Table of Contents
Migrate Guru – Migrate & Clone WordPress free
Migrating or cloning a WordPress site can be a daunting task, especially for beginners. However, with the Migrate Guru plugin, you can easily migrate and clone WordPress sites for free without any technical knowledge. This plugin allows you to quickly copy your existing WordPress site including all its data and files to a new location.
What is Migrate Guru?
Migrate Guru is a free WordPress plugin that provides an easy way to migrate or clone your WordPress site from one place to another. It copies all your site data, media files, plugins and themes to the new location with just a few clicks. This enables you to easily duplicate, backup, move or test your WordPress site.
- Some key features of Migrate Guru include:
- Migrate WordPress sites with one click
- Works on most web hosts and servers
- Copies all your site data, plugins, themes and files
- Allows creating a backup copy of your site
- Easy to use even for beginners
Why Migrate or Clone a WordPress Site?
Here are some common reasons you may want to migrate or clone your WordPress site:
Move to a new host or server – If you’re switching web hosts or servers, Migrate Guru makes it easy to move your site and all its data.
Create a staging site – Migrate your production site to a staging environment for testing changes without affecting your live site.
Backup your site – Create a full backup copy by migrating your site to a subdomain or subdirectory on the same server.
Duplicate your site – Clone your site to develop multiple sites with the same base code and content.
Step-by-Step Guide to Migrating WordPress with Migrate Guru
Migrating your WordPress site using Migrate Guru only takes a few simple steps:
- Install and activate the Migrate Guru plugin on both your current site and the new site location.
- On your current site, go to Tools > Migrate Guru and select ‘Export’.
- Check the box next to ‘Select All’ and choose ‘Export to File’. This will create a backup file containing your site data.
- Log in to your new WordPress site location and go to Tools > Migrate Guru.
- Select ‘Import’ and upload the backup file downloaded from your current site.
- Click ‘Import’ and Migrate Guru will now copy all your site data to the new location.
Once the migration finishes, check that everything has copied properly before deleting your old site or putting the new site live. The whole process usually only takes a few minutes even for large, complex sites.
Step-by-Step Guide to Cloning a WordPress Site with Migrate Guru
You can also use Migrate Guru to easily create a clone or staging copy of your WordPress site with the following steps:
- Install and activate Migrate Guru on your current site.
- Go to Tools > Migrate Guru and select ‘Export’.
- Check ‘Select All’ and choose ‘Export to File’.
- Create a new WordPress site for your clone/staging site. This just needs the WordPress files installed, no content yet.
- Install and activate Migrate Guru on this new site.
- Go to Tools > Migrate Guru and select ‘Import’.
- Upload the backup file from step 3 to import everything onto your new clone/staging site.
The clone site will now look identical to your original site for testing or development purposes. Any changes made on the staging site do not affect your current live site.
Migrate Guru vs Duplicator – Which is Better?
Like Migrate Guru, Duplicator is another popular WordPress migration and cloning plugin. So which one should you use?
Migrate Guru is simpler and easier to use. It gives you one-click site migration and cloning with very little technical knowledge needed. Everything is migrated, unlike Duplicator which sometimes misses data or requires manual fixes.
However, Duplicator offers more advanced customization options for skilled developers. It allows you to adjust certain settings and parameters during the migration process.
In summary:
Migrate Guru – Simpler to use, fully automated, best for beginners.
Duplicator – More advanced features and customization but can be more complex.
So Migrate Guru is likely the better option for most average users for hassle-free WordPress site migration and cloning.
Limitations of Migrate Guru
While Migrate Guru makes WordPress migrations easy, there are some limitations to be aware of:
- Very large sites may fail to migrate properly due to server restrictions. Typically sites with over 50GB of files can have issues.
- Server configurations can disrupt the migration – e.g. if MySQL or PHP versions are different.
- Migrate Guru copies everything in the standard WordPress folders. Any files outside of wp-content, wp-admin etc will not be copied over.
- The plugin can encounter database errors in some rare cases where data causes conflicts during migration.
So it’s still important to have your own regular WordPress backups as well as testing Migrate Guru before deleting your original site after migration.
Common Migrate Guru Error Messages and Fixes
Some common error messages you may encounter with Migrate Guru include:
- Import file could not be opened – Usually means the backup zip file is invalid or corrupted. Try re-exporting and reuploading.
- MySQL returned error – Likely a server issue due to different MySQL versions or configs. Contact your host for assistance.
- WP Error: Upgrade manully – Occurs when site URL is unchanged but WordPress core versions are different. Manually run the WordPress updater.
- Step X of Y failed – A data import failure part way through the process. Use error details to troubleshoot problem area.
Always check the detailed error output in Migrate Guru for hints about any problems during migration.
Migrating vs Cloning a WordPress Site – What’s the Difference?
Migrating a WordPress site means moving your live site from its current location to a new domain, host, server or subfolder. Site visitors are redirected from old to new URL.
Cloning creates an identical copy of your site to a staging or development environment. Your main site stays live at the usual URL while you test changes safely on the clone site.
So think of cloning as making an internal copy solely for testing purposes. Migration moves the actual live site visitors see onto a new production server or domain.
Migrate WordPress Sites for Free with Migrate Guru
As you can see, Migrate Guru provides an incredibly simple way for both experts and novices to migrate or clone WordPress sites. By automatically copying all your site data, files, plugins and themes it enables you to seamlessly transition WordPress environments or create staging sites.
Being a free plugin means anyone can benefit from hassle-free WordPress migration. Just install, export from one site, import to another and you’ve migrated or cloned your site in minutes with no technical expertise required.
So download Migrate Guru and start migrating your WP sites today!
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Migrate Guru work with all WordPress hosts?
Yes, Migrate Guru works with all common WordPress hosting services including Bluehost, SiteGround, HostGator, GoDaddy etc. It may have issues with some restrictive specialty hosts.
What version of PHP & MySQL do I need?
Migrate Guru requires PHP 5.2+ and MySQL 5 on both current and new sites for seamless migration between different configs.
Can I migrate from WordPress.com website?
No, Migrate Guru does not work on WordPress.com sites since these are fully hosted by WordPress. It is designed for self-hosted sites where you have admin access.
What about migrating multisite networks?
Migrate Guru can be used to migrate individual sites within a WordPress multisite network. But full multisite network migration requires the paid Multisite Clone Duplicator plugin.
Does it migrate custom tables or external databases?
No, Migrate Guru migrates the standard WordPress database tables and files. Any custom tables or external databases connected to WordPress will not be included.
Conclusion
In closing, Migrate Guru is the ideal hassle-free migration and cloning solution for both advanced and novice WordPress users alike. It takes the pain out of migrating WordPress to a new domain, host or server by automatically copying everything seamlessly in a few clicks. Plus it enables safely creating a staging site clone for testing changes before going live.
Best of all, Migrate Guru delivers simple, effective WordPress migration 100% free forever. So install it on your site now and simplify your next WordPress site transition or clone.
ALSO READ: 50+ Best Blogging Niche Or Topics For Newbie Bloggers 2024
