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Create a WordPress Staging Site: A Step-by-Step Guide

When making updates, it's crucial to avoid mistakes that could affect visitors on your live WordPress site. To do this, you can create a WordPress staging site, which acts as a private clone of your live website. It's a safe sandbox where you can test changes, updates, and new features without impacting your live site. This guide will cover how to create, access, publish, and remove a WordPress staging site using our built-in tool.

Please click the navigational tabs below to learn more about how to create a WordPress staging site.

Important:

How to Create a Staging Site

Follow the steps given below to learn how to create a WordPress staging site:

  1. Log in to your Account Manager via https://www.networksolutions.com/my-account/login.
  2. Click on WordPress on the left side menu.
    Click Wordpress in the left menu
  3. After that, scroll down to Tools in your WordPress Control Panel and select Site Staging.
    Under Tools, select Site Staging
  4. A list of your live WordPress sites will appear. Click on > Create Staging Site for the site you want to duplicate.
    Click on Create Staging Site button

You will see a green banner confirming your staging site is being created. Please wait for up to 10 minutes for this to be completed.

WordPress Staging Site is being Created confirmation banner

How to Access Your Staging Site

To gain access to the staging site you have created, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to your Account Manager via https://www.networksolutions.com/my-account/login.
  2. Click on WordPress on the left side menu.
    Click Wordpress in the left menu
  3. After that, scroll down to Tools in your WordPress Control Panel and select Site Staging.
    Under Tools, select Site Staging
  4. Click on the link that appears under the Staging Admin Panel Login column.
    Click the Staging Admin Panel Login link
  5. Enter your login credentials (the same ones you use for your live website) and click the Log In button.
    WordPress Dashboard Login Screen
  6. Once you are logged in to the WordPress Dashboard, you can make updates just as you would on your live site.
    WordPress Dashboard for staging site

It is important to note that your staging site functions similarly to your production/live site.

How to Publish Your Staging Site to Live

When you are ready to make your changes live, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to your Account Manager via https://www.networksolutions.com/my-account/login.
  2. Click on WordPress on the left side menu.
    Click Wordpress in the left menu
  3. After that, scroll down to Tools in your WordPress Control Panel and select Site Staging.
    Under Tools, select Site Staging
  4. Click on > Publish staging site to your live site.
    Publish staging site to your live site link
  5. A green banner will appear, indicating that the content is being copied to your live site. Depending on the size of your site, this may take up to 30 minutes.
    WordPress Staging Site is being published banner

Wait for the given time frame and check your live website for the changes you made.

Note: You also have the option to copy your live site to your staging site. This feature comes in handy when you have made changes directly to your production or live site, and you want to copy them to your staging site. To do so, click on the Copy site to Staging option.

How to Remove Your Staging Site

Follow the steps below to delete your staging site:

  1. Log in to your Account Manager via https://www.networksolutions.com/my-account/login.
  2. Click on WordPress on the left side menu.
    Click Wordpress in the left menu
  3. After that, scroll down to Tools in your WordPress Control Panel and select Site Staging.
    Under Tools, select Site Staging
  4. Click > Remove Staging site.
    Click Remove Staging site link
  5. Read the information in the pop-up window carefully, then click the Continue button to confirm.
    Click Continue to confirm removal
  6. A green banner will confirm that your WordPress staging site has been successfully removed.
    WordPress Staging Site has been removed banner

Using Plugins for Staging

Another way to create a WordPress staging site is by using third-party plugins.

  1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
  2. In the left-hand menu, navigate to Plugins and select Add New.
    WordPress dashboard plugins menu
  3. In the search bar, search for a staging plugin, such as WP Staging.
    Search for staging plugins in WordPress
  4. For more information on installing and using a specific plugin, check the official documentation on the plugin's page, like the WP Staging article on WordPress.org.

 

Review

This guide has walked you through the complete lifecycle of our Site Staging tool. You've learned how to create a WordPress staging site for safe testing, how to access it, how to publish your changes to your live site, and finally, how to remove the staging environment when it's no longer needed. Using this tool is a best practice for maintaining a professional and stable website.

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