Knowledgebase

Step One: Purchase a cPanel account

1. Click here to view the cPanel packages we offer.

2. Select the package that you would like and proceed through the checkout process.

3. Enter your domain in the “Use an existing domain” field when prompted during checkout.
   

4. If you have a coupon code for your migration, enter the requested information on the payment screen.

5. After you check out and your account is processed, you will have access to CHI, WestHost’s new control panel.

Step Two: Download your website content from Site Manager to your local computer using FTP

FileZilla is a free, open-source application for transferring files. It allows you to download the content from your SiteManager account and upload it to your cPanel account.

Follow the steps below to download your files:

1. Download FileZilla from the following link: https://filezilla-project.org/download.php?show_all=1

2. Install the program on your computer.

3. Run FileZilla.

4. You will be using the Quickconnect feature in FileZilla as soon as the program opens. Fill in the following information at the top of the screen:

   1. Host: Enter [yourdomain.com] and replace [yourdomain.com] with your actual domain name or the IP Address of your Account.
   2. Username: Enter your SiteManager username.
   3. Password: Enter your SiteManager password.
   4. Port: Leave this field blank or enter 21.

5. After filling in the information, click “Quickconnect.”
   

6. FileZilla will then display the file directory for your computer in the left pane. The right pane will display the files from your website. The files from your website will be located in the “/var/www/html” file.

7. Create a place on your local computer to store your data (we recommend storing it in the downloads folder, but you can use any location), then drag the contents of the “/var/www/html” folder to the new file location.

Your website files are now stored on your local machine, and you are nearly ready to upload them to cPanel.

Step Three: Obtain your cPanel IP address

The next step is to obtain the IP address for your new cPanel hosting account. This will allow you to Quickconnect to your cPanel account via FileZilla and transfer the files you just downloaded. To obtain your cPanel IP address, follow the steps below:

1. Log into CHI by going to CHI.WestHost.com

2. Enter your username and password. You will obtain these after purchasing a cPanel hosting account.

3. After logging into CHI, click on the Shared Hosting tab on the left-hand side of your screen.
   

4. Click on your domain on the left side of your screen.

5. Click on the cPanel tab from the menu at the top of your screen.
   

6. On the right side of the cPanel interface, there is a “General Information” section. 

7. Look at the “Shared IP Address” or “Dedicated IP Address” section and note the IP address. You will need this IP address a few more times in this step, so make sure you keep it close by for reference.
   

Step Four: Upload your website files to your cPanel account using FileZilla

Now that you know the IP Address for your cPanel account, you are ready to connect to your new account via FileZilla and upload your website files. This process is similar to Step Two, but you will be transferring your files from your local machine to your cPanel account.

1. Open FileZilla.

2. Fill in the fields for the Quickconnect feature:

1. Host: Enter the IP Address obtained in Step Three.

2. Username: Enter your cPanel Username. This can be found in CHI under the main page of the Shared Hosting tab.

3. Password: Enter the cPanel/SSH/FTP password. This can be reset from within CHI)

4. Port: Leave this field blank.

3. Click “Quickconnect”.

4. In the left-hand pane, locate the files you previously downloaded to your local machine. Drag them to the “public_html” folder on the right side. FileZilla will then upload those files to the cPanel server.

Step Five: Test your website files

Now that you have migrated your files, it’s time to test the functionality of your website. Go to the temporary cPanel website and browse around to test the functionality of your site. You can access this site by opening a web browser and going to http://[IPaddress]/~[cPanelusername] - inserting the IP address you found in Step Three, and your cPanel username in the appropriate locations and removing the brackets.

Step Six: Update your DNS to point to cPanel

When you are satisfied with your website’s functionality in cPanel, you can then update your DNS to point to your new account. Follow the steps below to update your DNS:

1. In CHI, locate the “Domains” tab.
   

2. Choose the domain you are working with.
   

3. Click on the "DNS" tab from the menu at the top of the screen.
   

4. Enter the following information for Name Servers in the “Hostname” field:

1. Nameserver 1: DNS1.WESTHOST.COM

2. Nameserver 2: DNS2.WESTHOST.COM

3. Nameserver 3: DNS3.WESTHOST.COM

Once you have configured your DNS settings, your website will be live on the cPanel Server. Congratulations! You’ve successfully migrated your account from Site Manager to cPanel.