A question about domain name moving...
January 6, 2024 11:51 AM Subscribe
I feel like this is a really stupid question, but... I have a Wordpress website hosted on Siteground at mydomain.com. I want to move the domain name but not the site to Pair. I want to design the site, also using Wordpress, and then turn it on when I'm ready. In the meantime I'd like to keep my Siteground site going and preferably not have any downtime when I switch. I know how to change the DNS when I'm ready but...
I purchased a new plan at Pair. It came with a free domain, which I accepted, but I do not want that domain to be the domain of my site. If I build the site at myseconddomain.com, am I able to somehow switch it to mydomain.com and have myseconddomain.com be not part of it?
I purchased a new plan at Pair. It came with a free domain, which I accepted, but I do not want that domain to be the domain of my site. If I build the site at myseconddomain.com, am I able to somehow switch it to mydomain.com and have myseconddomain.com be not part of it?
Yes.
When you are ready:
Log in to the *hosting* control panel through pair.com (I think it's my.pair.com). Under 'My Domains' set up mydomain.com. When you do, note the name server values they'll give you for it.
Then log in to wherever the domain name mydomain.com is currently registered, and change the name server settings to match. This will tell the world to look for mydomain.com at the new server.
Until then, the name server for mydomain.com will continue to point to where it is now, and the world will see the old site.
posted by amtho at 12:29 PM on January 6 [1 favorite]
When you are ready:
Log in to the *hosting* control panel through pair.com (I think it's my.pair.com). Under 'My Domains' set up mydomain.com. When you do, note the name server values they'll give you for it.
Then log in to wherever the domain name mydomain.com is currently registered, and change the name server settings to match. This will tell the world to look for mydomain.com at the new server.
Until then, the name server for mydomain.com will continue to point to where it is now, and the world will see the old site.
posted by amtho at 12:29 PM on January 6 [1 favorite]
Also: your Pair.com hosting account probably came with actual 24-hour phone support. Pair is awesome.
posted by amtho at 12:30 PM on January 6 [2 favorites]
posted by amtho at 12:30 PM on January 6 [2 favorites]
Typically, DNS propagation takes 24-48 hours, although in some cases, it can take up to 72 hours.
What that means is that when changing DNS host some users may see the new DNS host immediately while others will still be directed to the old DNS host for a couple of days.
To minimise any downtime:
1) Do not cancel the old host account until at least a couple of days after the changeover. In your case this should be a non-issue as you are going to continue using Siteground for site hosting anyway. Any users using the 'old' DNS server will still be directed to the same ip destination.
2) A few days before migrating the domain name, Set the Time-to-Live (TTL) value on the old DNS host to a low value, 15 minutes or 1 hour. This will minimise but not eliminate DNS propagation.
On the day of switchover, clear the DNS cache on your own machine so you can check everything is working correctly.
posted by Lanark at 12:46 PM on January 6
What that means is that when changing DNS host some users may see the new DNS host immediately while others will still be directed to the old DNS host for a couple of days.
To minimise any downtime:
1) Do not cancel the old host account until at least a couple of days after the changeover. In your case this should be a non-issue as you are going to continue using Siteground for site hosting anyway. Any users using the 'old' DNS server will still be directed to the same ip destination.
2) A few days before migrating the domain name, Set the Time-to-Live (TTL) value on the old DNS host to a low value, 15 minutes or 1 hour. This will minimise but not eliminate DNS propagation.
On the day of switchover, clear the DNS cache on your own machine so you can check everything is working correctly.
posted by Lanark at 12:46 PM on January 6
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posted by RustyBrooks at 12:19 PM on January 6