How to change my web hosting?

I am currently working my blog on a website hosted by my friend as i was too new to internet marketing but now i want to host my blog on my own hosting account, what and how to go about it?

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Decide what features you want and look for a hosting company. I assume you want php and a MySQL database and I would go with a Linux type server with cpanel as the Windows permissions can be a pain.

When you signup they should send you an email with all your login details. Download/backup your blog from the old host and install it on your new one - you might be able to do it through cpanel although it never worked for me. The hosts might do it for you.

In your signup email you should have some DNS settings and you then need to go to the site where your domain name is hosted/registered and change the current DNS settings to the new ones. They say this can take up to 24hrs to change but it normally happens a lot quicker than that - usually around 2hrs I find.

The hardest part will probably be reinstalling the blog on the new site.

I would write something on your old or new blog so you will be able to see when it changes.

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It really depends on what requirements you have and the platform your currently hosted on. The process is to migrate your website and database and then change your dns. Normally you will be have a .tar of your webroot and a sql dump file. I would assume if your just getting started you would be well suited for shared web hosting. Most of the large providers will migrate your site for free or have a tool to do so, and are around 10-15$ / monthly. If your currently hosted on a cpanel server you should be able to easily do a cpanel-to-cpanel transfer to any other cpanel host.

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Thanks for the help guys, really appreciate that.

sx,

Same reply as always:

  1. Establish your requirements, i.e., Linux, Apache 2.4+, PHP 5.2+, MySQL 5+, the preferred control panel (e.g., cPanel) and storage and bandwidth requirements. Remember to allocate for log files, databases, e-mail (attachments) and growth.

  2. If you’re looking for a VPS or dedicated server, remember to ask what the host’s managed services provide. Remember, a non-managed host must be monitored by you 24/7/365¼!

  3. Know what control panels you are willing to use, i.e., WHM/cPanel. cPanel is the standard bearer for Linux systems and Plesk for Windows systems. Customized control panels may or may not be satisfactory.

  4. Know how much CPU time/RAM you need. If you need a lot of processing power (like WordPress and other CMS’s), this will be a major factor. These, however, are usually specified only for VPS/dedicated accounts and automatically throttled for shared/reseller accounts. Note: WebHostingBuzz does have “Specialized Hosting” accounts for these memory hogs like WP, Joomla, Drupal, etc.

  5. Know your target (the Internet is fast but some latency could hurt so the closer your server to your target audience the better) location and try to host as close to your target as possible.

  6. SEARCH (using the above parameters) recording each feasible host as well how well it satisfies your requirements and budget. Spreadsheets are good for this as you can assign weighting to the different requirements and how well they were met to generate numerical scores.

  7. Create a shortlist based on the database you’ve created in step 5 then SEARCH for comments about the host (avoiding obvious shills and websites which advertise for that host).

  8. (from EastCoast) “Eliminate anonymous companies - if a hosting company doesn’t have a full office address and company registration details visible on their site, it’s often down to the amateur status of the operator, which is unlikely to be consistent with longevity and reliability.”

  9. (from EastCoast) “Eliminate new companies - hosting has a very high fail rate because of the low barriers to entry. If a company makes it through it’s first 5 years then it’s likely it’s jumped a few hurdles and knows what it’s doing sufficiently to have made a viable business. Not all new companies are cowboys, but the percentage is high enough that it’s not worth the risk of being the one to find out the hard way, when there are plenty other options.”

  10. Eliminate companies which do not tell you exactly what you’re getting for your money, i.e., the Control Panel, the storage, the bandwidth (traffic), the versions of the main daemons (Apache, PHP and MySQL), the SSL and dedicated IP charges, etc. That’s where knowing your requirements comes in strongly! Hosts like WebHostingBuzz upgrade their daemons when new versions come out but ensure that they are not “bleeding edge” updates. Ask your shortlist about their upgrade process.

  11. The last step (other than selection) is to contact each shortlisted host with a question (I’ve used .htaccess and mod_rewrite availability, which services are managed by the host, the availability of IP addresses - you will require one for each SSL you use - or ask to test proprietary control panels - they may make life too difficult for you) and record the response time and your level of satisfaction with the response.

  12. Finally, you’ll have enough information to make an intelligent selection: “Just Do It!”

I have been there, done that (all too frequently in the past). Unfortunately, that also applies to this response.

@staff1, no sticky threads any more?

Regards,

DK

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That’s just perfect, thanks a lot mate! appreciate the effort.

iht,

IMHO, that used to be extremely critical, indeed!

These days, though, my VDSL connection is spoiling me and I don’t see a great benefit to local hosting (albeit, the lag time would be minimal - by a few milliseconds - for each file request).

Okay, I’m either getting lazy in my old age or spoiled by my VDSL connection but local hosting seems to have only a minor impact these days so I just don’t worry much about the host’s location any more - albeit it might make a marked difference in slower markets.

Regards,

DK

It can be a complicated task. Check out the following steps in order to switch or change web hosting:

  1. Create a new account.

  2. Join your new host. Make sure that not to cancel with your old hosting provider.

  3. Download files from the old account: At that point, you must have hosting accounts with 2 hosting providers as in new & old one. Now, you’ll migrate your whole website from the old host to new one. By connecting to FTP of old one, downloading all files.

  4. Upload the files to the new account: After that, connecting to the FTP of new one, uploading all files. You must backup any databases from those backup files. It can be done through cPanel’s phpMyAdmin. The Emails do not usually transfer, however, you can archive your emails from the old host.

  5. Create Email Accounts: In order to avoid losing any important email when you later change the name of the server. Essentially important, you now create the same new email accounts that you had at the old hosting account, in the new hosting account.

  6. Check Files & Links: Make sure all the files have been updated correctly & that all the links within your website are functional.

  7. Change The DNS: If all the website is showing correct, then at that point you must change the DNS (domain name server).

  8. Wait for DNS to propagate.

  9. Now, to cancel the old account.