Upload a Single Site to a Multisite

WordPress is one of the most flexible platforms on the market. The Content Management System (CMS) provides the backbone for a number of websites and networks. In fact, WordPress Multisite – a way to network installations – powers WordPress.com. Information technology'south a testament to the power behind the platform. Though, in some cases, you'll want to migrate your WordPress Multisite installation to a single site. This can prove challenging in some areas.

For starters, you'll demand to have a unlike approach to working with your Multisite installation, as in that location are some core differences under the hood. Though, once you take a procedure down, yous'll be able to transfer your site in a no-fuss and painless mode.

In this article, nosotros're going to testify you how to move a WordPress Multisite install to a single site. Earlier nosotros practise this, permit'south offer a quick overview of what WordPress Multisite is and does.

A Primer On WordPress Multisite

For the unaware, WordPress Multisite is a fashion to create a network multiple installations. While each site is individual and separate from the balance, they all utilise the aforementioned cadre installation files. In some cases, sites will too share themes and plugins.

The core difference hither – and we'll get into this a trivial more in the next section – is that each site is akin to a virtual copy of the primary installation. This ways there won't be a directory for each site equally at that place is for unmarried WordPress sites. Instead, each site gets a media uploads folder and a separate table in the database.

For a real-world example of what WordPress Multisite is capable of, consider WordPress.com:

This is (of course) a huge network of WordPress websites, and helps give the CMS the distinction of being the most popular platform for publishing websites. Regardless, moving away from a WordPress Multisite network to a unmarried installation is more than involved than simple site migration.

Why a Multisite Conversion Is More Circuitous Than Standard Site Migration

Although both WordPress Mutisite and single sites use the aforementioned base files – at that place'south no fundamental difference between the two – you'll have to plan if you lot wish to have your site out of the network.

In that location are lots of benefits of running a Multisite network, such equally efficiency and productivity, but these won't thing if you need to 'free' your site and permit it fly the nest. Instead, you'll desire to think almost how to move your site, for the post-obit reasons:

• Your site doesn't shop cadre files in its own directory. Instead, it's a centralized organization, with your site interim equally a virtual copy of sorts.
• By extension, themes and plugins also live in a cardinal uploads folder. While sites on the network can use the theme in theory, yous can't upward sticks and take those assets with you.
• Most of your site's data uses a specific database table as storage. This is good in some cases, but if you aren't able to access the database root, you won't accept much flexibility.
• User accounts work in a dissimilar way likewise. Each account is global, in that given the right permissions, a user could access every site on the network. Because of this, you can't export a listing of users and import them as you would a single site installation.

In some other context, all of these points could exist benefits of using WordPress Multisite. The good news is that these apparent drawbacks can exist straightforward to overcome.

How to Convert a WordPress Multisite to a Single Site

The steps to convert your site from a WordPress Multisite installation differ in places from other migration workflows. Here are the steps we're going to embrace in this one:

• Carry out the migration of your site.
• Export and motility your users to your unmarried site installation.
• Switch your domain name over to your new site.
• Bear out some terminal steps to stop the migration.

Information technology doesn't seem complex, but there are multiple instances throughout where you'll demand to make important decisions and think well-nigh what y'all're doing. We'll cover all of this, starting with the migration itself.

one. Migrate the WordPress Multisite Example to A Single Install

The first decision you'll need to make is how yous'll migrate your site away from WordPress Multisite. While yous'll find WordPress plugins to assist you, there will still be a portion of the process that needs your input. Because of this, we think a manual approach is the best.

Though, if you accept Duplicator Pro or a similar premium migration tool on both sites, this is a straightforward fashion to convert your site. With this road, you'll still need to follow the steps for moving users to your single install though.

There are three elements to copy over from WordPress Multisite to your single install:

• The database tables related to your site.
• Your theme and plugin files.
• The uploads binder for your media.

If y'all created your site before WordPress 3.5, your uploads will be in a dissimilar folder (although we'll explicate this in a few minutes).

We recommend conveying out a full and clean backup of your site, because of the involved procedure. In one case you accept this in place, head to the WordPress dashboard, to the Network Admin > Sites screen:

This will evidence you a list of all sites on the network. While you won't see information technology on screen, you'll need to find the ID of your site. This volition help you later, when you brainstorm to dig into your database structure.

The fastest mode to find the ID is to hover over each site in the list, and look to your status bar at the bottom of your browser window:

Yous'll want to note this downwards for afterward. The adjacent stride is to migrate your site's assets.

Drift Themes, Plugins, and Uploads

Nosotros're working inside a local environment for this tutorial, and we recommend taking the Multisite example onto your calculator first to make sure it works. While we won't employ information technology in this article, yous might demand to utilize Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to bring sure files out from your installation.

Regardless, y'all'll want to grab the wp-content/plugins folder from your fresh fill-in or current site, and upload this to your new site. In almost cases, you can elevate and drop the binder onto your new site's installation. Also, do this with your themes too. It'southward the aforementioned process as plugins, but you'll desire to work with the wp-content/themes folder.

For your site's media, you'll want to utilize the ID from earlier to find your website within the Multisite network's wp-content/uploads/sites folder. This tin can be a bit of a maze, because there may exist multiple versions of some assets and structures.

