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Lesson 33: Taking a Site Live — Migration from Local to Hosting

Objectives

Overview of the Launch Process

  1. Choose and set up hosting
  2. Migrate your local site to the server
  3. Configure domain and DNS
  4. Test everything on the live server
  5. Go live (point domain to the site)
  6. Post-launch tasks

Step 1: Choose Hosting

Hosting Types

Type Price Best For Examples
Shared Hosting $3-10/mo Small personal sites, blogs Bluehost, Hostinger
Managed WordPress $15-40/mo Business sites, client work SiteGround, Cloudways
Premium Managed $30-100+/mo High-traffic, e-commerce WP Engine, Kinsta
VPS $20-80/mo Developers who want control DigitalOcean, Linode

What to Look For:

Recommended for Beginners:

  1. SiteGround — excellent support, staging, and speed
  2. Cloudways — flexible, good performance, pay-as-you-go
  3. Bluehost — budget-friendly, officially recommended by WordPress.org

Step 2: Get a Domain Name

If you don't already have a domain:

  1. Choose a registrar: Namecheap, Google Domains, GoDaddy, Cloudflare Registrar
  2. Search for your desired domain
  3. Register it (typically $10-15/year for .com)
  4. Don't buy extras they try to upsell (privacy protection is often free now)

Step 3: Migrate Your Site

Method 1: All-in-One WP Migration (Easiest)

This is the simplest migration method:

On your local site (export):

  1. Install "All-in-One WP Migration" plugin
  2. Go to All-in-One WP Migration → Export
  3. Click "Export To" → "File"
  4. Wait for the export to complete
  5. Download the .wpress file

On your live hosting (import):

  1. Install WordPress on your hosting (most hosts have one-click install)
  2. Log into the new WordPress admin
  3. Install "All-in-One WP Migration" plugin
  4. Go to All-in-One WP Migration → Import
  5. Upload the .wpress file from your local export
  6. Wait for import to complete
  7. Follow the prompts (it will replace everything on the live site)
  8. Log in again with your local site's credentials (the import replaces users too)

Note: The free version has a file size limit (~256MB-512MB depending on version). For larger sites:

Method 2: Duplicator (For Larger Sites)

  1. Install "Duplicator" plugin on your local site
  2. Go to Duplicator → Packages → Create New
  3. Follow the wizard to create a package (archive + installer)
  4. Download both the archive.zip and installer.php files
  5. Upload both files to your live hosting's root directory (via FTP or file manager)
  6. Navigate to yourdomain.com/installer.php in your browser
  7. Follow the installation wizard:
    • Enter your live site's database credentials (from your hosting panel)
    • Set the new URL
    • Complete the migration
  8. Delete installer.php and archive.zip from the server after migration

Method 3: Manual Migration (Advanced)

For developers or when plugins don't work:

Export database:

  1. In Local WP, go to the Database tab → Open Adminer
  2. Export the database as SQL

Upload files:

  1. Connect to your hosting via FTP (FileZilla) or file manager
  2. Upload the entire wp-content folder
  3. Upload wp-config.php (then edit database credentials)

Import database:

  1. Create a database on your hosting (via cPanel → MySQL)
  2. Import your SQL file via phpMyAdmin

Update URLs:

  1. Run a search-and-replace on the database:
    • Old URL: http://learning-wordpress.local
    • New URL: https://yourdomain.com
    • Use the "Better Search Replace" plugin for this

Step 4: Post-Migration Configuration

Update URLs

Make sure all URLs point to the live domain:

  1. Go to Settings → General
  2. Verify WordPress Address and Site Address are your live domain
  3. Both should use https:// (not http://)

Enable SSL/HTTPS

  1. Your host should provide a free SSL certificate
  2. Activate it through your hosting panel
  3. Install "Really Simple SSL" plugin for easy HTTPS configuration
  4. Or manually update URLs in Settings → General

Update Permalinks

  1. Go to Settings → Permalinks
  2. Click "Save Changes" (even without changing anything)
  3. This refreshes the rewrite rules for the new server

Disable "Discourage Search Engines"

  1. Go to Settings → Reading
  2. Uncheck "Discourage search engines from indexing this site"
  3. Save changes — this is critical for Google to find your site!

Step 5: Go-Live Checklist

Before Announcing the Site:

Content:

Functionality:

Technical:

SEO:

Step 6: Post-Launch Tasks

Submit to Google

  1. Go to Google Search Console (https://search.google.com/search-console)
  2. Add your site property
  3. Verify ownership (DNS, HTML file, or Google Analytics)
  4. Submit your sitemap: yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xml

Set Up Google Analytics (Optional)

  1. Create a Google Analytics 4 account
  2. Get your tracking code
  3. Install it via:
    • Yoast SEO (limited integration)
    • A plugin like "Site Kit by Google"
    • Or directly in your theme's header

Monitor

Staging Environments

What is Staging?

A staging site is a copy of your live site used for testing changes before applying them to the live site.

Why Use Staging:

How to Set Up:

Exercises

  1. Research hosting: Visit SiteGround, Cloudways, and Bluehost. Compare their WordPress hosting plans and pricing.

  2. Practice export: Install "All-in-One WP Migration" on your local site and export it. Note the file size.

  3. Create the go-live checklist: Copy the go-live checklist from this lesson and customize it for your needs.

  4. Check everything locally: Go through the go-live checklist on your local site. Fix anything that's not ready.

  5. Set up Google Search Console: Create an account (you'll need it for any live site).

Key Takeaways

Congratulations! You've completed the WordPress Learning Course. Head to the Practice Projects to put everything together!