Ageing or end-of-life server
Infrastructure that has become hard to maintain, or an operating system too old to receive the updates and versions your applications need.
Migration and infrastructure takeover
Linux, VPS and Dedicated Server Migration
Changing servers, hosting providers or infrastructure? Axanti can prepare the new environment, transfer the websites, databases, email and configurations, then support the switchover to the new server.
The migration can land on Axanti infrastructure or on a server provided by another host.
Triggers
When is a server migration worth considering?
Six situations come up often. None of them forces a migration on its own: reviewing the environment is what tells whether moving is the right answer.
Not enough resources
CPU, memory, storage or performance that no longer match the real load of the website or the application.
Changing hosting provider
The need to leave the current provider without rebuilding the whole environment by hand, account by account and setting by setting.
Architecture change
Moving from shared hosting to a VPS, from a VPS to a dedicated server, or to an architecture different from the one in place today.
Environment hard to maintain
Outdated versions of PHP, MariaDB or MySQL, Apache or Nginx, DirectAdmin or cPanel, or application components that block updates.
Regaining control
Infrastructure whose current documentation or maintenance is no longer enough to work with confidence.
In some cases, fixing or upgrading the existing server costs less than a full move. We say so when that is the case.
Scope
What we can take care of
The exact scope of a migration always depends on reviewing the existing environment and the access available.
Websites and web applications
- ✓PHP
- ✓WordPress
- ✓WooCommerce
- ✓Custom web applications
- ✓Application files and directories
Databases
- ✓MariaDB
- ✓MySQL
- ✓Databases tied to the hosted applications
- ✓Email accounts
- ✓Mailboxes and their content
- ✓Service configuration on the server
- ✓Migration when the source and target environments allow it
DNS and certificates
- ✓Preparing the DNS changes
- ✓Coordinating the switchover
- ✓SSL certificates
- ✓Validation after the change
Control panels
- ✓DirectAdmin
- ✓cPanel
- ✓Servers without a panel when the environment allows the work
Server configuration
- ✓PHP and PHP-FPM
- ✓Apache
- ✓Nginx
- ✓MariaDB and MySQL
- ✓Cron jobs
- ✓Settings the websites and applications depend on
Control panels
DirectAdmin, cPanel or plain Linux server migration
The method depends mostly on what runs on the source server and on what the target server can receive: the same panel, a different panel, or no panel at all.
For cPanel, migration remains possible depending on access, versions and the services in place. Axanti is neither an official partner nor a reseller of these panels: we simply administer them.
A DirectAdmin migration usually covers
- ✓Accounts and websites
- ✓Databases
- ✓DNS zones
- ✓PHP versions
- ✓CustomBuild
- ✓Specific configurations
- ✓Backups and restores
- ✓Additional synchronization when needed
Method
A migration prepared before the switchover
The new environment is built and tested while the old one keeps serving. The switchover only comes afterwards, once everything that could be checked in advance has been validated.
01
Review of the existing server
Operating system, versions, websites and applications, databases, DNS, email, dependencies, control panel if any, disk space and specific constraints.
02
Preparing the target server
Installing and configuring the environment needed to receive everything that was inventoried.
03
Backup and first copy
Backups, then transfers suited to the environment, without touching the server still in production.
04
Validation before switchover
Testing, as far as possible, the websites, the applications, the databases, the required services, the certificates and the configuration.
05
Final sync and switchover
The last useful synchronization, then the DNS change or the appropriate switchover. The exact procedure depends on the project and is planned with you.
06
Post-migration checks
Reviewing how the new environment behaves and fixing the migration-related problems spotted during validation.
Downtime
Reducing downtime without making unrealistic promises
Depending on the environment, a first copy can be made before the switchover, followed by a final synchronization. That approach can shorten the window during which data or services have to be frozen.
The duration and the method depend on the amount of data, the databases, the email service, DNS and how compatible the servers are. That is why we do not promise a migration without interruption: we work to shorten it and we tell you what to expect.
