How to Move a Free WordPress Website to Your Own Server

One of the most popular and free blogging platforms is WordPress, which can be used to create websites quickly and easily. Not only is it free, but it also has a very robust community that is always available to help if you run into any problems. Since most people use WordPress to create blogs, we will use it as an example to show you how to move your own free WordPress install to your own web server.

The Basics

The first step to moving your WordPress installation is to purchase or lease a server. A server is a physical computer with Internet access that you can use to host your website. They are much more secure and stable than free hosting services such as GitHub pages or WordPress’s own free hosting service.

After you have purchased or leased a suitable server, the next step is to download and install the WordPress installer created by WordPress itself. This is a zip file that unites all the individual components of WordPress — the database, the media files, the themes, and more — and makes installing and using WordPress much easier.

To begin moving your site, open the WordPress installer zip file and click on the big blue “Install Now” button.

On the next page, you will be presented with a summary of the steps required to install WordPress. Click on the “I Accept” button to start the process.

As part of the installation process, you will be asked to choose a secure password for the WordPress installation. You will also need to pick a username for the WordPress installation, as well as set up an email address for future communications from WordPress (for example, to let you know when your blog is up and running).

Back Up Your Data

Even though you are running a free blog, you should always back up your data. You never know what might happen if you lose a bit of data or a server goes down. It would be a shame to lose all your hard work because of something unforeseen, so always make sure you have a backup and restore procedure in place.

The best way to back up your data is to use a service such as Dropbox or OneDrive to sync all your files across different devices and locations. While Dropbox is free, you will need to sign up for a OneDrive account to use their service. Both platforms allow you to securely store and access all of your important documents, pictures, and videos anywhere, whenever you need them. 

Set Up Your Domain

If you are using WordPress to create your blog, you will want to set up a .wordpress.com domain to work with your site’s URL (Uniform Resource Locator, more commonly referred to as a URL). A domain name is associated with a website and functions as a sort of digital address for the site. For example, the domain name “wordpress.com” is associated with WordPress and is used to send people to the website to read blogs, view content, or sign up for an account.

Once you have registered your domain, you can use a tool like Google Domains to easily manage all your domain names and ensure they are all pointing to the same website. Using this service, you can take advantage of the various features that are provided to make setting up new domains and deleting old ones much easier.

Choose A Suitable Location For Your Site

If you are installing WordPress on a server, you will need to choose a suitable location for your site. WordPress’s own guidance suggests that you should install it on a dedicated space on the server rather than using the default location, which is usually a subdirectory of the /wp-content directory.

This is an important decision you need to make. Your server’s administrator will most likely be able to give you suggestions about where to install WordPress, but it is ultimately up to you to find the best location for your needs. If you have a lot of space on your server, you may want to look at using the /wp-content/ directory as your default location to keep your site’s files. However, if you are on a shared hosting plan and don’t have access to the server’s administrator, then you should look into purchasing a separate server to avoid any problems.

Update Your Site With Themes And Plugins

After you have installed WordPress, you will need to update it with themes and plugins. Updating WordPress with themes and plugins is very similar to installing WordPress itself. The only difference is that you will have more options available to you when choosing a theme and plugin to use.

To begin updating your WordPress site with themes and plugins, visit the WordPress website and click on the “Get Theme” button near the top of the screen.

This will take you to the official WordPress theme selection screen where you can choose from a wide variety of free themes and plugins. Some of the best free WordPress themes and plugins are: the TwentySixteen theme, which is designed to look like Google’s homepage; the Automattic Cleaner plugin, which lets you easily remove junk from your site without touching a line of code; and the SEO plugin, which lets you easily optimize the content on your site for maximum search engine visibility.

If you have a premium WordPress installation, you have access to a wide variety of high-quality themes and plugins that are not available for free. You can also choose from a large number of free themes and plugins if you use a free hosting service like GitHub or WordPress’s own free hosting service.

Set Up Your Login Page And Registering

WordPress comes with a special login page that allows users to create an account and sign in to your site. You should set up a simple login page with a logo, text box, and a submit button. When users click on the “Sign in” button, they will be taken to a password reset page where they can set up a new password.

As part of the registration process, you will need to provide the login page with a name for the blog, along with a brief biography. Once registered, users will gain access to all the features of your site, including your blog, which can be accessed from the dashboard.

To begin the registration process, click on the “Get Started” link on the login page and then click on the “Create New Account” button. Once the account creation process is complete, you can email your new account’s admin to activate the account and restrict access to it to just you.

Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

If you are viewing your site on a mobile device, you will want to make sure that it is mobile-friendly. There are several tools you can use to test and ensure that your site looks good on any mobile device. For example, you can use the Google Test tool to easily check how a given web page appears on different mobile devices and then make changes to improve the appearance on any mobile device.

To make your site mobile-friendly, visit the WordPress website and click on the “S” icon on the far right of the top menu bar. This will bring you to the Settings menu where you can choose from a number of options relating to how your site looks on mobile devices.

By default, the WordPress site is set up to look good on any mobile device. However, if you visit the Google Analytics page of the WordPress site from a mobile device, you will see that it looks different than it does when viewed from a computer. To restore the default look of the WordPress site on mobile devices, go to the Settings menu and click on the “Convert To Mobile Site Mode” button. This will load the default mobile-friendly WordPress theme and display information about your site in a mobile-friendly manner.

Conclusion

WordPress is one of the most popular and highly regarded blogging platforms available. It is free and open source, which means you have access to the source code if you want to modify it for a custom look.