How to Transfer a Large WordPress Site to the WordPress Hosting

When you create your own WordPress Hosting account with Crazy Domains, it comes with an automatic migration script that can transfer your WordPress site to our hosting quick and easy. If your website is a lot larger and more complex, it is a good idea to follow these steps in this article.

1. Install WordPress site on Your Hosting Manager

In order to transfer your WordPress site to your new WordPress hosting, first thing you need to do is to install your WordPress site on your Hosting Manager. Follow the steps in this guide below to learn:

• How Can I Install (Setup) New WordPress Site

Tip: For your convenience, it’s best to add a new WordPress site using the free domain provided by Crazy Domains

2. Download All Existing WordPress Files

Back-up and download your Existing WordPress files. This step is important when transferring your WordPress site to another hosting provider. There are plenty of plugins you can install to help you with this. However, if you prefer a manual approach, here’s what you need to do:

1. Log in to the SFTP program of your choice.
2. Once you are connected to your web host, download all files under your website’s directory and saved it a folder on your local computer.

Note: Make sure you download everything including hidden files such as .htaccess.

3. Export and Download All Your Existing Databases

It is also important that you create back-up files for all your WordPress databases and files from your former hosting manager. Here’s a quick guide on how you can do it:

Step 1.	Log in to your previous Hosting Manager account.
Step 2.	Go to the phpMyAdmin application.
Step 3.	Open the WordPress database.
Step 4.	Click the Export tab click at the top of the page.
Step 5.	On the Export method section, select Custom – display all options.
Step 6.	Once you’ve selected Custom, scroll down to find Output section. Then, pn the Compression field, select the gzipped option to enable compression.
Step 7.	On the Object creation section, check the box beside Add DROP TABLE / VIEW / PROCEDURE / FUNCTION / EVENT / TRIGGER statement
Step 8.	Click the Go button.

4. Access Your New Hosting Account

Once you have downloaded and saved all the necessary files and databases, you will need to access your new hosting account and enable STFP access. Here’s what you need to do:

Step 1.	Log in to your Account Manager.
Step 2.	Click on Web Hosting from the menu bar at the top of the page.
Step 3.	Click on the domain name that is registered to WordPress Hosting.
Step 4.	Click the Production tab and enable SFTP Access.

5. Save Current Database Credentials

You will need to obtain and take note of your database credentials from the wp-config.php file from our WordPress hosting. Follow these steps below:

1. Open the folder that contains all your WordPress site files and open the wp-config.php using a text editor program (e.g., Notepad) and then locate the following string of codes:

/** The name of the database for WordPress */
define('DB_NAME', 'DatabaseName');
/** MySQL database username */
define('DB_USER', 'DatabaseUsername');
/** MySQL database password */
define('DB_PASSWORD', 'DatabasePassword');
/** MySQL hostname */
define('DB_HOST', 'DatabaseHostname');

2. Take note of all the credentials.

6. Upload the WordPress Files You Downloaded to the New WordPress Hosting

Follow the steps below to upload your WordPress website files to our WordPress Hosting.

Step 1.	Log in to your account through the SFTP client of your choice. You will need to provide the following: Host This can be your hosted domain name or the IP Address Username This is your Primary SFTP User Password This is your SFTP User password
	You can find the following credentials on your hosting manager.
Step 2.	Once you’ve logged in, delete all the existing files.
Step 3.	After that’s done, drag all of your website files and directories from your Local Site to your Remote site area to upload your website files.

Note: Both process can be completed depending on the size of your website. The larger your site, the longer it takes to finish.

7. Import Your Database

You now need to import your database from your old hosting account to Crazy Domains’ WordPress Hosting. Here are the steps you can follow:

Step 1.	Log in to your Account Manager.
Step 2.	Click on Web Hosting from the menu bar at the top of the page.
Step 3.	Click on the domain name that is registered to WordPress Hosting.
Step 4.	On the WordPress Hosting page, scroll down to find the tab that has your domain name on it. Click the [ v ] arrow located at the right side of the tab.
Step 5.	On the drop-down menu, click the Production tab. And then click phpMyAdmin button.
Step 6.	Open the WordPress database.
Step 7.	Click Import tab located at the top of the page.
Step 8.	On the File to Import page, click Browse button.
Step 9.	Select the file you wish to import and click Open.
Step 10.	Click the Go button.

The process may take several minutes to complete.

8. Restore Database Credentials

Once you’re done uploading your WordPress files on your new WordPress hosting, you need to connect them to your database. Here’s what you should do:

1. On the remote site of your chosen SFTP client, look for the wp-config.php file. Open it.
2. Locate the following string of codes:

   /** The name of the database for WordPress */
   define('DB_NAME', 'DatabaseName');
   /** MySQL database username */
   define('DB_USER', 'DatabaseUsername');
   /** MySQL database password */
   define('DB_PASSWORD', 'DatabasePassword');
   /** MySQL hostname */
   define('DB_HOST', 'DatabaseHostname');

   Replace the Database Name, Database Username, Database Password, and Database Hostname with the credentials you saved on Section 5.
3. Save the file.

At this point, you have only successfully transferred your WordPress files and databases to our WordPress Hosting. Your domain still points to your old hosting account. You will need to update your domain and change to the correct DNS A record to ensure that the users will be redirected to the new location of your WordPress site.

For any assistance or if you have any questions in transferring your WordPress site to our WordPress Hosting, please contact our technical support. We'd love to help!