Move Your CS-Cart Store to a New Host

What is a migration?

A migration is a move. You copy your shop files and its database to a new place. CS-Cart is software for online shops. The database is where it keeps your products, customers and orders.

Plan to do this at a quiet time. Orders placed during the move may be lost.

Before you start

• You need access to both hosting accounts.
• The new host must meet the CS-Cart requirements, such as the PHP version. Ask Hostvento support if you are not sure.
• Keep your old shop running until the move is done. Do not delete anything there.

Step 1: Copy the files

1. Log in to your old control panel and open File Manager.
2. Go to the folder that holds your shop, often public_html.
3. Select all files and click Compress. Choose a ZIP file.
4. Download the ZIP to your computer.

Step 2: Export the database

1. Open phpMyAdmin. This is a tool for viewing databases in a browser.
2. Click your shop database in the left list.
3. Click the Export tab.
4. Keep the Quick method and the SQL format. Click Export.

To find the database name, open config.local.php in the shop folder. Look for db_name. Do not change anything in it yet.

Step 3: Set up the new host

1. Log in to the new control panel.
2. Create a new database, a new user and a strong password. Add the user to the database. Write them down.
3. Open phpMyAdmin, pick the new database and click Import. Choose your SQL file and click Import.
4. In File Manager, upload your shop ZIP to the site folder and extract it.

Step 4: Update the settings

1. Open config.local.php in the new folder.
2. Change the database name, user and password to the new ones.
3. Change the host name entries to your new domain if it is different.
4. Save the file.
5. Delete the files inside the var/cache folder. This clears old saved data.

Step 5: Test and switch

1. Test the new shop before you change your domain. Ask support how to preview it.
2. When all is well, change your domain's nameservers or DNS to the new host. DNS is like a phone book that tells browsers where your site lives.
3. Wait for the change to spread. It can take several hours.

Quick recap

• Back up files and database from the old host.
• Create a new database and import your data.
• Upload files and edit config.local.php.
• Test, then point your domain to the new host.