Switching a networked site from subdomain to domain

  • James

    (@jamesbcox1980)


    8 years, 9 months ago

    I have a testing site set up at theirdomain.mydomain.com. When the site goes live, the client will be pointing their existing domain name at my IP address.

    When they do this, the WP installation will no longer be at theirdomain.mydomain.com, but rather theirdomain.com, and the installation folder will remain the same, as a separate installation from my main site.

    How will I make this work without breaking the site beyond repair? I’m studying the database, and it looks like the URL location is used many times throughout multiple tables.

Viewing 5 replies - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)
  • Moderator Bet Hannon

    (@bethannon1)

    If you have actually followed the instructions and set up a multisite network (https://codex.www.ads-software.com/Create_A_Network), you should be able to use domain mapping for this.

    If theirdomain.mydomain.com is just a regular, single-site WP install, then you will need to migrate the dev site to the live domain. While these instructions talk about moving, they also apply for just migrating to a new domain name: https://codex.www.ads-software.com/Moving_WordPress#Changing_Your_Domain_Name_and_URLs

    Thread Starter James

    (@jamesbcox1980)

    Thanks, I had not seen the domain mapping plugin until today. I was able to successfully map the domain. Interestingly, the site still works with both the subdomain AND the alternate domain. (Just for information, I tested before pointing the actual domain to my IP address by using my Hosts file to fake the domain name).

    It’s working nicely without a manual install.

    Moderator Bet Hannon

    (@bethannon1)

    If both the subdomain & the mapped domain are working, you might want to check your htaccess rules. They shouldn’t be, and that might cause issues later with file paths.

    Thread Starter James

    (@jamesbcox1980)

    I thought about that, but when accessing the admin section from the mapped domain, it redirects to the subdomain. I figured this was intended. Is it not? If not, in addition to adjusting the .htaccess rules, how do I fix the admin redirect?

    I didn’t see anything about the redirect or the subdomain change in the domain mapping plugin documentation. And it looks like support tickets are not getting answered much anymore.

    Edit>> I do still have a subdomain DNS record pointed at my site, not using the wildcard, should I remove that?

    Moderator Bet Hannon

    (@bethannon1)

    When you map a domain to the subdomain, then any time you have a link to that subdomain, it SHOULD automatically redirect to the mapped domain.

    If I map clientdomain.com to client.mysite.com, then anytime that the network tries to go to client.mysite.com, it should automatcially redirect to clientdomain.com. including the dashboards. If you turn off domain mapping, then everything reverts to that orig subdomain.

    Yes, remove the subdomain DNS record. Let the wildcard subdomin do it’s magic. ??

Viewing 5 replies - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)
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