How to Manage Domain Redirection and WordPress Site Deployment for a Local Food Bank Project
In the realm of web development and site management, supporting community initiatives can sometimes involve navigating complex technical terrain. Recently, I’ve been assisting a local food bank—an organization that unfortunately fell prey to unscrupulous web development scams—in launching a new website and consolidating their online presence. If you’re in a similar situation or looking for guidance on domain management and WordPress deployment, I hope this post can provide some clarity.
Background and Objectives
The food bank currently operates with two domains:
– A WordPress-based site
– A secondary landing page hosted at landingsite.ai
Their primary goals are:
1. To point the landingsite.ai URL to the new WordPress website.
2. To discontinue the landing site and avoid unnecessary hosting costs.
3. To upload an existing offline WordPress site backup for preview purposes without affecting the current live site.
Understanding the Domain and DNS Landscape
The challenge begins with limited backend access. The current landingsite is registered through an unknown third-party provider—ICANN indicates GoDaddy, but the client lacks an account with them, complicating direct management. While the landingsite’s control panel allows editing DNS records, it does not have built-in options for URL redirects.
Given this setup, here’s an outline of effective strategies:
Redirecting the Domain to the New Site:
– DNS Record Changes: Typically, to redirect a domain, you modify DNS settings—such as setting an A record pointing to the IP address of your hosting server or configuring a CNAME. However, DNS alone may not handle URL redirects cleanly, especially if you want a proper redirect (e.g., 301 Redirect) for SEO benefits.
– URL Forwarding: Some DNS providers support URL forwarding, which can redirect visitors at the DNS level, but if your provider’s interface lacks this, you might need to handle redirects on the hosting server.
Dealing with Limited Access:
– If DNS editing is possible but redirection isn’t, consider setting up a redirect via a simple web server configuration (like an .htaccess file or server-side redirect) once the site is hosted.
– If DNS editing isn’t sufficient or available, contacting the domain provider for assistance may be necessary. In this case, working with the provider’s support team or transferring domain
