Rescue: host and platform migration
Moving host or platform? We’ll plan every step.
We move your site, email and settings together, test a copy first, and keep the old site live until every check passes.
You get it in writing. An inventory, a switch-over plan and the post-move test results.
Check first
Is it time to move?
If one of these sounds familiar, a planned move now is calmer than a rushed one later.
Your host is closing or ending your plan. You’ve had a notice with a deadline.
A slow site on cheap shared hosting. One server split between many sites, so pages crawl at busy times.
Your renewal price jumped. The first-year deal ended, and the service stayed the same.
Your platform can’t do what you need. Wix or Squarespace limits your shop, bookings or search settings.
Your developer disappeared with the logins. You pay for hosting but can’t get in.
You’re not sure what you pay for. Hosting, domain and email are billed by different companies.
Right now
Before you do anything
Moves go wrong when something is switched off too early. Do these few things, and leave the rest until we’ve planned it together.
Do this first
- Find out who controls your domain. Look for renewal emails from your registrar, the company you bought the domain from. The account should be in your name.
- Keep your hosting and domain renewals paid, so nothing lapses mid-move.
- Check where your email lives. It may be with your host, Google or Microsoft.
- List what the site must keep doing: forms, bookings, payments and customer logins.
- If your host is closing, keep their notice, so we can plan around their deadline.
Please don’t, yet
- Cancel your old hosting. It holds your only working copy, and often your email. We cancel it only after you sign off.
- Change your domain’s nameservers yourself. Nameservers tell the internet which company runs your DNS, the address book that points your domain to your website and email. Change them early, and both can stop at once.
- Rebuild on a new platform alone. If old page addresses vanish, your Google rankings can go with them.
- Send passwords by email or chat. We’ll send you a secure link instead.
Service options
Choose what moves with you
Every plan includes an inventory, a tested backup, a staging copy and post-move tests. They differ in what else comes along: your email, your DNS and the platform itself.
01
Like-for-like move
Same platform, new host. For a site whose email already lives elsewhere.
- Inventory, tested backup and staging copy
- Switch-over at an agreed quiet time
- SSL certificate (the padlock) set up on the new host
- DNS: we point the website at the new host
- Redirects: not needed, as page addresses stay the same
- Post-move tests: pages, forms, checkout
- Not included: moving email. It stays where it is now.
- Not included: a platform rebuild
02
Recommended
Move with email and DNS
Website, email and domain settings, moved together on one written plan.
- Everything in Like-for-like move, plus:
- Email: mailboxes and existing messages moved
- DNS plan: every DNS record (one entry in that address book) listed, moved and checked
- MX records, which tell email where to arrive, set and tested
- Nameservers changed by us, at the agreed time
- Redirects: not needed, as page addresses stay the same
- Not included: a platform rebuild
03
Platform change
Wix or Squarespace to WordPress, for example. Rebuilt, then moved.
- Everything in Move with email and DNS, plus:
- Platform rebuild: your site rebuilt in WordPress
- Pages, posts, products and forms carried across
- Redirects: every old page address sent to its new page, to protect your rankings
- Page titles and search descriptions kept
- Test orders placed through the new checkout
- A walkthrough of editing your new site
We assess the problem and confirm the scope and next steps in writing before work starts.
How it works
How a move works
Seven steps, in this order. Your live site doesn’t change until step 05, and the old host stays until step 07.
On a Platform change, step 03 is also where we rebuild your site in WordPress.
01
We take a full inventory.
Pages, plugins, forms, email accounts, domain records and logins, listed in writing so nothing is left behind.
02
We back up, then test the backup.
We restore it to a private space to prove it works before we rely on it.
03
We build a staging copy on the new host.
A private copy you click through and approve, while your live site carries on as normal. On a Platform change, this is the rebuilt WordPress site.
04
We agree a DNS plan and a switch-over time.
Every record listed, a quiet time agreed with you, and a written way back if we need it.
05
We switch over at the agreed time.
We point your domain at the new host. The old site stays live while the change spreads across the internet.
06
We run the post-move tests.
Pages, forms, checkout, the padlock, and email sending and arriving, all checked and written up.
07
The old host is cancelled only after you sign off.
