Note: The PRO version includes URL testing which catches common errors before running.
Not all urls are updating
Sometimes urls will get stored in the database with an inconsistent scheme or without the trailing / at the end of a URL. These types of inconsistencies may easily be resolved by running the plugin without the scheme nor trailing slash.
For example if you were changes http://test.com
to http://newdomain.com
you would enter the following settings when running the plugin:
- Old URL =
test.com
- New URL =
newdomain.com
That will clear up and dangling urls which did not update.
Server configuration
The most common issue when going live is caused by the server or domain’s DNS not being setup to handle the new domain. If you enter the new domain in your browser, and do not reach your website, this is most likely the issue.
The following is required for any domain on any server (not just WordPress sites):
- The server must be configured to support the domain.
- The server must be configured to point the domain to the directory containing the site’s files.
- The DNS for the domain must be pointed to the server.
URL typos
If a typo occurs, you may restore the site by reverting the database using the backup you made before running the plugin. If the site is still accessible, you may be able to fix the database by running this plugin again, with this time entering the typo as the Old URL and the correct URL as the New URL.
Common Typos include:
- Adding a / to the end of the old url and not to the new url.
- Adding an http:// to the beginning of the new url and not the old url.
Restoring a broken site
If you have a backup, you may restore your database using it to restore functionality.
If you don’t have a backup, you may restore your database manually using these steps:
- Open your database in an editing tool such as phpMyAdmin or Adminer.
- Locate your options table which will be named something like
wp_options
. - Find the row with
option_name
set tositeurl
and make note of the currentoption_value
- Update the
option_value
to the original URL for row withoption_name
set tositeurl
- Update the
option_value
to the original URL for row withoption_name
set to
home
- Log back into the WordPress admin.
- Run this plugin again but this time enter the value you noted in step 3 as the Old URL and the original URL as the New URL.