Migrating a Website From cPanel to KapsuleHost

Most people move a site from cPanel without touching a file: Kapsule has a guided migration that copies your files and database for you while the old site stays live. This guide covers the three migration paths, which to choose, and the manual route for the cases where you would rather do it yourself.

Migration is free on every plan. There is no setup fee and no per-site charge.

Before You Start

Have these ready:

• The domain the site currently runs on.
• Access to either the site's WordPress admin, or your cPanel or FTP login.
• Your domain registrar login, for the final step.
• A Kapsule hosting plan with a free site slot.

Choosing a Migration Path

Open Migrations in the left KPanel sidebar, click through to a website migration, and enter your current site address. Kapsule checks the site, identifies the platform, and offers three paths.

All three are free, and you can switch between them at any point in the wizard.

The plugin path

1. Choose Kapsule Migrator Plugin.
2. Download kapsule-migrator.zip from the screen.
3. On your current site, go to Plugins, then Add New, then Upload Plugin. Upload the zip and activate it.
4. Open Kapsule Migrate in your WordPress admin menu.
5. Copy the token from KPanel, paste it into the plugin and click Start Migration.

KPanel detects the connection automatically and moves you to a live progress screen. Files, database and uploads are copied for you. The token expires after 24 hours; generate a new one from the same screen if you need to.

The credentials path

Choose Hosting credentials and fill in two sections: FTP, SFTP or SSH details (hostname, username, password) and database details (host, name, username, password). There is a notes field for anything else that helps, such as your cPanel address.

The team path

Tell us about the site and your preferred timing. A migration engineer replies within four business hours with a plan, and nothing goes live without your approval.

What Happens Next

Whichever path you chose, the shape is the same:

1. The copy runs in the background. Your existing site stays live and untouched the whole time.
2. Your new site becomes reviewable at a temporary address.
3. You check it and approve.
4. Only then does DNS change.

Kapsule keeps your original files for 7 days after the migration, so there is a rollback if something surfaces a few days later.

Reviewing Before You Switch

This is the step worth taking seriously, because after DNS moves, every visitor sees whatever you approved.

Load the temporary address and check:

• The home page and two or three deep pages.
• Images, including anything in a slider or gallery.
• Any contact or booking form, submitted for real.
• Login to the admin, and one edit saved.
• On a store: a full test order through to the confirmation page.

If some URLs still point at the old domain, run a search and replace: Running a Search and Replace.

Pointing Your Domain

When the review is clean, move the domain. Either change your nameservers to Kapsule's, which is the simpler option and brings DNS management into KPanel, or keep your existing DNS provider and repoint the site's records.

Full instructions are in Changing Your Nameservers and Connecting a Custom Domain to Your Website.

DNS changes take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours to reach everyone. During that window some visitors will still land on the old host, which is exactly why you keep it running.

Migrating Manually

If you would rather do it yourself, or the site is not on a supported platform, the manual route still works.

1. Create the site

Websites, then Add Website, then New Website. Pick the site type that matches what you are moving. The site is provisioned on a temporary address you can test against straight away. See Creating Your First Website.

2. Export from cPanel

Download the site files, either through cPanel's File Manager or over FTP. For WordPress that is everything under public_html, including wp-config.php. cPanel's Backup Wizard produces the whole thing as a single download if you prefer.

Then export the database: open phpMyAdmin in cPanel, select the database, and use Export, then Quick, then Go.

3. Upload the files

1. In KPanel, open your new site, then Files, then SFTP.
2. Under SFTP accounts, enter a username and click Create.
3. Copy the host, port, username and password shown. The password is displayed once and is not recoverable afterwards.
4. Connect with any SFTP client and upload your files into the site directory.

Full detail on both the SFTP account and native SSH access is in Connecting Over SFTP.

4. Import the database

1. Open the site, then Files, then Database.
2. Click Open phpMyAdmin. You are signed in automatically, with no separate password.
3. Select your database, click Import, choose the .sql file, and click Go.

See Accessing Your Database With phpMyAdmin for import limits and how to handle a large dump.

5. Update wp-config.php

The Database tab lists the new connection details. Copy them into wp-config.php using Files, then File Manager:

define( 'DB_NAME', 'your-new-database-name' );
define( 'DB_USER', 'your-new-database-user' );
define( 'DB_PASSWORD', 'your-new-password' );
define( 'DB_HOST', '127.0.0.1' );

6. Test, then repoint

Load the temporary address, work through the review list above, then point your domain.

Troubleshooting

The site loads but has no styling. Old absolute URLs in the database. Run a search and replace from the old address to the new one.

"Error establishing a database connection". The credentials in wp-config.php do not match the Database tab. Check DB_HOST is 127.0.0.1.

The database import fails partway. The dump is larger than phpMyAdmin's upload limit. Compress it to .sql.gz, split it into smaller files, or open a ticket and we will import it for you.

Some pages 404 after the move. Flush the rewrite rules: WordPress, then Quick Actions, then Flush Rewrites. See Fixing WordPress Permalink Issues.

The padlock is missing or warning. Mixed content from HTTP URLs still in the database: Fixing Mixed Content Warnings.