WordPress Migration Guide: Fix Redirects, Login Issues, and Elementor Loading Problems Step by Step | How to Migrate a WordPress Website Using Hosting Cpanel

Migrating a WordPress website to a new domain or hosting can sometimes create frustrating issues like redirects, login errors, broken SSL, or Elementor getting stuck while loading. This guide gives you a complete step-by-step process — from taking backups to restoring, migrating, and fixing all common errors.

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1. What to Do Before Migrating a WordPress Website?

Before you start, always create a backup so you can restore if anything breaks.

Steps:

• Backup Website Files: Download all files from public_html (or WordPress folder) using File Manager or FTP.
• Backup Database: In phpMyAdmin → Export → Quick → SQL file.
• Save Configurations: Copy your existing wp-config.php file.

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2. How to Migrate WordPress to a New Domain or Hosting?

When moving your site to a new host or domain, follow these steps:

1. Upload WordPress files into the new hosting public_html.
2. Create a new database in hosting.
3. Import your old database using phpMyAdmin.
4. Update wp-config.php with new database details:

define('DB_NAME', 'new_db');
define('DB_USER', 'new_user');
define('DB_PASSWORD', 'new_pass');
define('DB_HOST', 'localhost');

1. In phpMyAdmin → table wp_options: update

siteurl → https://newdomain.com

home → https://newdomain.com

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3. What to Do When the Site Redirects to the Old Domain?

If your site still points to the old domain after migration:

• Double-check siteurl and home in database.
• Run a search and replace in SQL or plugin (Better Search Replace):

UPDATE wp_posts SET post_content = REPLACE(post_content,'olddomain.com','newdomain.com');
UPDATE wp_postmeta SET meta_value = REPLACE(meta_value,'olddomain.com','newdomain.com');
UPDATE wp_options SET option_value = REPLACE(option_value,'olddomain.com','newdomain.com');

• Check .htaccess for redirect rules.
• Clear all caches (hosting, plugins, Cloudflare).

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4. How to Restore WordPress Backup?

If migration goes wrong, restore your backup:

1. Delete corrupted files/database.
2. Upload the backed-up files again.
3. Import the saved database.
4. Update wp-config.php if database name/user changed.

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5. How to Fix Elementor Keeps Loading and Not Opening?

Elementor needs the REST API (/wp-json/...) to work. If it keeps loading:

1. Go to Settings → Permalinks → Save Changes (flush rewrite rules).
2. Ensure .htaccess has WordPress default rules:

# BEGIN WordPress
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index\.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
# END WordPress

1. Update Elementor to the latest version.
2. Clear cache (plugin + hosting).
3. If issue persists → disable all plugins except Elementor → test → re-enable one by one.

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6. What to Do When You Forget WordPress Login?

If you lose your WordPress login after migration:

• Find Username/Email: In phpMyAdmin → wp_users.
• Reset Password: Edit user_pass field → enter new password → select MD5 encryption.
• Create a New Admin User (SQL):

INSERT INTO wp_users (user_login, user_pass, user_email, user_registered)
VALUES ('newadmin', MD5('StrongPass123'), 'admin@newdomain.com', NOW());

INSERT INTO wp_usermeta (user_id, meta_key, meta_value)
VALUES ((SELECT ID FROM wp_users WHERE user_login='newadmin'),
'wp_capabilities', 'a:1:{s:13:"administrator";b:1;}');

7. How to Fix SSL / HTTPS Errors After Migration?

If some resources show ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR:

• Install SSL in your hosting panel.
• Set siteurl and home to https://.
• Use Really Simple SSL plugin (optional).
• Run search-replace for http:// → https://.

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8. How to Prevent Issues in Future Migrations?

To avoid downtime and errors in the future:

✅ Always take backup of files + database.
✅ Update wp-config.php properly.
✅ Update siteurl and home immediately.
✅ Run search-replace for old domain references.
✅ Save permalinks after migration (fixes REST API).
✅ Install SSL before making site live.
✅ Test Elementor editor and admin login before launch.

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Final Thoughts

Migrating WordPress doesn’t have to be stressful. By following this step-by-step migration guide, you can handle backups, restores, redirects, login problems, SSL errors, and Elementor loading issues with ease.

Keeping a simple checklist ensures your website migration will always be smooth, secure, and error-free.