XF 2.2 Renaming forum, domain name change, a few questions before I start

[thesignalman]

My forum is hosted by Namecheap. I want to transfer everything I have currently to the new one without losing any data. I was told that all the files will have to be transferred manually. I want everything the same, users, photos, and skins. The only thing that will be changing is the domain name. Please provide me the steps I need to take so no important data will be lost.

 

[Daveo16]

1) Copy over the files. You can use FTP for this. Or you can use shell access if you are comfortable with that. You can zip/archive the files within cPanel/Plesk File Manager (this then retains the permissions already set).

2) Copy over the database. This requires manually backing up the database on the old server, copying over the backup file to the new server, and then restoring the backup file on the new server. I recommend using shell access to run the backup / restore commands if your host allows you shell access. Can be done via the cPanel/Plesk Control Panel or via the following commands using SSH (if you have root access)...

Standard backup command for *nix servers:
mysqldump --opt -uUSERNAME -pPASSWORD DBNAME > backup.sql

Standard restore command for *nix servers:
mysql -uUSERNAME -pPASSWORD DBNAME < backup.sql

3) Edit the src/config.php file on the new server to point to the database on the new server.

4) Update your board URL:
Admin CP -> Home -> Options -> Basic Board Information -> Board URL