Not before. Then we hand over the report and the new logins.
BearStackHosting and platform migration
Move your website with a plan.
Bring your website, orders and email along with you.
Access
What we need from you
Access to both ends of the move, and a little of your time. Here’s what helps, and how to share it safely.
Never send passwords by email, text or WhatsApp.We send you a one-time secure link that expires once it’s opened. Already emailed one? Tell us, and we’ll change it as soon as we’re in.
Old and new hosting access.A login for each control panel. Not chosen a new host yet? We’ll recommend one on the call.
Your registrar login.So we can change the DNS at the agreed time. Lost it, or it’s in a past developer’s name? We’ll help you recover it first.
Your email details.Who provides it today, and a list of the mailboxes and addresses you use.
A temporary admin account.On WordPress, Wix or Squarespace, add us as a separate user and remove us when we’re done.
Your quiet time.When orders and enquiries are lowest, so we can plan the switch-over around it.
Proof
What you get in writing
A move report you keep, and can forward to your developer, accountant or new host.
- Inventory of pages, plugins, mailboxes and records
- Backup test: proof the backup restores
- DNS plan: every record, before and after
- Switch-over plan: the agreed time and the way back
- Post-move tests: what we checked, and the result
On a Like-for-like move, the report covers the website records only, as your email stays where it is.
Move report
Sample report
Site
yourbusiness.co.uk
Moved from / to
Your old host and platform, then the new ones, by name
Switch-over plan
The quiet time we agreed, and how we’d roll back
Checklist
- Inventory taken and agreed
- Backup restored and tested
- Staging copy approved by you
- Records switched as the DNS plan set out
- Post-move tests passed: pages, forms, checkout, email
An illustration of the report's format, not a real client.
Let’s talk about your website
Let’s plan your move.
Share your website, where it runs today and why you want to move. Mention any email, shop or booking system that needs to come with it.
- 01 Share your website
- 02 Describe the problem
- 03 Agree the next step
FAQ
Questions owners ask us
We assess what is happening and confirm the next step with you.
Will my site go down during the move?
We plan the switch-over for a quiet time you agree, and keep the old site live until the post-move checks pass. While the change spreads across the internet, some visitors may still see the old site for a while. It keeps working, because we haven’t switched it off.
Will I lose my email?
Not if it’s planned. First we find where your email lives today. If it’s with your old host, Move with email and DNS moves your mailboxes and messages, then sets and tests the MX records. If it’s with Google or Microsoft, it stays there, and we make sure its records come across unchanged.
Will I lose my Google rankings?
A careful move keeps what Google relies on: your page addresses, titles and content. On a host move, the addresses stay the same. On a platform change they usually don’t, so we redirect every old address to its new page. No one can honestly promise rankings, but we avoid the common causes of a drop.
Can you move my site from Wix or Squarespace?
Yes, with the Platform change plan. These builders don’t let you export a working site, so we rebuild it in WordPress. We carry across your pages, products and forms, and redirect the old addresses. We confirm the fixed fee once we’ve seen how big the site is.
Who pays for the new hosting?
You do, directly to the host, so the account is in your name and stays yours. Our fee covers the move, not the hosting. On the call, we’ll recommend hosting that suits your site. If you’d rather BearStack looked after it, ask about our hosting and infrastructure service.
Do I need to cancel my old host?
Yes, but not yet. Keep it until the post-move tests pass and you’ve signed off. We’ll tell you when it’s safe and exactly what to cancel, so you don’t lose an email account or a domain that’s billed with it.
What if something breaks after the move?
Tell us straight away. Until you sign off, the old site and a tested backup are still in place, so we can switch back if we need to. Your report records every setting before and after, which makes it quick to see what changed and put it right.
How long does a move take?
It depends on the size of the site, where your email lives and whether it’s a platform change. We’ll give you a time on the call, and agree the switch-over time with you in writing before we start. If your host has given you a deadline, tell us, and we’ll plan around it.
My old developer has the logins. Can you still move it?
Usually, yes. If you pay the hosting or domain bill, you can normally reclaim the account through the company’s own recovery process. We guide you through it and move the site once the accounts are back in your name.