transparent globe
Get in Touch

Migration & Maintenance

To adapt to the constantly changing requirements of the digital world, maintenance or even migration is often necessary. Whether from one server to a new one, or from one CMS to another, migration encompasses many technical areas that can quickly become confusing. With detailed planning and technical knowledge, we accompany you during the move. Maintenance should ideally be carried out periodically and regularly to protect your website and visitors from possible security vulnerabilities and similar problems. The satisfaction of all stakeholders in the digital experience is paramount.

Thinking about migrating from TYPO3 to WordPress? Learn more about it in our article.

Spektrum
Umzüge von CMS, Hosting-Providern, Servern und Datenbanken sowie Wartung und Pflege von digitalen Anwendungen und Webseiten sind wichtig für einen “gesunden” Webauftritt.
Anwendung
Wartung idealerweise regelmäßig, Migration bei Bedarf oder auf Empfehlung entsprechender Analysen.
Details
Stark techniklastige Bereiche wie Migration und Wartung wirken oft überwältigend. Wir stehen Ihnen mit Rat und Tat zur Seite und sprechen auch die notwendigen Fachsprachen.

Inventory, data transfer, switchover

Every migration starts with an inventory. We pull the full URL list from sitemaps, server logs and analytics, then record content types, media, forms, user accounts and everything connected to third party systems. From that we build a field by field mapping from the old model to the new one.

Next comes a test migration on a separate environment. That is where you find out which character encodings break, which images lose their references and which special cases in the old system were never documented. We repeat the run until the result is clean, because the real switchover should hold no surprises.

Before the move we lower the TTL on the DNS records, briefly freeze editing, transfer the last content changes and switch. Immediately afterwards we verify redirects, form delivery, site search, payment and shipping interfaces, and whether the new site can be indexed. The old system stays reachable until the new one runs steadily, and its final backup stays archived.

Typical reasons to move or to maintain

A system change usually becomes due when the vendor drops support, when license costs no longer match the value, or when the editorial team simply cannot work with the backend any more. Moving from TYPO3 to WordPress often falls into that category. A server move becomes necessary when the hosting no longer supports current PHP or database versions, when response times are poor, or when data has to be stored in a particular country for legal reasons.

Maintenance is the unspectacular part: updating core, themes and extensions, verifying backups, renewing certificates, monitoring uptime, reading error logs. Without that rhythm, every update eventually turns into a project of its own.

A migration is not a relaunch. If structure, navigation and content no longer work, moving them one to one carries the problems onto the new system. Rebuilding is the honest answer then, with the migration as one step inside it.

Redirects, visibility and life after the move

The most common damage during a move comes from lost addresses. Every old URL needs a destination, and that means a permanent 301 redirect to the page matching it in content, not a blanket redirect to the homepage. Chains of several redirects get resolved, because they cost load time and dilute signals.

After the switch we submit a new sitemap, review robots.txt and check for noindex directives left behind by mistake. Those usually come from the staging environment and are the classic silent failure. Internal links, canonical URLs and, on multilingual sites, hreflang annotations are all set again.

Over the following weeks we watch indexing, server errors and the logs for 404 requests the inventory missed. For ongoing operation we agree on a fixed maintenance rhythm, with updates going through staging, backups stored away from the web server and a restore path that has actually been tested.

Frequently asked questions

Will a migration cost us our Google visibility?

Not if the addresses are handed over properly. The basis is a complete inventory of old URLs and a 301 redirect to the new page that matches each one in content. Some movement in the first weeks is normal while search engines process the new structure. It turns critical when pages vanish without replacement or everything is redirected to the homepage.

Do content, images and form data survive the move?

Content and media are transferred as long as they are structured in the old system. Images move with their file names and alt texts, and references are rebuilt. Forms are recreated in the target system because the technology differs, while submissions already received are exported beforehand. Anything maintained sloppily in the old system is better cleaned up before the move.

Does the site have to go offline during the switch?

Usually not. The new installation is built and tested in parallel, and the switch happens at the end through DNS or server configuration. What we do need is a window during which nobody edits content, so that no changes are lost. For shops we place that window in a period with few orders and agree it with you in advance.

What does ongoing maintenance actually include?

Updates to core, theme and extensions, first on staging and then live. On top of that: backups with a tested restore path, uptime monitoring, SSL certificate renewal, reviewing error logs and keeping an eye on load times. When needed it also covers adapting to new PHP or database versions, since hosting providers schedule those changes for you.

Do you take over sites built by another agency?

Yes, that happens regularly. It starts with a technical assessment: version levels, hosting, database, existing backups, changes made in the code and the state of the documentation. That shows what can be operated as it is and where cleanup has to come first. Full access to hosting, domain and repository is the prerequisite.

Related services

Ready for Your Next Project?

Write to us or book an initial consultation directly. We reply within 24 hours, usually faster on weekdays.

Start Project Now