Checklist for Moving to a New Web Server

Part of Web Hosting For Dummies Cheat Sheet

If you’re planning on moving your website to a new web server, print the following checklists and mark the left column when you have copied those things from the old server; mark the right column when you have restored or uploaded those things to the new server. You should also go through and, line-by-line, mark through any items that do not apply to your site — for instance, mailing lists, parked domains, or add-on domains.

Domain name

Item	Copied from old server	Copied to new server
Parked domains	O	O
Add-on domains	O	O
Forwarders and redirects	O	O
Subdomains	O	O
Subdomains need to be configured correctly prior to moving the data.	O	O
Change the nameservers on your domain(s) after the data is moved.	O	O

Website

Item	Copied from old server	Copied to new server
Download all files via FTP and upload them to your new server.	O	O
Put a notice on your site saying that there will be some disruption for up to 48 hours. Alternatively, put up a “We are moving” front page.	O	O
Re-create password protection on appropriate folders and inform users if the details have changed.	O	O
Use phpMyAdmin to download all databases and then re-create them on the new server and upload the data into them.	O	O
If the database names, usernames, or passwords have changed, update the configuration files in your website.	O	O
If you use an external database manager such as MySQL Workbench, update your logins with the new details.	O	O
Reconfigure SSL certificates with new server details.	O	O

E-mail

Item	Copied from old server	Copied to new server
Re-create all e-mail addresses.	O	O
Transfer e-mail history, if possible.	O	O
Copy across or re-create mailing lists.	O	O
Check that MX records match those on the old server.	O	O
Re-create mail aliases.	O	O
Re-create forwarders.	O	O
Switch on server spam filtering and configure it, if necessary.	O	O
Re-create auto-responders.	O	O

Miscellaneous

Item	Copied from old server	Copied to new server
Re-create all FTP accounts and notify users if details have changed.	O	O
Re-create all cron jobs.	O	O
Set up a server-based backup facility, if necessary.	O	O
Check that SSH access works correctly.	O	O
Reinstall FrontPage extensions, if needed.	O	O