Website migration

Moving your WordPress site to Rubber Duckers is straightforward. We agree a quiet day, take a full copy, switch it over, and keep an eye on everything while it beds in. You’ll know exactly what’s happening and when.

Before we get started

A little prep up front makes the migration smooth and surprise-free.

What we’ll do

🗺️ Map out your current setup (website, DNS, and email routing)
📅 Schedule a migration window with you (ideally a weekday morning, avoiding Fridays)
💾 Create a full backup of your site on our side too

What we need from you

🔑 WordPress admin access: add quack@rubberduckers.co.uk as an Administrator
🌐 DNS access (or a contact who has it): the domain registrar name and login (you may have bought your domain at 123-reg, Namecheap, or manage it through Cloudflare)
📧 Email overview: who hosts your email (e.g. Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace). We won’t touch MX records, but we’ll add two Postmark records later for reliable sending
💡 Optional: take your own backup if it makes you feel cosy (we’ll do a full one as well)

Step 1 — Give us access to your site

What we’ll do

✅ Confirm we can log in and that everything looks normal
🧩 Note any plugins, themes, or custom bits that may need special handling

What we need from you

Go to Users → Add New in WordPress, add quack@rubberduckers.co.uk, set Role: Administrator, and send the invite

Step 2 — We take a full copy to our servers

What we’ll do

💾 Take a full site backup (files + database)
🚚 Move the site to our hosting environment and set up a private test version
🔒 Issue a staging SSL certificate so you can preview securely

What we need from you

⛔ From this point please avoid making changes on the live site (new posts, edits, orders, plugin updates). Anything changed after we take the copy won’t come across

Step 3 — We test everything

What we’ll do

🔍 Check pages, navigation, forms, search, logins, and any ecommerce or membership flows
🔄 Fix any path/URL issues, update redirects, and configure caching
📧 Set up transactional email via Postmark on the new environment

What we need from you

👀 If you have time, do a quick skim: a couple of key pages, a form submission, and any critical user journeys
📝 Tell us about any must-check items (e.g. gated content, booking widgets, checkout quirks)

Step 4 — Switch day

This is the big day where everything moves across in one go.

What we’ll do

🌞 Start first thing in the morning
💾 Take a fresh copy of your site
🔍 Run our checks on the new environment
🌐 Update DNS records (A + CNAME for the site, TXT + CNAME for Postmark)
👀 Re-check everything once the live domain is pointing to the new server
📦 Leave your old hosting account untouched — the site will still sit there until you decide what to do with it (you can log in, take a final backup, or close it down when ready)

What we need from you

⛔ No changes to the site that day (anything added after we take the copy won’t come across)
✅ Confirm who will make the DNS changes: you, your IT provider, or us (with access)

⚡ DNS propagation can take up to 24 hours, but it’s usually under an hour. We’ll keep watch and let you know when it’s done.

Step 5 — Post-launch checks

What we’ll do

🔍 Re-test forms, logins, and any critical flows on the live domain
🔒 Issue/renew the live SSL certificate and confirm redirects are tidy (www/non-www, HTTP→HTTPS)
🚀 Set up server-level caching and performance tweaks
👀 Keep an eye on logs for any errors and make quick fixes

What we need from you

👁️ A quick sense-check of the site on your side
🧪 If you use external systems (CRMs, booking tools, payment gateways), do one quick live test

Timings at a glance

⏱️ Total time reserved: we set aside a day
🌞 Best time to migrate: a weekday morning, avoiding Fridays where possible
⛔ Freeze period: from the moment we take the copy until we give the all-clear after DNS is switched
🌍 DNS propagation: up to 24 hours, typically under an hour
💤 Downtime: we aim for no visible downtime; any brief blips are usually while SSL settles

Handy checklist

You
[ ] Added quack@rubberduckers.co.uk as a WordPress Administrator
[ ] Provided DNS/registrar access (or connected us with your IT provider)
[ ] Confirmed who hosts your email (e.g. Microsoft 365/Google Workspace)
[ ] Agreed a migration morning (not Friday) and told your team no changes that day

Us
[ ] Full backup taken and staging copy built
[ ] Tests passed on staging (pages, forms, logins, ecommerce if relevant)
[ ] DNS records prepared (A + CNAME for the site, TXT + CNAME for Postmark)
[ ] Switch monitored and post-launch checks completed

Ecommerce and memberships

If you sell online or run memberships, we’ll agree a short order pause during the copy window so nothing gets lost. We’ll coordinate the exact timing with you and keep it as tight as possible.

Frequently asked questions

❓ Will my website go offline during the migration?
We aim for zero downtime. At most, there might be a very short blip (usually seconds) while DNS and SSL update, but visitors shouldn’t notice.

❓ Do you host our emails too?
No. Our servers are dedicated purely to hosting websites, not emails. For reliable business email, we recommend using a specialist service such as Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. They’re built for scale, deliverability, and all the collaboration tools you need — and your website and email stay neatly separated.

❓ What about my emails — will they stop working?
No. Your email provider (e.g. Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace) stays as it is. The only change is adding two Postmark records to improve reliability for emails your website sends (like form notifications).

❓ Can you switch everything back if something goes wrong?
Yes. Because we take a full backup before we move, and your site still exists on the previous server, we can revert to your old hosting if needed. That said, we rarely ever need to.

❓ Do I have to give you my DNS login?
Not if you’d rather not. You can either make the four changes yourself (we’ll give you the exact details), or introduce us to your IT provider and we’ll work with them.

❓ When should we plan the migration?
Pick a low-traffic weekday morning (not Friday). We’ll confirm the exact slot with you in advance.

❓ What if I update my site during the migration?
Those changes won’t carry across. That’s why we ask for a freeze period from the moment we take the copy until after the DNS switch. If it’s urgent, let us know and we’ll coordinate the timing.