Migrating to a New Server
Lifeboat allows the Server record to be edited so that, upon connecting to a new instance, most of the configuration is automatically transferred. However, some components require manual attention during the migration process:
1. Server Tools
Databases are not automatically installed. After Lifeboat has finished setting up the new server, navigate to the Server Tools view and re-install any necessary databases. Recreate usernames and passwords using the same configuration as the previous server.
The nginx WordPress trap setting is determined server-side, so re-enable this if desired.
2. Static Files
Recreate any root directories necessary and re-upload all Static Files.
3. Web Apps
Web Apps must also be re-uploaded to the new server. Remember to start applications that are stopped, during the migration process they will not automatically start.
4. Domains & Subdomains (for SSL Certificates)
During the install process Lifeboat will disable SSL for each of the Domains & Subdomains records. This is because the new server is missing those SSL certificates. Once the previous three steps are complete, it's time to migrate the DNS and re-request SSL certificates.
Update DNS accordingly and once the changes have propagated update each Domains & Subdomain record in Lifeboat to the correct SSL setting ("Force" for most). This will request a certificate for the new server and configure certbot correctly for renewal.
These tasks reflect a typical server-to-server migration. By editing the server record in Lifeboat rather than creating a new one, the configuration remains consistent across both servers.
A benefit of this method is that if something goes wrong on the new server, the DNS record can be pointed back to the original server while the issue is investigated.