What Is A Mass Server Migration And What To Expect When It Is Time For One
Every server has a limited lifespan. At the end of their lifespan they cannot function efficiently any longer and have to retire. This is known as a server’s EOL, or End Of Life. This usually happens when the hardware is either considered out of date or it develops too many problems.
In these cases, it becomes necessary to migrate customers over to a new physical server. This article will answer some of the frequently asked questions as well as provide a list of things you may need to do when a mass migration is required.
FAQs
There are mainly two types of migration that take place: direct migration and failover migration. Direct migration takes place when the old server copied straight onto the new server.
Failover migration takes place when the old server taken offline and a temporary backup server has been running in its place. The offline server then copied to the new server. The answers below will cover each type of migration.
- Will my primary domain stay the same?
Yes, your primary domain will stay the same. Your domains will not change unless you want them to. As the migration is an exact copy of your existing file and account structures, all cPanels will keep their primary domain name. - Will addon domains stay in place?
Yes, add-on domains will always stay in place as they were. - Will my IPs change?
Any Dedicated IPs that are on cPanel accounts will also stay the same. - Will my databases stay the same?
a) Direct migration – As mentioned earlier the databases on your cPanel copied over to your new location exactly as they were on your original server. This means they will retain your data, naming conventions, usernames, permissions, etc.
b) Failover migration – With this kind of migration, the databases on the cPanel copied over exactly as they were on the original server. The main difference is that any data collected or changed on the failover server not copied over. It may need to be manually moved using a different method.
- Will my SSLs stay the same?
Yes, your SSLs are always based on three features: your domain name, dedicated IP, and server type. These should all remain the same during the migration so your SSLs will not need to be re-entered. - Will my logins for WordPress, Joomla, or any other platform stay the same?
Yes. This data stored in the databases on your account, which will always remain the same. - Will I lose any emails?
a) Direct migration – You will not lose any emails. Any emails that were on the old server copied over to the new server.b) Failover migration – Any emails that were received and sent on the failover server cannot be copied directly to the new server but they can be moved over manually.
- What may change
Below is a brief list of things that may change during a mass migration. - Server name
If the server has a new name then accordingly all references to that name will need to be changed. For example, if the old server was named bodman123.bodhost.com and the new server named bodman456.bodhost.com.Then any software that references the new server name will need to changed. This also includes any secure references. Using our example above secure123. .bodhost.com would change to secure456.bodhost.com.
- Shared IP Address
Though we always try our best not to change any shared IP addresses, there is a very low possibility that the shared IP for your cPanel accounts could change at some point. If this happens we will inform you beforehand.Any software referencing the main IP directly need to changed to reference the new IP. This seen in your cPanel once the migration has taken place.
- Software you may need to change when carrying out a mass migration
The following is a list of software where you may need to update the settings for when you do a mass migration. These may have settings that use the server name or IP address.
Email clients (Outlook, MacMail, Gmail, Hotmail, etc)
Any builder program that connects to the server (DreamWeaver, FrontPage, iPage, Premium Website Builder)
FTP clients (FileZilla, Cyberduck, WSftp, etc)