Transfer Your Website to Site.eu Yourself - Zero Downtime

Want to move your website to Site.eu but prefer doing it yourself? Smart choice. You stay in control, and your website stays online the entire time.

No technical support needed. No waiting for someone else. Just follow these steps and you'll have your website running on our servers without a second of downtime.

Let me show you exactly how to do it yourself.

What You'll Need Before Starting

This DIY method works for:

• WordPress websites
• Joomla websites
• Custom-built websites
• Any website you can access via FTP/file manager

Skills needed: Basic understanding of FTP or file managers. If you can upload files to your current host, you can do this.

Step 1: Get Your New Hosting (Without Domain Transfer)

Start by purchasing a hosting plan from Site.eu. Any plan will work. You can even buy hosting without a domain name - we'll give you a free subdomain to use.

Critical: Only buy the hosting plan. Do NOT transfer your domain yet. This is the key to zero downtime - you'll do the domain part last.

Why? Because you want to set everything up yourself first, test it, and only then point your domain to the new server.

Step 2: Prepare Your New Hosting Space

Time to set up your new home without touching your live website.

Do these three things:

1. Activate your web hosting service in your Site.eu dashboard
2. Add your domain as an external domain (this just tells our system about your domain)
3. Link the domain to your hosting plan

What NOT to do yet:

• Don't change DNS settings
• Don't update nameservers
• Don't transfer your domain registration to us

Your website stays live at your old host while you work on the new one. Perfect.

Step 3: Transfer Your Website Files Yourself

Now for the hands-on part. You have several DIY options:

Option 1 - WordPress Migration Plugin:

• Install WP Migrate Guru on your current site
• Enter your Site.eu hosting details
• Click migrate and let it do the work
• Takes about 15-30 minutes for most sites

Option 2 - Manual Transfer (for any website):

1. Download all files from your current host via FTP
2. Export your database (usually through phpMyAdmin)
3. Upload files to your new Site.eu account
4. Import database to your new hosting
5. Update database connection settings if needed

Option 3 - Use Softaculous:

Your DirectAdmin web hosting control panel with Site.eu includes Softaculous, which can import WordPress, Joomla, and other CMS sites. Just provide your old site's FTP details.

Step 4: Test Your Work (Before Anyone Sees It)

This is where doing it yourself really pays off. You can test everything thoroughly.

Easy testing method:

Use your temporary subdomain (like yoursite.site.eu) to check your transferred site.

Advanced testing method:

Edit your computer's hosts file to preview using your actual domain:

• Windows: C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts
• Mac/Linux: /etc/hosts
• Add: <your-site-eu-server-ip> yourdomain.com

What to check:

• All pages load correctly
• Images display properly
• Forms and contact pages work
• Shopping cart functions (if applicable)
• Admin/login areas are accessible

Found issues? Fix them now while your live site is still running at the old host.

Step 5: Go Live (The Final DIY Step)

Everything tested and working? Time to flip the switch yourself.

Choose your approach:

Option A - Just point your domain (fastest):

1. Log into your current domain registrar
2. Change nameservers to Site.eu's servers
3. Wait 2-24 hours for DNS propagation

Option B - Transfer domain registration too:

1. Initiate domain transfer to Site.eu
2. Approve transfer at your current registrar
3. Domain and hosting will be in one place

Pro tip: We recommend Option B - transferring your domain to us. You'll get our user-friendly domain control panel and enjoy the lowest domain prices in the market. Plus, managing everything in one place just makes life easier.

What Happens During DNS Propagation?

After you change your nameservers, here's what to expect:

• Some visitors see your old site, some see the new one
• Both versions work perfectly (that's why we didn't touch the old one)
• Within 24 hours, everyone sees your Site.eu hosted site
• Zero downtime achieved!

DIY Transfer Checklist

Here's your complete DIY roadmap:

1. Buy hosting only (no domain transfer)
2. Set up domain as external (no DNS changes)
3. Transfer files yourself (plugin or manual)
4. Test thoroughly using temp subdomain or your /etc/hosts file
5. Switch DNS when ready

You did it! Your website now runs on Site.eu, and you handled the entire transfer yourself.

Troubleshooting Common DIY Issues

Database connection errors? Check your wp-config.php or configuration file for the correct database details. Make sure the database exists and the database username and password are correct.

Missing images? File permissions might need adjusting. Set folders to 755 and files to 644.

Site looks broken? Clear your browser cache and website cache (if any) and check that all files transferred completely.

Remember: Since you're doing this yourself, you control every step. Take your time, test everything, and enjoy your new hosting!