Today we will be discussing a very useful WordPress plugin called WP Clone by WP Academy. This plugin can be a great tool for copying and moving WordPress websites from one domain or one hosting to another, all done within the WordPress Dashboard.

This is a great advantage as most traditional methods of moving WordPress sites involves moving the actual content files, and then the database which can be a time consuming process and can be considered compilcated for the average user.

With WP Clone this is a worry of the past as moving and copying WordPress websites is now as easy as installing the plugin, following the instructions and being presented with a back up link to be used in the new hosting or domain destination.

This can be particularily useful for instances where a WordPress user has set up a website and would like to use that set up as a base for future projects, then all you would need to do is create a WP Clone URL of that set up and then you would be able to install the clone using WP Clone. Other uses would include creating copies of websites used for development or testing purposes and moving domain names while still keeping your existing WordPress site.

• WP Clone doesn’t require database, SQL or any other FTP access, to install the cloned version all you would need to do is install a new WordPress on the destination site, upload and activate WP Clone plugin, and follow the instructions which would be to apply the previous clone URL to activate the clone.

• WP Clone doesn’t backup or restore the core WordPress system files which reduces the size of the clone and reduces the upload time to restore a site. Only the actual user content, themes, databse and plugins are cloned, which are the actual files needed.

• The plugin fetches your websites backup via your host’s direct http connection, which results in the user not needing to upload large files yourself through your own internet connection.

Go ahead and watch the helpful video below for more information, the video includes an actual walkthrough of the WP Clone plugin being used:

The official WP Clone WordPress plugin page includes the following no support disclaimer which is worth noting:

“WP Clone fails in 10-20% of installations. As such it is NOT intended as a regular backup method, its strength consists in migrating WordPress installations. The failures appear to be related to the multiplicity of WordPress hosting platforms and the size of the installation rather than the WordPress version”.

In addition to the above disclaimer, ensure you read the “Recommendations for using (or not) WP Clone” on the WordPress plugin page to assist in using the plugin correctly.

The above disclaimer and recommendations need to be kept in mind when using WP Clone, but this is definitely a useful WordPress tool and can save you a lot of time and effort when used correctly for WordPress website migrations.

If you require or prefer the manual method of moving WordPress sites, take a look at our previous post on this here: Moving WordPress Sites Manually

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