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WordPress

Hired WP freelancer to design and needs to use/transfer the design to my website...HELP me please....

I hired someone to redesign my old website. Everything is good and I want to make it live. I don't want my freelancer to get access on my hosting account. I want to do it myself.

I started tutorials of wordpress and know how to create a website. But I don't exactly know how the design made by a freelancer will become my website.

I only know that I have to download Filezilla and upload the files my freelancer provided me.

Hope someone helps me. I'll appreciate it a lot!

Shawn Flanigan
Shawn Flanigan
Courses Plus Student 15,815 Points

Ellis,

The answer could get pretty complicated, but I can try to point you to some good resources. A few things to help me understand the situation:

Are you hoping to use WordPress to edit your content?

What kind of files did the freelancer hand off to you? Are they just design comps? HTML and CSS files? Did they already create a WordPress site for you on another server?

Hi Shawn,

Yes, I am hoping to use WordPress to edit my content. My freelancer used WP to design. She sent me all necessary files. All I need to do now is to upload it but I don't know how to do it.

Please help me.. THanks a lot!

3 Answers

Shawn Flanigan
PLUS
Shawn Flanigan
Courses Plus Student 15,815 Points

There are a few different ways you can go about this...but it's not going to be easy for your first time setting up a site on a web host. Please note that this is a fairly complicated process, and these are just quick lists I've put together to give you an idea of what you'll likely have to do. They're not meant to be exhaustive step-by-step instructions.

Option 1

  • Export your existing WordPress table from your testing database to an SQL file.</li>
  • Set up a new database and user on your web host.
  • Import your SQL file.
  • Edit the settings in your new database to match your domain.
  • Transfer all of your files into your public_html directory on your web host (either through ftp or by zipping your files and uploading/unzipping them through your host's cpanel).
  • Edit the wp-config.php file to establish a connection to your new database.
  • Comb through your templates and css files to make sure there are no absolute links to your testing server.
  • Activate any necessary plugins.
  • Cross your fingers.

Option 2

  • Use WordPress's Import/Export tool to export your test site's content.
  • Your web host probably has a quick-install option (something like Simple Scripts or Mojo Marketplace) for WordPress...allowing you to quickly and easily create a new WordPress installation at your domain. This will take care of creating the database and editing the wp-config.php file for you. Use it.
  • Use WordPress's Import/Export tool to import your site's content.
  • Transfer your theme files to the public_html/wp-content/themes directory on your web host (either through ftp or by zipping your files and uploading/unzipping them through your host's cpanel).
  • Comb through your templates and css files to make sure there are no absolute links to your testing server.
  • Install and activate any necessary plugins.
  • Cross your fingers.

Option 3

  • Pay your freelancer to do it for you and change your passwords when he/she is done.

In general, Option 1 will work better than Option 2 most of the time, if you're comfortable setting up a database & user. Option 2 will be quite a bit easier, but doesn't always work as well...depending on how the theme is set up. Option 3 will likely save you a lot of time and frustration...but will cost you a few bucks and you won't have the joy of pushing your own site live. Use this option if you need it done right away...then take the time to learn all of the necessary steps at your own pace.

After typing all of this up, I did a quick Google search and found a bit about Moving WordPress to a new host in the WordPress Codex. It's much more detailed. You'll want to follow the steps under the heading Changing Your Domain Name and URLs.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

You are so awesome! Thank you for taking time to share the steps/information with me. I've researched many times in youtube, google, and codex.wordpress.org. The process is complicated for a starter like me. I think I will go on the third Option since my freelancer is too nice to upload it free of charge (I will give her bonus for that).

My boss registered his domain at godaddy.com and this morning, I found out that he doesnt have hosting plan on that site. Our old website is still live in the internet. I talked to our outsource IT who managed our old website and ask for the hosting account to access the cPanel.

He said that the info is in the website. He didnt give me the information I need. He said www points to his server. So, I put /cpanel at the end of the website but it didnt work.

Correct me if I am wrong:

I need to log in to a hosting account to manage the cpanel and that cPanel log in is what my freelancer needed to upload my new web design, correct?

Shawn Flanigan
Shawn Flanigan
Courses Plus Student 15,815 Points

Ellis,

You're correct that you'll need to log in to your hosting account to manage your files and databases.

cPanel is just one interface for doing a bunch of common tasks associated with managing your website (like managing files, setting up email, creating/editing databases, etc). While it's popular with many of the large shared-hosting services, it requires a commercial license, so if an individual or small IT company is hosting your site it's possible that he's not running cPanel. There are a lot of alternatives, and some hosts might not have a graphical interface for their clients at all...you may be restricted to using ftp to manage your files. If this is the case, you may not be able to set up your own databases and database users, which is required for a WordPress installation.

I would advise you to put your freelancer in contact with this IT guy, as she should know exactly what questions to ask.

If your current host isn't able to give you the information you need...or you're unable to set up the site the way you want to...you can always move to a new host! There are plenty of cheap hosting services out there...no need to hassle with one that refuses to be helpful.

Ricky Catron
Ricky Catron
13,023 Points

You will need to put your hosting credentials into filezilla such as the host URL (whatever url you are supposed to upload to NOT your domain name, your username, and your password).

Then you need to copy the files you recieved from your freelancer into the correct directory on your host account. I don't know how your hosting works so I am unsure what directory this would be.

My advice would be to have someone who has done this before work with you or go over the treehouse videos covering this topic. Maybe even call the support at your hosting company if it doesn't work.

Thank you for your advice. I think I may need to watch some tutorials and call hosting support if I don't get it.