator package to your local drive and delete it from the source area before copying the website over to the destination area.
- Broken Link Checker
- Check the broken links on the source website, record them, and save them to your local or remote storage.
- Use again to check the broken links in the destination website (after the transfer) in order to ensure that they match the broken links on the source website
- Report broken links to the client
- WP Migrate DB Pro with WP Migrate DB Pro Media Files
WP Migrate DB Pro Media Files is an add-on plugin available with WP Migrate DB Pro.- Create a migration ‘definition’ that:
- Backs up the source database. (I don’t worry about backing up the destination database as I use a clean install. See the Before Transferring a WordPress Website section.)
- Maps the source addresses to the destination addresses (inside the database)
- Copies the source database into the destination location.
NOTE: Depending on how you prepare the destination hosting area, you may not want to copy the usermeta nor user tables to the destination. See the comments below about how I prep the destination hosting area. - Copies the images and other media from the source into the same folder locations in the destination hosting area.
- Create a migration ‘definition’ that:
- Search and Replace
- When I forget to map one or more addresses, or need to make mass changes to content in the destination database, I install Search and Replace. Search and Replace is a WordPress tool that makes mass changes to the database – and – the best feature is that it handles serialized data. WordPress data is stored in serialized format. This format is special and needs special handling. Search and Replace does the job well.
These are the WordPress plugins that I typically use. These plugins provide functionality for WordPress website developers. I delete them as soon as the website transfer is complete as they add no value to the public-facing website, and, we know that having extra files hanging out in your WordPress hosting account is an invitation for hackers.
Actually, Broken Links Checker does add value, but, has been reported as a source for burning up server resources. I have not experienced the burn, but prefer to err on the side of caution. So, periodically, I install it on websites, run it, record the broken links, inactivate and delete the plugin, then report the broken links to the client.
Before transferring a WordPress website
- Update WordPress to its latest security release on the source website
- Update all the plugins to their latest releases on the source website
- Install a clean version of WordPress in the destination hosting area
- Copy the .htaccess (if exists) and the wp-config files of the destination hosting area onto your local drive for safe keeping.
- Copy the wp-custom folder from the source over the destination folder of the same name