Guide: going live
Upload a PHP website and its database in one zip, and let ServerMaid wire it up
Zip the website's files together with its database export and upload the zip. ServerMaid unpacks it, imports the database into the site's own database, finds the connection settings in your code and, once you say yes, points them at the new database. No phpMyAdmin, no hunting through config files, no "Error establishing a database connection".
Server setup £99 £49.50 plus Websites and SSL £79, £39.50 per server for twelve months, unlimited websites. 30-day money-back promise.
Why it matters
The same job, by hand and with ServerMaid
By hand
- Unzip into the right folder and fix the permissions IIS needs
- Create a database and a user, and remember to limit the user to that database
- Import the .sql file through phpMyAdmin or the command line, and fight upload limits
- Find which file holds the database settings, then edit host, name, user and password
- Forget the .sql file in the web folder, where anyone can download it
- Load the site and read "Error establishing a database connection"
With ServerMaid
- The website already has its folder, application pool, permissions and free SSL
- Its own database and account exist from the moment you added it
- One .sql file in the zip is imported for you, whatever its size
- The settings are found, listed with the old and new values, and changed when you say yes
- The .sql file is never copied into the website folder
- The site loads, connected, the first time
How it works
Add the website, upload the zip, answer three questions
Add the website
One form on the Websites page gives it a folder, an application pool, a database with its own account, pretty URLs and free SSL.
Upload the zip
Press Upload zip and choose the file. ServerMaid unpacks it somewhere private and looks inside before anything changes.
Say yes to what you want
Replace the old files? Import the database? Change these settings? Each question lists exactly what will happen; nothing is changed without a yes.
Where ServerMaid looks for the database settings
- WordPress:
DB_NAME,DB_USER,DB_PASSWORDandDB_HOSTinwp-config.php. Keys, salts and the table prefix stay as they are. - Laravel: the
DB_*keys in.env. - Any other PHP site:
define('DB_...')constants,$dbhost-style variables, configuration arrays, andmysqliorPDOconnections, in the files that actually connect to MySQL. An unrelated$passwordin a login form is left alone.
Before anything changes you see a list like this, with passwords never shown:
includes/db.php line 2: mysqli host 'localhost' becomes '127.0.0.1'
includes/db.php line 2: mysqli database 'shop' becomes 'site_example_com'
includes/db.php line 2: mysqli password (hidden) becomes the website's own database password
Say yes and ServerMaid makes the changes, keeping a copy of every file it edits in the website's private folder, out of reach of the web. Say no and the upload goes ahead with your files exactly as they were, and the list stays in the results so you can change them yourself.
Safe by design
- Exactly one .sql file is imported. If the zip holds more than one, none is imported: you choose the right one with Import database.
- The dump never goes public. .sql files are never copied into the website folder, where anyone who guessed the name could download your data.
- The database account can only touch its own database. Statements that reach for another database or change permissions are refused by design.
- Old code is flagged. The upload is checked for PHP features that PHP 8 removed, such as
mysql_connect(), and the results say which file and line.
Already uploaded? Check the settings any time
Every website has a Check database settings button. It looks through the site's files as they are now, lists anything that does not point at its database on this server, and fixes it when you say yes. Handy after a developer pushes a config file from their laptop.
Questions about uploading a website
What should the zip contain?
The website's files, as they sit in its web folder, plus one .sql export of its database anywhere in the zip. A zip with one top-level folder is fine: ServerMaid uploads what is inside it.
How do I export the database from my old host?
Use phpMyAdmin's Export tab (the Quick method and SQL format are fine), or mysqldump on the command line. Either produces a .sql file ServerMaid can import.
What if my site keeps its settings somewhere unusual?
If ServerMaid finds nothing, the upload results say so and give the host, port and database name to use; the user and password are in the website's private folder on the server.
Will it overwrite my existing database?
Tables in the dump replace tables of the same name, as a normal import does. ServerMaid asks before importing, so take a backup first if the database already holds data you need.
Does this work for WordPress?
Yes. The WordPress settings in wp-config.php are updated with your OK, and the rest of the file is left exactly as it was.
What does it cost?
Uploading websites is part of the Websites and SSL module: £79 £39.50 per server for twelve months with unlimited websites, on top of Server setup at £99 £49.50. Every Agency licence includes it. See pricing.
From zip file to live website, connected first time
Files, database and settings in one upload, with a plain question before every change.