ClassicPress Homage Site Updates

You might have noted that this website now redirects to a new domain. From its original site amar.link/classicpress, the new “home” for this site has moved. Read on to learn the reasons behind this move.

Introduction

In the ever-evolving landscape of web hosting and site management, sometimes a move becomes necessary – not just desirable. This note shares my journey of migrating a ClassicPress installation from a subfolder on shared hosting amar.link/classicpress to a dedicated subdomain on a VPS (cpress.amarvyas.in). If you’re considering a similar migration, my experience might help you navigate potential pitfalls and achieve a smoother transition.

Image: Site Migration Journey

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Why I Decided to Migrate

The decision to migrate wasn’t taken lightly. After careful consideration, several factors convinced me it was the right move:

Consolidation and Control: I wanted to bring my various web properties under more unified management while gaining greater control over server configuration and optimization opportunities.

Reliability Concerns: My previous host, Hostslick (based in the Netherlands), triggered far too many downtime alerts in my Uptime Monitor. Whether these alerts were entirely accurate became less relevant than the anxiety they caused. I faced a choice: disable the alerts (defeating their purpose) or move to a more reliable host.

Architecture Improvement: Moving from a subfolder structure (amar.link/classicpress) to a subdomain approach (cpress.amarvyas.in) offered cleaner separation and better resource management.

Performance Optimization: A VPS offers significantly better performance potential than shared hosting, especially for a content-heavy ClassicPress site.

Image: Downtime Alerts

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How I Did It: The Migration Process

The migration process was relatively straightforward, though not without challenges:

1. Backup Creation: I used UpdraftPlus (free version) to create a complete backup of my site, including database and files.
2. Destination Setup: I prepared the new environment on my VPS, ensuring PHP and database requirements were met. I noticed the source site used PHP 8.2 while the destination ran 8.3.20.
3. Restore Process: After transferring the backup, I restored it to the new location with UpdraftPlus.
4. Search and Replace: I answered “Yes” to UpdraftPlus’s critical question about performing search and replace on the database, which changed all instances of https://amar.link/classicpress to https://cpress.amarvyas.in.
5. Configuration Updates: I updated the wp-config.php file to include proper site URL definitions:

   define('WP_HOME', 'https://cpress.amarvyas.in');
   define('WP_SITEURL', 'https://cpress.amarvyas.in');

6. DNS and Cloudflare Setup: I configured the necessary DNS records and Cloudflare settings for the new subdomain.

Image: Migration Steps

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Challenges and Solutions

Like many migrations, this one came with its share of obstacles:

Cloudflare Redirect Issues: Initially, attempts to access the admin area resulted in redirect loops and 502 errors. I had to carefully configure Cloudflare’s SSL/TLS settings and ensure proper redirect handling.

Admin Access Problems: After migration, I couldn’t access the wp-admin area due to the LiteSpeed Cache plugin (a remnant from shared hosting). The solution was to disable this plugin using WP-CLI:

wp plugin deactivate litespeed-cache --path=/path/to/site

Database URL Updates: Despite the initial search and replace, some URLs remained pointing to the old location. I used Better Search Replace plugin to thoroughly update all instances.

Image: Troubleshooting Process

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The Way Forward

Now that the migration is complete, several follow-up tasks remain:

1. Broken Link Audit: Running a comprehensive check for broken links and images across the site.
2. Content Updates: Using this opportunity to refresh and update content for some of the older posts.
3. Performance Tuning: Leveraging the VPS environment to optimize performance beyond what was possible on shared hosting.
4. Security Hardening: Implementing additional security measures available in the VPS environment.

As of May 2025, the newest ClassicPress version is 2.4.1, and my site is now running smoothly on this version.

Advice for Your Own Migration

If you’re planning a similar migration, here are my key takeaways:

1. Always Use a Backup Plugin: UpdraftPlus worked well for me, but ensure your choice handles the full migration process properly.
2. Research Potential Pitfalls: Understanding common issues (like redirect problems and plugin compatibility) before you begin saves significant troubleshooting time.
3. Have Command Line Access Ready: Tools like WP-CLI can be lifesavers when a problematic plugin prevents admin access.
4. Plan for Downtime: Schedule your migration during a low-traffic period and have a maintenance page ready.
5. Triple-Check Your Search/Replace: Database URL updates are the most critical part of any migration – verify they’ve been applied correctly.

Useful Resources

• Duplicator Pro Plugin – A premium alternative for site migrations
• WP-CLI Documentation – Essential for command-line management of WordPress/ClassicPress
• Cloudflare Workers Documentation – For setting up complex redirects
• Better Search Replace Plugin – For thorough database URL updates
• ClassicPress Documentation – Official ClassicPress resources
• Moz’s Complete Website Migration Guide – Comprehensive migration checklist with SEO focus

Summary

English

Moving my ClassicPress site from a shared hosting subfolder to a VPS subdomain improved reliability, performance, and management flexibility. Though challenges with Cloudflare redirects and plugin compatibility arose, these were resolved with careful configuration and WP-CLI. The migration has provided a foundation for better optimization and content management moving forward.

हिंदी

मेरी ClassicPress साइट को शेयर्ड होस्टिंग सबफोल्डर से VPS सबडोमेन पर स्थानांतरित करने से विश्वसनीयता, प्रदर्शन और प्रबंधन में लचीलापन में सुधार हुआ। हालांकि Cloudflare रीडायरेक्ट और प्लगइन संगतता के साथ चुनौतियां सामने आईं, सावधानीपूर्वक कॉन्फ़िगरेशन और WP-CLI के उपयोग से इन्हें हल किया गया। यह माइग्रेशन आगे बेहतर अनुकूलन और सामग्री प्रबंधन के लिए एक मजबूत आधार प्रदान करता है।

साइट की रचना मई 2024 में हुई थी और सितंबर 2024 में नई होस्टिंग प्रदाता पर स्थानांतरित हुई थी, जिसके परिणामस्वरूप कुछ सेटिंग्स में परिवर्तन आवश्यक हो गए थे।

Welcome to a New Season of ClassicPress Updates

Welcome to a new season, new sets of update to ClassicPress 2.1. I had not posted a new post on this blog for over three months. I thought this was a good opportunity to post a few random updates.

What is new in Update to ClassicPress 2.1

This site now runs on ClassicPress version 2.1.1, running child theme of GeneratePress. I will test out the default ClassicPress theme on this site in the coming days. If you are interested in checking out other themes for this awesome CMS, you can visit this link. In parallel, I am also catching up with the ClassicPress Forums. Any interesting posts- you will find in this post as and when it will be updated.