Website Ownership - Part 2

As the host company and the person you are buying from can be located anywhere in the world, it is always good for you to have your own copy of everything when securing website ownership! I personally make a few copies, as you wouldn't want to lose that important information.

Now, the good thing is that most of these files can either be downloaded or emailed. As some sites are quite large, you may want to consider using a 'file flyer' style website to temporarily store the files and allow you to download them. Another option is to use a program like Filezilla. For this, the present owner needs to grant you access to the site and give you a password. Once you have the details, you can log straight into the website and download EVERYTHING directly onto your PC (be sure to remember to back this up).

However, things like Facebook pages, Blogs etc often can't be transferred. What you can do in this situation is to ask the owner to copy all articles and pictures for you, then to remove them from the web. Once they are removed, you can create your own blog pages and Facebook page. That said, sometimes (owner permitting), it is better to leave them as they are ... especially if they are very popular.

As we covered in the previous article of this series, the domain name can be 'pushed' to the new owners account. With this, once you have the website files, you can upload them to your new host (assuming that you are moving the host). You will then need to change your domain names settings, altering the DNS settings to point to where your new website is hosted. Often the hosting company will give you these details as a file-server name or IP address. However, if you have hosting and domain registration in the same place, you should find they can update these automatically for you.

You now have the files, have managed to setup the domain and transferred/keep active any related pages/blogs. However, you also need to get any related databases, licenses and applications that are used in the operation of the website to really complete your website ownership. So ask the owner what can be transferred and if there are any licenses you need to purchase yourself.

Assuming that you are purchasing a website and moving it to a different host company you would follow this sequence:

1. Transfer the domain name (obtaining full control).
2. Obtain via email, or download (via Filezilla), all the Website files - while preserving the complete structure and folders.
3. Obtain copies of any associated applications, databases and other configuration files.
4. Ask the seller to send any paper/electronic manuals, lists (contacts), instructions, usernames and passwords.
5. Upload all files to the new host ( like Godaddy.com, 123-reg.co.uk etc), keeping all the files exactly as you downloaded them (kept in the right locations). Your new host company should have a step-by-step guide for this. However, make sure this is completed before the website seller deletes the files from the old host/ location. This way, when the upload is complete, you can point your domain to the new host location and your websites 'down-time' will be less (or zero if you are lucky).
6. Change the domain registrars DNS settings (name servers) to point at the new host location (your host company should provide you with these details). This is now the new location for your website, but this will not be noticed by your visitors who should get the same experience and service as they had before.
7. Once transferred, test the website and all links to make sure that everything is still working as it was.
8. Make a coffee or poor yourself a drink, you deserve a BREAK!

I really hope this guide helps with website ownership and to save some people the headaches that I went through trying to learn what to do. If you have and suggestions, feedback, or updated information, then please leave a comment below.

Related hubs in this series and associated with websites are:

Series:

My First Time ... Buying a Website

How to Buy Websites Online

Website Ownership - Part 1

Websites:

Why not Big Up your Blog? Create some Backlinks!

Boost your Website/Blog - Create some Backlinks Daily

Submit your Blog to Search Engines! For More Readers!

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