5 things to consider when migrating to a new web hosting service – TechRadar

Migrating your website can turn into a tiresome, time-consuming experience in no time, even if you up your game with a new, magnificent web hosting (opens in new tab) provider. If you dont think things through and take proper steps to protect your content, you might end up losing some critical data and even compromise your cybersecurity.

If it spells hassle, why shouldnt you save yourself the trouble and stay where you are? Well, there are tons of right reasons why youll want to move on. For instance, if your site is suffering disastrous amounts of downtime - go and dont look back. Do the same if your site is crippled by poor performance - something like slow loading time.

Also, you should consider moving if your current provider can supply your site with the resources it needs to grow and prosper. And if the security of your site has been compromised or the customer support has been far away from helpful - get rid of your old host and get a new one.

Alright, how to do it? The good news is that you dont need to be a veteran webmaster to do it - even a newbie can do it with a solid step-by-step guide.

So, here are the top five things you should keep in mind when moving to a new web hosting provider.

Picking out the perfect web hosting provider for your site is critical as it can make or break your business in the long run. Fortunately, there is a whole variety of hosting providers, types, and overall options on the market, and each of them offers particular features, configurations, and customization choices.

Apart from choosing the host with a solid security track record, standard security-focused features (SSL certificate (opens in new tab), DDoS protection (opens in new tab), regular backups, and so on), and sterling reputation, youll want to take a look at some more specific technical stuff such as required server space, bandwidth, number of CPUs, and amount of RAM. Also, youll want to consider the type of solution you want to utilize (shared hosting (opens in new tab), VPS hosting (opens in new tab), dedicated server hosting (opens in new tab), and such), its scalability, and customizability.

Since it doesnt hurt to have a killer combination of affordability, reliability, and feature-richness, dont fail to check the pricing. Plus, make sure there is a free trial or a money-back guarantee, so you can try out the solution for yourself without doing blows to your bank account.

Before migrating your site to a new host, youll want to create a backup of everything - that is, everything you wouldnt want to lose during the migration. To do so, you can download your data as a local copy and store it somewhere safe in your system, or upload the data to a cloud server such as Google, OneDrive (opens in new tab), and Dropbox (opens in new tab).

Once this is done, you can be sure all your data is safely stored if something goes wrong due to technical or human error in the middle of the migration process. Backed by a backup, your site can be restored to its former glory in no time.

While this step isnt a must, switching your domain name system (DNS (opens in new tab)) will make things simpler for you. Once you select a new host and pick out your plan, youll be presented with two choices. You can leave your domain where it is - with your old host, or you can transfer your old domain name to a new host. Also, theres an option to register a new domain name, but theres no reason for you to do that since you already have one.

Sometimes the host will offer to help with transferring your domain name but dont count on that - particularly with pocket-friendly hosting packages. So, if you want to keep your domain name with your old host, youll have to switch domain registrars (opens in new tab). This way, your settings will stay the same while billing and customer support are transferred.

On the other hand, if you want to take your domain to the new host, youll have to switch the DNS to that host - and this is a better option.

Its also worth noting that with all the top web hosting providers, youll find step-by-step guides for either of these cases.

Before ditching your old host for a new one, youll want to make sure everything on your site works as it should. So, once the migration of your site is complete - whether by you or someone from the hosts technical team - dont forget to run a thorough test on it.

While the migration process might seem smooth on the surface, some minor issues might have occurred. So, its important to identify and fix them at once - before deleting your old hosting account, in any case.

When verifying the functionality of your site on the new host, you want to be certain that everything is working and functioning perfectly. First, check all pages from your old site to ensure its still accessible and directed to the same URL - you can utilize a URL checker to identify any broken links.

Also, check all other data such as images, videos, and user accounts. Its critical to identify any possible issues and find the ideal solutions for them as soon as possible. This way youll avoid any impediment to the functionality of your site with its new host.

Once youve considered all the things above, your final step is to say goodbye to your old web hosting provider - and youll do that by deleting your old hosting account.

If you can confirm that your site is fully functional, its time to cut ties with your old host. Its smart to do this straight away, to steer clear of any unneeded charges.

Thats it, youve considered all critical steps before migrating your site to a new web hosting provider.

TechRadar created this content as part of a paid partnership with Hostinger. The contents of this article are entirely independent and solely reflect the editorial opinion of TechRadar.

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5 things to consider when migrating to a new web hosting service - TechRadar