Site move
- Files, database and DNS
- Hosts-file test before the switch
- Cutover with lowered TTL
- Old server kept as rollback for 7 days
$ dig @ns1.example.fi +noall +answer www.example.fi
www.example.fi. 300 IN A 192.0.2.10
# your laptop, /etc/hosts: 198.51.100.20 www.example.fi
Test the new server through a hosts-file entry: log in, search, add to cart, place a test order, send a form.
Visitors see: The site as usual, served by the old server.
Sites, stores, databases and mailboxes moved to a new host or server, tested on the new box before DNS changes, with a rollback plan. cPanel to cPanel, shared to VPS or old server to new. From €390 per site.
The cutover clock on the left runs the real sequence on two sample servers. Tick a shortcut to see what it costs.
Most migration trouble comes from the things nobody listed: a cron job, a PHP extension, a DKIM key. The inventory comes first.
Copied with rsync -a so owners, permissions and timestamps survive, then re-synced before the switch.
MySQL or MariaDB dumps with character set and collation checked, so Finnish ä and ö arrive as ä and ö.
Mailboxes, forwarders and filters, copied with IMAP sync; MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC moved with care. More on email deliverability.
Every record in the zone, not only A and MX: TXT verifications, CNAMEs for services, CAA records.
TLS issued on the new server before or right after the switch, so no visitor meets a browser warning.
Scheduled jobs, PHP version, extensions, memory and upload limits matched or deliberately upgraded.
The sheet I work from on every move, shown in full. The rollback branch is planned before the switch, not invented during it.
Not in any way visitors notice, if the plan is followed. The new server is built and tested before DNS changes, the TTL is lowered two days earlier, and stores get a short checkout freeze of about 20 minutes during the final sync. The old server stays ready as a rollback for a week.
Yes. Mailboxes are copied with IMAP sync so folders, read status and old messages arrive intact, then synced again after the switch to catch late mail. MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC records are moved with the site, and I check that the new server's address is not on blocklists before sending.
I usually do not need them. With your control panel, FTP or SSH login I can copy files, databases and mail myself. If you only have a WordPress admin login, a plugin export works for most sites. What you must keep is control of your domain; check who holds the registrar account first.
Contract with the old host ending? Lower the TTL today, then talk to me.
Plan my migrationFixed prices in euros, excluding VAT 25.5%, agreed after the inventory. You own both hosting accounts throughout.
The old server is not touched until you sign off. If verification fails, DNS goes back and you do not pay for that cutover attempt. owner to confirm
A server move changes where the site lives, not what it is built on.
Send the site address, where it lives now and where it should go. You get an inventory list and a written fixed price within one working day.
Prefer email? Write to [email protected]
Pikselipolku is an independent studio and is not affiliated with cPanel, LiteSpeed or any other product named here.