Webmaster Resources: Preparing to Change Web Hosts

Summary : Every webmaster cringes at the thought of changing web hosts. Like moving your home, it can be messy, and sometimes problems arise. If you follow these simple steps, your move will be less painful.

Every webmaster cringes at the thought of changing web hosts. Like moving your home, it can be messy, and sometimes problems arise. Like any webmastering task, there is a process, and resources at hand. If you follow these simple steps, your move will be less painful.

Backup Backup Backup

If you've been diligent with your backups, you've got a lot of insurance to fall back on, yet always make the latest backup. If you haven't done consistent backups, before you do anything else, do one now. A current, full site backup is the best webmaster resource you can have. Backup anything and everything you can, and don't forget your database if your site relies on it. Save at least 2 copies and store them separately. One for you to work with, and the other as an archive. Do not underestimate how easy it is to copy over these files as you make changes, or simply mess it up.

If you're moving to a web host who has as different control panel, make a manual backup by downloading all your files. This is necessary because different control panels may be unable to restore the backups made by your old host. They also have different directory structures, so your file trees will be in a mess. If you need to, make a small Notepad file of the old server configurations. This will help you as you make changes on your new web host server, and save the confusion moving back and forth between hosts. Remember to make the correct transfer type (ASCII or Binary) as you download. If your download is not right, chances are you'll have a tough time getting your site to work on the new host server.

If server logs are especially important, remember to backup those too. There is no good way of moving logs yet because different hosts may log statistics differently. So the best thing to do is to download it, and use a log analyzer on your computer to make references to later on.

Gather Odds & Ends

• A good FTP program
• Get your new host server's DNS
• Get a script that identifies the server environments installed on your new host server for quick references.
• Get the temporary URL on your new web host so you can check your site before you make a DNS change.
• If you have your host control the domain, inform them not to change your DNS until you give the word.

If you run scripts:

• Get a copy of the original installation guide and the script. Sometimes after moving, the scripts just do not work right, and you might need to install the script from scratch.
   

• Get a list of all the server paths such as Perl, Sendmail and home directory on your new server.
• Ensure special server modules or programs are installed if your scripts needs them. Also find out where they reside on the web host server.
   

Inform Your Visitors

It is common and good practice to inform your visitors and customers of the server move. If you run a ecommerce site, this assures your customers you have not fled with their money if there is any downtime. Also, give an alternate email so you won't lose emails during the transfer. You might also want to give periodic updates prior, during (if there is downtime) and after. If your site is large, doing this is helpful because your visitors can alert you whenever part of the site not working.

Moving Day

Try to schedule the move at a time where there's the least amount of traffic. Backup again just before you do the move so you'll have the latest data. Start by first copying or creating your custom error pages onto the new host server. Put a small note in there about the move. You can always remove it later. Then, upload the most visible parts of the site first i.e the main pages followed by the less critical parts of the site. If you have a large site with many divisions, you might want to split them across different days and instead move the least critical first. Just ensure you always do a backup before you do any moving. Use the temporary URL to check your site, visiting as many pages as you can.

Changing DNS

Once you're satisfied, change your DNS over. This typically takes about 24-48 hours, so you have time to make some minor changes if needed. You might want to also modify your old site's error pages to inform your visitors of the move, and give a new URL if applicable. To help determine if the DNS has resolved, make a small change on the new pages to differentiate between the old and the new.

Monitor

After you've moved and the DNS has resolved, do not release the old account yet. Keep it as long as two weeks running concurrently. Go back and check the old servers for activity. Check your old email account, and if you have a web-based contact method on the old server, check to see if any communication is left there. Once you're comfortable all email and traffic is correctly directed to the new host server, cancel that account.

This article has been contributed by the team at HostVoice.net