Keep Ten Things in Mind When Changing Your Web Hosting

There are many reasons one changes web hosts. Whether you experience prolonged down times, poor technical assistance or customer service there comes a point where you can no longer put off the decision to make a change. When you keep ten things in mind when changing you web hosting you eliminate a lot of pain and anxiety and ease the transition for yourself and your visitors.

 

1. Choose a new web host carefully. Compare features, special packages, services, contract periods, costs. Ask for references, read various articles and reviews about the hosting providers. Have a list of all your wants and needs. Compare to the features you absolutely must have to properly support your website. Look for a web host that provides a trial period and full refund in the event the service does not live up to your expectations.

2. Make a project plan to keep ten things in mind when changing your web hosting. List out the following ten items outlined in this article and then create sub lists under each step.From the project plan develop a checklist with all of the items you need to do to complete your change to a new web host. You may find it helpful to print out the checklist so you can refer to it quickly and easily. As you complete an item check it off. The checklist keeps you focused, on schedule and in control.

3. There will be a point where you can no longer access your site using your old web host. So, to save yourself time and many hours, if not days, of angst and suffering, create a complete backup of your website. This includes all files, databases, images, pages, scripts, links and email addresses. Make sure copy absolutely everything on your web host. In fact, make multiple backup copies. Keep one on your computer, copy one to a CD and store one in the cloud.

4. Make sure you overlap your old and new web hosting accounts because you will need to check things like e-mail on both hosts. During the domain transition it is common for some areas of the internet to send mail to the old server while other parts of the internet send mail to the new server.

5. After you open your new web hosting account it is time to upload your website. Again this includes all programs, scripts and files. Use your checklist to help you track all of your site components. It is also the time to set up your databases, any subdomains you have, email accounts, ecommerce stores or elements including credit card processing.

6. Before you go further test and de-bug your new site. Your new web host should provide you with an IP number. Use this IP number to test and de-bug the new site. If your web host does not give you a new IP number ask them for it.

7. Once your new site is running and all functionality is operating correctly transfer your domain name from the old host to the new host. This step requires you to change your DNS server details.

8. To change your DNS server details you need to get the primary and secondary name server details from the new web host. Once you have this information proceeds to your domain register’s site and log into your control panel. In the control panel look for one of the following designations: ‘DNS’, ‘Name server’ or ‘Delegation’. In the spot indicated enter in the previous nameserver details with the new nameserver details from the new web host. Sometimes the new web host can do this automatically saving you a lot of time and hassle. Domain transfers can take up to 72 hours to complete. If nothing happens after 72 hours check with your new web host and if necessary your domain register which could be your old web host.

9. The next step is to wait patiently for your domain name to transfer and spread across the internet. It can take up to two weeks for your domain to fully propagate over the internet. You need both your old web host and new web host accounts active during this time. After the propagation period is complete test your site again to ensure everything is working perfectly. At this point it is also important to verify that all emails are coming to the new server and nothing is being received through the old server.

10. If your site is one hundred percent functional then you can cancel your old web host and request any refunds due to you. Sometimes it is difficult to get them to cancel the account or send your refund. Keep on top of them and enlist the help of your credit card company if necessary.

Your checklist is the key to ensuring you don’t overlook important details or lose critical data when you transfer your site. If you keep ten things in mind when changing your web hosting, the transition will be smoother, easier and almost pain-free.

Author bio

This article was researched and written by Leo Preston. The author has transitioned several websites and the article draws on personal experience as well as other research to provide these 10 tips on changing web hosts. For writing this article she got some helps from ipage review blog