How to Move/Copy a Joomla! Website
Table of Contents
Create the destination folder (if it does not exist)
The first step in moving or copying your website to a new location is to create the desired destination directory. You can do that via File Manager or via FTP.
Copy the files
Once the destination folder is created, copy the website’s files in it. Again you can do that via File manager or via a FTP client. Copy all files from the Joomla! website’s document root to the destination folder. Make sure that you do not forget the .htaccess file which is hidden and might not be visible.
Copy the database
Now you need to export the original website’s database. If you are not sure what is the database name, you can look it up in the configuration.php file, which is located in the document root folder of your Joomla!. To export it follow the instructions here. After you have your data exported, create a new database and import the contents of the backup in it.
Reconfigure Joomla! to work from the new location and with the new database
The final step is to adjust the core settings which are defined in the configuration.php file. Go to Site Tools -> File Manager and open the configuration.php file for editing.
Below are the main variables you need to adjust:
public $user = 'mysqluser';
public $password ='your_mysqlusername_password';
public $db = 'mysqldatabase';
public $log_path = '/home/customer/www/yourdomainname.com/public_html/newfolderlog';
public $tmp_path = '/home/customer/www/yourdomainname.com/public_html/newfoldertmp';Replace mysqluser with the MySQL username you have created during the database setup process mentioned above. This also applies for the password of this username and for the database name. Replace yourdomainname.com with your actual domain name.
If you have performed the steps correctly you should be able to access the copied website with your browser now.