moving a site to a new web address

[snarkys]

whats involved in moving a site to a new web address . IE moving a cart loaded onto www.fish.com to www.fishandeverything.com

can you make a back up of the one and just load it onto the other site ?

[kuroi]

This is really easy, but how you do it will depend on how the move will take place. Some questions:

• Will you be staying with the same host?
• Will you be using the same database?
• Do you have access to where the URLs are pointed?

[snarkys]

This is really easy, but how you do it will depend on how the move will take place. Some questions:

• Will you be staying with the same host?
• Will you be using the same database?
• Do you have access to where the URLs are pointed?

OK more details . basically i have site www.cows001.com on one host and it is currently our main site with our zen cart . a while back i saved a domain i thought we might want to use at a later date, it was almost the same price so i had them put web hosting on the account also, this is hosted with a different company . This new domain is something like www.bulkcowsupply.com and now id like to use it. However i am happy with the Host that www.cows001.com is on, they are knowledgeable on zen cart so id like to move it there.

So ... id like to move hosting of bulkcowsupply.com to the new host and then move my zen cart that is hosted on www.cows001.com to www.bulkcowsupply.com . If possible id like to keep the database with all of my customer info, mods and products .

[kuroi]

Well the good news is that you can probably do this with the same database and without moving your code. Here's how.

You can either transfer the new domain name to your existing host, or have the current registrar point its DNS servers to the location of your existing site (most hosts will let you do this yourself, and although it's a bit scary at first, especially since it takes a few hours to become effective, it's very straightforward).

Once you have transferred the domain name, or repointed the DNS servers, you would add the new domain name as an add-on domain to your existing account (your host may do this automatically for you if you transferred the domain) and set the folder to which it points to be the same as that already containing your site.

When it's all operational the new domain will work but with one, maybe two minor hitches.

Firstly, when you click on any page link, the URL at the top of the browser window will revert to the old URL. You fix this by editing your includes/configure.php file to change the two instances of the old domain name to the be the new one. For good measure, you also also change the four instances in your admin/includes/configure.php similarly.

The second possible hitch is if you use an SSL cert. You will find that the address on the cert no longer matches the URL of the site on which it is being used. You should contact your cert provider or web host to get this changed.

[DJReda]

Ok - Similar scenario, for which I'd really appreciate the guidance of you senior zenners to ensure a smooth transition. Here's my details:

-Host - LunarPages
-Nameserver is the same for both domains
-Current Domain - www.KiddieTrends.com
-Domain to be moved to - www.BaaBaaGreenSheep.com

Both domains are addon domains so all files and DB reside on the same server. The directory structure is basically as follows:

Currently:
/MYUSERNAME/public_html/kiddietrends/shop

I've copied all files (except DB) to:
/MYUSERNAME/public_html/baabaagreensheep/shop

I'm guessing that I need to do something with the DB and probably a few configuration files but I'm not sure of what and/or which...I've got the site looking the way I want it after some painstaking hours and really don't want to risk it by winging it.

Thanks to everyone in advance!

DJReda

[afo]

Do you want the new cart to point to the current database or are you going to create a new database for it?

You need to check the contents of admin/includes/configure.php and includes/configure.php and replaced the old domain name with the new one. If you create a new database for the new domain, you'll have to change the db infofrmation in those files as well.

[DJReda]

Afo,

First, thank you for the reply - your help is much appreciated.

I would like to use the same DB as nothing is different at this time between the two sites. Once the new site is working, I intend to delete the original addon domain.

So basically all I have to do is edit the includes/config.php and admin/includes/configure.php and I'm set?

Thanks again!

DJReda

[afo]

Yes, change any reference to kiddietrends/shop to baabaagreensheep/shop
and you should be good to go.

[DJReda]

Thanks again Afo!
Everything looks like it's in order now - you rock!

DJReda

Yes, change any reference to kiddietrends/shop to baabaagreensheep/shop
and you should be good to go.

[Berserker]

Hello,

Im thinking of moving to a new domain as well. I will also be staying with my host so what is the best way to go about it?

I do not want to redo the whole shop again. I want to keep my payment gateway (im currently with protx), layout, products etc.

Thank you