Going Self-Hosted and Changing Domain Url

  • So currently I blogging on a .wordpress blog. I decided to go self-hosted and I also decided to make a new domain name that is different from my .wordpress blog name. By the way my self-hosted blog is through BlueHost and WordPress has been installed.

    Anyways, I’m at the stage where I want to transfer all the info from my .wordpress blog to my new blog.

    I’ve been reading several posts and articles on how I need to backup my database before I start changing coding things. I’ve even downloaded the myPHPadmin thing. So to be honest I really don’t know what I’m doing. Most of the directions I’ve found have me downloading a plug-in and I dont seem to have that option for my .wordpress blog.

    Any tips, suggestions, links you have that will make this easier to understand would be greatly appreciated!

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  • I’m not sure what do you mean by “.wordpress” blog. If you’re looking to migrate from yoursite.wordpress.com to a self-hosted blog, then you’ll need to install WordPress on your new domain, export the data from your old website’s Tools -> Export menu, and import them to your new WordPress install.

    Check out the official migration guide from WordPress.com.

    Having a self-hosted site makes you the manager of certain behind-the-scene things you have never before needed to do. Specifically, and as one example, you will be responsible for maintaining an htaccess file in your BlueHost account’s root folder — all of this is completely separate from logging in at your website — and doing that will require using FileZilla or some other file manager to directly access the servers for your site. So, I would begin by installing FileZilla (client) on your computer and having the BlueHost Support Staff help you get connected via SFTP (since FTP broadcasts everything including you host login credentials unsecured):
    https://my.bluehost.com/cgi/help/248.
    I knew nothing at all about any of this when I first started, and the BlueHost folks helped me all along the way.

    Next, and for a variety of reasons, I would move your WordPress installation into a subfolder at BlueHost…and you can do that without adding anything to your regular mysite.com link or in any way altering your WordPress installation. BlueHost uses a special htaccess file to take care of all of that:
    https://my.bluehost.com/cgi/help/347#redirect.
    note: Use the htaccess file mentioned there and do *not* “Give WordPress its own directory”. I have my primary domain and two subdomains set up that way there at BlueHost and everything works perfectly.

    Actually moving your site is really more about copying your database and files from wordpress.com and pasting them in at BlueHost. Your database contains everything other than what you have uploaded (photos, etc.), and the only thing actually “moved” has to do with ultimately re-pointing your site’s link to the new servers…and again, the BlueHost folks will help you there.

    As to plugins you might eventually need or want, JetPack will get you close to having your self-hosted site similar to what you had at wordpress.com.

    …and I also decided to make a new domain name that is different from my .wordpress blog name.

    Ah, I just caught that, and that means you can copy to your new installation and have both sites working properly before shutting down your first one. So, go slowly while knowing you can always have BlueHost “nuke” your account so you can start over again without losing anything anywhere else if something goes wrong as you learn!

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)
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