Move sub-site of multisite to its own install- same server

  • Resolved robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)


    12 years, 7 months ago

    Current Setup: 2 site multisite with domain mapping on a VPS with 1GB RAM, 75GB disk.

    Objective: Move the sub-site to its own WordPress installation on the server.

    My VPS is managed, so I could have them do it for me, but I’d like to learn how to do it myself. I realize that I can use the WordPress export/import plugin (I’ve done this before) but really don’t want to have to rebuild everything from scratch, so I’m looking for a way to move everything intact. The headway tutorial by A. J. Morris shows how to do it manually and using backup buddy, but indicates that backup buddy is sometimes unreliable.

    I’ve found a lot of guides for this, including the one at Headway, but none of them specifically address moving a sub-site of a multisite and leaving the main site intact. Any how-to links or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

    Specific questions:

    Once I figure out how to do this, I also need suggestions as to where to put the new install on my server. My current install is at /home/sitename. Would I put the new install in a new directory at /home/newsitename?

    Should I give the new install its own database or use a shared database for both sites?

Viewing 15 replies - 31 through 45 (of 47 total)
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  • Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Can’t figure out how to upload to http://67.xxx.xxx.xxx/~myusername/ in filezilla. Shouldn’t I install to /home/new account/public_html? I’ve never uploaded WP manually. Happy to try, but still don’t know how or where to…. so frustrating, and I haven’t even started yet.

    Upload WordPress 🙂

    Uploaded it to where?

    Moderator Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)

    (@ipstenu)

    🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Take a deeeeeep breath. You’re over thinking this. It’s really simple.

    Log in via FTP or SSH to 67.xx.xx.xx as username with the password you assigned.

    That will take you to /home/newaccount/

    This will ALWAYS work. You can do it today with your existing usernames that have domains mapped. http://ftp.domain.com just points back to that IP address anyway.

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Take a deeeeeep breath. You’re over thinking this.

    No doubt, and your patience and kindness are so appreciated! I know how to get to /home/newaccount/. I’m not getting what you’re trying to tell me when you say “use your IP/~username”. Is this something I do in WordPress?

    I still don’t know where to upload WordPress. /home/newaccount/ or /home/newaccount/public_html?

    Do I need to create a database? How do I log in to wordpress after I upload?

    Moderator Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)

    (@ipstenu)

    🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Instead of using the URL domain.com you use IP/~username

    You ALWAYS upload files in /home/newaccount/public_html, regardless of what your URL is (that’s the web-root location for your account and won’t change).

    Yes, create a database. Then upload the files to /home/newaccount/public_html and go to http://IP/~username

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Instead of using the URL domain.com you use IP/~username

    Use it for what?

    Yes, create a database.

    OK. I gotta figure out how to do that- I’ll study this.

    Then upload the files to /home/newaccount/public_html and go to http://IP/~username

    And do what? I guess I’ll know when I get there.

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    And do what? I guess I’ll know when I get there.

    And thus, it was so. All the bare bones are imported to the new account. Headway Theme’s importer did a fabulous job- no need to re-style anything! Infact, having set, saved and exported templates for various pages/posts, all I had to do was apply the imported template to a page and voila! My hat is off to the Headway folks! Tomorrow I’ll get to install and configure plugins.

    Thanks, Ipstenu, for all your time and good will.

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    I will be ready to point the site at the correct domain soon. Apart from making the changes in WordPress, I’m wondering what changes need to be made on the new vps account. The nameservers for the new account are the same as the old:

    ns.oldaccountdomain.com
    ns1.oldaccountdomain.com

    Moderator Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)

    (@ipstenu)

    🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Change the home URL and site URL in WordPress, run a search/replace of the DB to ensure you got ’em all.

    Then on VPS go into WHM > DNS Functions > Edit a DNS Zone and Check your A/Cname records. Make sure they point to the right IP.

    Go into the old MultiSite and remove domain mapping for that domain.

    (Andrea, is there anything else you need to do to remove the domain mapping from the plugin and go back to ‘normal’?)

    Andrea Rennick

    (@andrea_r)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    unmap from the old site, make sure the domain is no longer parked or pointed to the old site and… that’s it.

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Thanks so much, Ipstenu and Andrea.

    run a search/replace of the DB to ensure you got ’em all.

    Can one run a search/replace from phpMyAdmin? Search/replace for 67.xxx.xxx.xxx/~username/?

    unmap from the old site, make sure the domain is no longer parked or pointed to the old site and… that’s it.

    Do this first- just before I’m ready to point the new install to the domain?

    Moderator Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)

    (@ipstenu)

    🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Do the search/replace first (and yes, you can do it in phpMyAdmin).

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Search for? Replace with? Won’t doing it first make everything go kaflooie before I point to new domain?

    Then on VPS go into WHM > DNS Functions > Edit a DNS Zone and Check your A/Cname records. Make sure they point to the right IP.

    I’ve never done this- might have to have the liquidfolk do it for me.

    Moderator Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)

    (@ipstenu)

    🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist

    12 years, 6 months ago

    This is just like you would for any domain change for any WordPress install.

    Search for: OLD URL (in your case it’ll be 67.xxx.xxx.xxx/~username/)

    Replace with: NEW URL (domain.com)

    You really only need to edit the wp_posts table (to make your images point correctly) so that’s a simple SQL query:

    UPDATE wp_posts SET post_content = replace(post_content,"7.xxx.xxx.xxx/~username/","domain.com")

    (I should point out that this? Is not a MultiSite thing, and you should start getting comfortable with googling around how to do this stuff on your own. If you’re hosting a VPS for other people, you need to start leveling up your skill set for these things. Yes, it’s scary, but you need these skills 🙂 )

    Thread Starter robnalexpress

    (@robnalexpress)

    12 years, 6 months ago

    I should point out that this? Is not a MultiSite thing, and you should start getting comfortable with googling around how to do this stuff on your own.

    I agree that some of it is on the perimeters of multisite, but in general, hopefully useful to others who need to move a site off on its own. There are characteristics of WordPress multisite that make this process trickier than just moving a single or entire WordPress install.

    you should start getting comfortable with googling around how to do this stuff on your own.

    believe me, I’ve done plenty of googling and learning as part of this process, including, but not limited to moving multisite installations of plugins like Nextgen Gallery, etc.

    If you’re hosting a VPS for other people, you need to start leveling up your skill set for these things. Yes, it’s scary, but you need these skills 🙂 )

    I’m not hosting for other people. This is one of my business sites. I don’t find it scary and I’m always happy to learn, and grateful to folks like you for teaching and taking the time.

    Moderator Ipstenu (Mika Epstein)

    (@ipstenu)

    🏳️‍🌈 Advisor and Activist

    12 years, 6 months ago

    Okay, that’s good 🙂 I brought it up because a lot of what you’re asking is pretty common webmastering stuff. Using temporary URLs is de riguer when you’re moving a live domain, for example, and SQL DB search/replaces is also a fairly common thing when you’re changing domains (the import/export tends to do that for you these days, but since you don’t want any downtime, you have to make do).

    You should definitely put ‘DNS’ in your bag, though 🙂 It’s not that hard in WHM, and even just looking at it will start to get your brain thinking about it 🙂 Which is what you want! For what you’ve got today, I’m fairly sure you don’t actually have to change anything in DNS, but you should still look to see if it points to the shared IP of your VPS (which is correct, and should be the IP you’re using right now to test) or the domain name of your Multisite install (not correct).

Viewing 15 replies - 31 through 45 (of 47 total)
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