What drives the duration
- ✓The amount of data to transfer
- ✓The databases and how active they are
- ✓The email service
- ✓DNS records and their propagation delays
- ✓Compatibility between the source and the target server
Independent managed services
You do not have to migrate to Axanti
Axanti can handle a migration between two infrastructures belonging to other providers, when the access and the environments allow it.
The migration service stands on its own; it is not a pretext to move your hosting. It follows the same principle as our system administration work: we operate on the infrastructure you chose.
- ✓Keep your current hosting provider
- ✓Move to another provider
- ✓Migrate onto Axanti infrastructure
- ✓Ask for the technical work only
Target server
Do you also need the new server?
If the target server does not exist yet, Axanti can provide and prepare it before the migration. The choice is made according to the real load and the needs of the project.
Managed VPS
For most websites and applications that have outgrown shared hosting without needing a full machine.
Managed VPSManaged dedicated server
For environments that need more power, storage or isolation than a VPS can offer.
Managed dedicated servers
Rescue
Is a migration already under way causing trouble?
A half-finished migration is a common situation, and it is diagnosed like any other incident: by comparing what the old server does with what the new one does.
We can review the real state of both environments and set out what is left to do. Not every migration can be salvaged as it stands: sometimes redoing one step cleanly costs less than patching what is there.
Common symptoms
- ✓Some websites work, others do not
- ✓The databases return errors
- ✓PHP or its extensions differ between the two servers
- ✓DNS records point to different environments
- ✓Email is not behaving
- ✓DirectAdmin or cPanel was not reproduced correctly
- ✓An application runs on the old server but not on the new one
Who it is for
Who hands us a migration
SMBs and organizations
That have to change servers but have no in-house Linux administrator to prepare and run the operation.
Web agencies
That need to move client websites without taking on the whole infrastructure and the switchover themselves.
Developers
Who would rather hand over the server side while they focus on the application and how it behaves.
Companies with several websites
That have to coordinate a migration covering several domains, databases or email accounts.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about server migration
The questions most often asked before handing a server move over to Axanti.
Can you migrate a server that is not hosted with Axanti?
Yes, when the access and the environments allow it. A migration can run between two infrastructures belonging to other providers, from another host to Axanti, or from Axanti to another host.
Can you migrate a DirectAdmin server?
Yes. A DirectAdmin migration can cover accounts, websites, databases, email, DNS, PHP versions, CustomBuild configuration and the particularities of the server. The method depends on the versions in place on the source and target servers.
Can you migrate a cPanel server?
Yes, depending on the environment. Migrations from or to cPanel are possible when the access, the versions and the services in place allow it. The preliminary analysis determines the applicable method and its limits.
Does a server migration cause downtime?
That has to be assessed for each environment. We work to reduce the interruption, and many migrations allow a first copy followed by a final synchronization before the switchover. We cannot guarantee zero interruption without first reviewing the server, the databases, the email and the DNS.
Can you migrate websites, databases and email?
Yes, as far as the source and target environments allow: web files and applications, MariaDB or MySQL databases, email accounts and mailboxes, DNS and certificates. The exact scope is set after reviewing what is in place.
Do I have to change hosting providers to use your migration service?
No. You can keep your current host, move to another provider or migrate to Axanti. You can also ask for the technical work only, without changing anything in your hosting relationship.
Can you provide the new VPS or dedicated server?
Yes. When the target server does not exist yet, Axanti can provide and prepare a managed VPS or a managed dedicated server, then carry out the migration onto it.
What is needed before a migration can start?
Access to the source and target servers, the list of domains, websites and applications involved, DNS access, and information about the email and the databases. The preliminary analysis then fills in whatever is missing before the work is planned.
Are you planning a server change?
Tell us about the current environment, the target server and what has to move. We can then determine the appropriate migration method.