It’s YOUR Blog – What You Need to Know If You’re Going Self-Hosted

So you want a self-hosted blog? That’s fabulous! Maybe you’re starting a brand new blog. Maybe you’re on a free platform, and you want to move to a self-hosted one. Either way there’s some vital information you need to write down and keep track of.

I’ve had many design customers come to me who didn’t know all the information they needed to be able to fully access their own self-hosted blogs. It can take a while to gather all that information. You may need to track down a former designer. If you do get in contact with them they may not have the information in their records still. If you set up your blog yourself, well, you’re the only one who had the information in the first place, so there is no one else to ask.

Here’s the vital information you need to write down, and keep in a safe place:

Domain Name

1. This seems obvious, but what is your domain name?
2. Who is your domain registered with?
3. What is the log in information for your account with that company?
4. When does it renew, and is it set up to automatically renew or do you need to remember to do this?

Hosting Account

1. Who is your hosting account set up with, and what is the log in information for your account with them?
2. When does it renew, and is it set up to automatically renew or do you need to remember to do this?
3. What is the URL to access your hosting account control panel?
4. What is the log in information for your C-panel? This can differ from your hosting account log in.
5. What is the name and log in for the database your blog is installed in on your host server. This is not the same thing as your blog or hosting account log ins.
6. What is the log in to access your blog’s dashboard?

Other

If your artwork is stored somewhere other than on your host server, such as a Photobucket account, where is it stored and what is the log in to access it?

If you set up your own blog write this down as you go. You think you can remember it, but you won’t. Especially things you never use like your database log in. If you hire someone to set up your blog or move it, make sure they provide this information to you.

It’s YOUR blog. Do you have all the information you need to access and manage it?