In our example, the site we want to work with uses an ID of "three". As such, the path will be wp-content/uploads/sites/3:

For older versions of WordPress (pre 3.5), you desire to look for the blogs.dir folder. This volition contain a [id]/files sub-folder, and within yous'll detect the media assets.

As before, copy and paste this uploads binder to your unmarried site. Recollect, you don't use a sites folder, and the files and folders within your Multisite instance should get into the top-level directory (i.e. wp-content/uploads).

From hither, your files and folders are in place. Next, we take to port over your database.

Excerpt Your Site's Database

Before yous brainstorm this next stride, make sure that yous have a total grounding on how to piece of work with your WordPress database. If information technology's a new interface, you'll find it straightforward one time y'all have a handle on the basics.

Annotation that you may have a choice of database managing director here – in our case, it's Adminer although phpMyAdmin is also popular. The process will be similar plenty for both solutions.

You'll notice that a Multisite database has lots of tables – a fix for each site in the network – and they incorporate the ID into the proper name. In this case, nosotros're looking for a wp_3_ prefix. To find these tables, click the Export link in Adminer.

For phpMyAdmin, you lot can select the tables from the listing, and choose Consign from the With selected: drop-downward menu. On the next screen, choose the Quick option and click Go.

If you're using Adminer, you'll come to a selection screen. Hither, select all of the relevant tables, choose save as the output, click Export:

In both cases, this volition download a file to your reckoner. The next task is to edit information technology.

Edit Your Database SQL File

For this stride, you'll want to use your favorite code editor, every bit this volition make the task easier. First, indistinguishable the SQL file and give information technology a descriptive proper noun. Often, you lot can append "re-create" to the file. Once you lot open information technology, you should look for whatsoever link that references your Multisite instance, and change information technology to your new site's URL:

You should do the same with whatever instance of wp_[id]. Hither, you tin change the prefix to wp_. One time you do both of these, relieve your file and get ready to import information technology into your new WordPress installation.

Import the Database to Your New Site

The process to import your database is similar to exporting it, with ane exception: Yous'll need to 'drop' the tables from your new site (other than wp_users and wp_usermeta). In other words, delete them. To practise this, log into your new site's database, select all of the tables, and find the Drop option. With phpMyAdmin, it will be within the With selected: drop-downwardly menu. For Adminer, information technology's at the bottom of the screen:

Next, click the Import link or tab:

From the dialog, choose your amended SQL file, and so click to begin the procedure. You may need to exit this running for a while, only once you get a confirmation, you can move onto migrating your users.

2. Move Your Users From the Multisite to Single Install

The bad news is that the database doesn't divide the users for each site on the network. Because of this, you'll often desire to drift users 1-by-one. This could be tedious though, which means a plugin selection could be better. The Import Export WordPress Users plugin is ideal for the task:

The process is as follows:

• Install the plugin on both your new site and the Multisite case.
• Access the Users > User Import Export page on the Multisite instance.
• Click the Consign Users push button to download a CSV file of your users.
• Navigate to your new site, and head to the Users > User Import Export page.
• On the User/Customer Import tab, select your CSV file, and click to begin the upload procedure.

In one case the upload is consummate, y'all tin remove both plugins. This is a bang-up solution if yous accept lots (i.e. a prohibitive amount) of users to migrate over. Earlier you can call the migration washed, there'due south 1 more major step to go.

3. Switch Your Domain Name from WordPress Multisite to a Single Install

Before you wrap upward, you'll want to make certain that your domain proper noun points to the right site. In that location are a couple of situations to note hither:

• You may have used domain mapping for your Multisite instance. In simple terms, while your site uses a subdomain or subdirectory, you could map a Peak-Level Domain (TLD) – such equally example.com – to it.
• If y'all used the subdomain and subdirectory URL as your main web address, you have an easier time. This is because the process of mapping a new domain is the same as it is for existing sites.

Regardless, you'll desire to brand sure that your new WordPress website points to the right domain. To check this, caput to the Settings > General folio within your new site'south dashboard, and look at the WordPress Address (URL) and Site Address (URL) fields:

These should be explicit: If right, both will accept the total URL of your site. If not, brand the necessary changes, and save them.

4. Finalize the Site Migration

There are a few actress 'clean-up' steps to bear out before you can call this job a twenty-four hour period. In most cases, this involves monitoring your site for changes:

• First, clear your browser enshroud to make certain you lot don't run across details from the one-time site.
• Next, log into your new site and check that everything is working every bit it should exist, such as links.
• Push your local site to your alive server if necessary.
• Delete your site from the Multisite network. You lot can do this through the Network Admin screen, like to calculation a new site.

From here, you'll have to move users across to your new site, and switch your domain over. Let's give you the details on how to do this next.

Wrapping Up

If you lot desire to spend more than time running your site rather than carrying out administrative tasks, a WordPress Multisite installation is a great mode to fix your network up. Though, despite the number of benefits, getting your site out of the network can be a drag.

In this mail service, we've given yous the steps you demand to carry out a make clean migration from WordPress Multisite to a unmarried install. Your process isn't the same due to the core setup of a WordPress Multisite installation. Fifty-fifty and then, with some planning and forethought, you tin achieve your goals.

Do you want to motion from WordPress Multisite to a single site installation, and if so, what are your reasons? Let us know in the comments section below!

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