Hi all,
I have just switched my hosting to DH from Godaddy and am trying to import my Wordpress blog and related mySQL database. I have all the WP files on my new DH server account now, but have no idea how to go about exporting the mySQL database from Godaddy to DH.
My questions are in short:
Thanks in advance for anyone who can offer some help!!!
There are a couple of ways you do the export from GoD*ddy and the import into DH. Which way is best or easiest depends upon your comfort level with nix, mysql, and what tools/access you have on Godddy.
Do you have access to PhpMyAdmin on Godddy, or access to the shell? Is there an export function from the GoDddy control panel (I have no experience with GoD*addy)?
You might also find some help/idea on how to proceed from the DH Wiki article on Migrating MySQL.
–rlparker
–rlparker
Hi rlparker, thanks for your reply!
I ran the export function in Godaddy control panel and all it gave me was this:
mavblog
CREATE DATABASE mavblog;
USE mavblog;
I am not very familiar with *nix or mysql, and I have no idea what to do with the ‘exported’ information shown above.
Also, on the DH Manage MySQL page, I can’t seem to find an ‘import’ function; do I need to create another database?
Hi! So it looks like you now have an “exported” version of your data from GoD*ddy.
What you will need to do is to import this database into a DH database. This may not be your only issue, however, as I don’t know how you installed the WP application files in your new DH webspace. At the very least, those files will need to be modified to use a DH hosted database.
Did you just download those files from GoD*ddy, and then upload then into your DH space in the same directory structure?
The whole migration process goes something like this:
Create a database on DH from the Control Panel -> Goodies -> Manage MySQL screen.
Wait for the database to be created (instantly) and for the mysql host DNS to update - usually from 20 minutes or so to several hours (though it could be longer) - You can tell when it is ready because you can reach the PhpMyAdmin MySQL management too from the Control Panel (under the Web Administration column of the Manage MySQL screen mentioned above).
Use the PhpMyAdmin tool in the panel to Import the SQL datafile you exported from GoD*ddy into the new database.
Modify your WP configuration file(s) to point to the new Dh hosted database.
There is a lot more info, and some really good step-by-step instructions for all of this on the WordPress Codex - Moving Wordpress documentation (they actually explain it all a lot better than I can).
The only real “catch” at DH is that you can only create databaes via the panel (so you have to do it in advance of the actual migration, and skip those steps in the iunstructions) and (since you have done that) you may need to edit your exported .SQL file to remove the “Create Database” line - as you only need to insert the data into the appropriate tables (as you have already created the database, which is now “empty” awaiting your import).
–rlparker
hi rlparker,
I’m with snelj (in the same room with him, actually) trying to get this database moved. The problem is that I don’t think godaddy actually gave us the database. The .sql field snelj mentioned is only 206 B–the entire file content is in the 10 or so lines he posted above.
When we were using the WP blog on Godaddy, there was a backup feature inside the wordpress menus. I made several. The title for the most recent one, made on March 7 is user_389716_wp_20070307_358.sql.gz. It’s 132 KB (523 when unpacked) and, when opened in Notepad, appears to contain all the posts and all sorts of other information. This I think is the proper file, but we can’t figure out how to get an up-to-date version of it from GoDaddy.
Hi, Dave! I understand the problem, but unfortunately I don’t know how GoD*ddy is set up, so I can’t give you a step-by-step guide to getting that clean backup. It does sound as though the user_389716_wp_20070307_358.sql.gz file is what you need, if you can get a later one, that is.
As you have no doubt figured out, uploading the whateverthebackupfilenameis.sql.gz and extracting it (or extracting it on your own computer) and then using that .sql file to drive the import via PhpMyAdmin on DH is what you are ultimately trying to accomplish.
Doesn’t GoDddy have any docs on backing up databases on their system? Or have you checked with GoDddy support to see how they advise you to accomplish that?
Possibly there is a “filemanager” on GoDddy that will let you browse to the location on GoDddy’s server where that backup was stored? If so, can you just do the WordPress backup from the WordPress menus, and then grab the resultant file via the filemanager? I assume you are using the “WordPress Backup Plugin” described on the Backing Up Your Database article on the WordPress Codex?
I’m sorry I can’t be more specific, but I just don’t use GoD*ddy!.
–rlparker
Hi rlparker,
We went ahead and uploaded the mysql database from March 2007 following the instructions from http://wiki.dreamhost.com/Migrate_MySQL, which you earlier suggested. I have also updated the wp-config.php file according to the new username and password settings. We are still receiving an error message when trying to open our blog site at www.maverickchina.com/blog. The error message reads:
Warning: main(/home/.puke/maverickchina/maverickchina.com/blog/wp-settings.php) [function.main]: failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/.puke/maverickchina/maverickchina.com/blog/wp-config.php on line 20
Fatal error: main() [function.require]: Failed opening required ‘/home/.puke/maverickchina/maverickchina.com/blog/wp-settings.php’ (include_path=’.:/usr/local/lib/php’) in /home/.puke/maverickchina/maverickchina.com/blog/wp-config.php on line 20
Any ideas what the problem could be??
Thank you very much for your help!!!
That would be a a problem with your path settings. You never answered how you migrated the files from your existing installation at GoD*ddy.
If you just copied the files to your DH space, you will need to have the same directory structure on DH as you had on GoD*ddy for that to work.
If you have a different structure, you will have to “manually” diddle the database a bit with PhpMyAdmin to correct the path issues (see this tutorial)
Also, what version of WP are/were you running?
–rlparker
rlparker,
I think we may have been trying bits and pieces of your advice but will be better off starting from scratch and following them to the letter. I think we did just copy the files over, and that may be part of the problem. We’ll call it a day here and start over tomorrow.
One big problem is that we cannot access our godaddy account within China. In fact, this is the main reason we switched to DH. We’re going to ask a friend outside China to go in and export the most up-to-date version of the database according to your instructions. (Godaddy has PhpMyAdmin, but it won’t display what’s there to us because we’re blocked here in China.)
Regarding the wordpress version, the one-click installer on DH says it’s version 2.1.3. As for the old version, we installed it almost one year ago and I don’t think we ever updated it. Don’t know how I can check the old version–we have the files copied from godaddy about a week ago via FTP–would it be in one of them? And could the difference in versions also be part of the problem?
We truly appreciate your help!
Dave
Dave,
No problem! Your additional information sheds a lot of light on what kind of problems you are having. It is a considerably different process to “migrate” a working WordPress site when you also have to update versions. If you have updated regularly, the upgrade scripts update the structure of your database as part of the process. If you have not upgraded in some time, it is likely that your existing database may need to be massaged to get your database up to the current standard.
The 2.1.3 that the DH one-click installs is the latest, and it has some issues with some older templates, and has some restructured database fields from older versions.
Generally I advise that you upgrade incrementally (once you have a site migrated, the upgrades are noit that difficult, so if you have to do it several times to get current it is really no big deal).
I can’t emphasize enough that you research and study the WordPress Codex and Forums - almost all this is covered there, and in great detail (how to upgrade from version 1.x to 2.0, 2.0 to 2.1.x, etc) as well as several methods for moving the application and the databases.
As for determining what version you were running on GoD*ddy, you should be able to discern that from the contents of the includes/version.php file (just look at it’s contents in an editor). That will show you not only the WordPRess version, and the WP_DB version (these are helpful in determing the best way to upgrade, sometimes).
At any rate, WP or WP_DB version issues could be part of the problem, but you now know how to check that for the code you took from GoD*ddy, and if you explore the links I have already provided as well as the Upgrading information on the WordPRess site/Forums, you should be able to develop a strategy that will work.
–rlparker