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Migrating from iWeb to Wordpress: how keep former pages active

Hello,

I've been using iWeb for over two years and I've published hundreds of pages of the magazine Webhttp://www.yesicannes.com. But I can not go on with iWeb, a great software to create sites but hampered by its limitations. I'm going to use Wordpress to build a dynamic site, that will of course have the same URL:www.yesicannes.com as the former one by iWeb.

My big concern is how to keep active the links to pages already published with iWeb (host OVH)? These links were broadcasted hundreds of times around the world ... I also intend to include them in the "summary" of the new site to direct visitors to the old iWeb version of the magazine.

If someone has successfully migrated from iWeb to WP could please be so kind as to share his (her) experience in hosting, I would be very grateful.

Thank you in advance.

Alain

Mac mini, Mac OS X (10.6.8), 4 Giga RAM memory

Posted on Jan 2, 2013 11:23 AM

Best reply

Old Toad

Level 10

207,463 points

Posted on Jan 2, 2013 11:47 AM

You can keep your "old" website online by publishing it to your 3rd party hosting server and linking to it from your new, Wordpress website. If you don't already have a new 3rd party hosting service this may be of help to you: Life After MobileMe.

You still have your domain.sites2 file used to create your original website so all you need to do is to publish it directly (with iWeb 3) to the FTP server or with iWeb 2 to a folder on your hard drive and use a 3rd party FTP client to upload the site folder and external index.html file to the server.

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24 replies

Jan 5, 2013 9:09 AM in response to Roddy

Hi Roddy,

Thanks again for your time. I've taken a look at the supersized slider, and finds it very nice.

Would you please be so kind as to confirm me if I have well understood what you told about this issue : as soon as I will open the new WordPress site, and enter the domain name into the control panel, the old iWeb home page will be replaced by the new WP home page ? Is it as simple as that or have I to do somehting else.

This is something very important for me.

Thanking you in advance,

Roddy

Level 6

17,265 points

Jan 5, 2013 2:37 PM in response to Ahïaïaïweb

I use Host Excellence to host my sites and setting up Wordpress is straight forward and well documented...

http://www.iwebformusicians.com/iWeb/Website-Hosting.html

Once you have set up your account, add a new site and give it an appropriate name.

Open your account in an FTP application and you will see the folder with the "appropriate name". This is the root folder.

If you move your domain name registration to HE, or use one of the free ones, forwarding the domain name to the root folder just takes a couple of clicks.

Download the "wordpress" folder from wordpress.org and upload the contains of this folder (not the folder itself) to the "appropriate name" root folder on the server.

Enter the domain name into the browser - my-domain-name.com - and the site will appear.

You do, of course, have to set up the data base on the server before you can create your site.

Now upload the iWeb created site folder - "yesicannes" - to the same root folder. Enter the following into the browser to bring up the Home page...

http://www.yesicannes.com/yesicannes/

Any other page of the original site will have the URL...

http://www.yesicannes.com/yesicannes/page-name.html

... which will be the same as you have at the moment.

Jan 6, 2013 6:32 AM in response to Roddy

Many thanks Roddy for all these very useful explanations. Would you please help me about another issue: I'm afraid that my current host provider (OVH) is not good enough to operate WordPress after what I've read on the Net.

I've understood how to upload and set up the new Wordpress site, but how do I stop my domain to point to the iWeb site at OVH and have the domain point to the iWeb site when uploaded to the new webhost ?

I can't figure at all how to do that and I would very much appreciate a bit of help if you have the time.

Roddy

Level 6

17,265 points

Jan 6, 2013 7:35 AM in response to Ahïaïaïweb

You would contact your domain name registrar to do this. As I pointed out above, its a lot easier to move your domain name registration to your hosting company. Then you can manage them all in one place.

The services shown here will give you at least one registartion free.

Once you ahve moved the registration, it just takes a couple of clicks in the control panel to hook the domain name up with the root folder containing the files.

If you open the new hosting account, create the root folder and upload the original iWeb site to it, this site should remain online while the transfer goes through. In the meantime, you can start setting up the new site.

Wyodor

Level 6

19,930 points

Jan 6, 2013 7:35 AM in response to Ahïaïaïweb

Your domain does not point to the iWeb site. It points the the folder, called root, on the server where you publish webpages. Any webpage.

To publish to your new host, change the ftp settings in iWeb.

Your host will tell you what these are.

Jan 8, 2013 7:36 AM in response to Wyodor

Thank you very much for your help Wyodor. The thing is that I don't have a clue of DNS data management and web hosting control panels...

The first time I uploaded the iWeb site, somebody helped me for the settings in the control panel so, I didn't write down the proceedings and don't remember how I did...

I can manage the WordPress uploading to the new web host but I wonder how to transfer the e-mail account from OVH to the new host and after close the account and so on. I'm a bit lost... If you had a step by step procedure to explain, that would be of a great help to me.

Thank you in advance for your kind help.

Wyodor

Level 6

19,930 points

Jan 8, 2013 8:49 AM in response to Ahïaïaïweb

Magic word : educate.

It works/worked for me.

Jan 14, 2013 8:48 AM in response to Wyodor

Hi Wyodor,

Please be so kind as to excuse me for my late reply. I've been changing Internet provider as well, and during the time the new line was under construction, I've been without Internet access.

Well thank you very much for the precious informations you've provided me with. That will be very helpful! I've signed up with the new web host company today, when my Internet connexion was alive again, and I'll follow the instructions you gave me.

Thanks gain for your time and kindness.

Jan 18, 2013 12:00 PM in response to Ahïaïaïweb

Hi all,

Many thanks again for your kind & useful help that allowed me to successfully upload my "old" site and WordPress altogother with a new welcome page and a link to former version of the iWeb site.

Everything went well and now that I experienced the transfer, can I in my turn help people who need advices to transfert iWeb to a new development and keep old pages alive.

Migrating from iWeb to Wordpress: how keep former pages active