Softaculous can create a complete copy of an existing WordPress website in just a few clicks. The clone includes the website files and database, making it useful when you want to copy a site to another domain, subdomain or directory for testing or development.
Before you start #
- Make sure the source WordPress website is already listed in WordPress Manager by Softaculous.
- If WordPress was installed manually and is not listed in Softaculous, import the installation into Softaculous first.
- Make sure the destination domain or subdomain has already been added to your cPanel account.
- Check the destination carefully before starting. Do not select a location that contains another website unless you intend to replace its contents.
- Taking a backup of important websites before cloning is recommended.
Steps #
Log in to cPanel.
Go to the Software section and click WordPress Manager by Softaculous.
Open the All Installations page. You will see the WordPress installations currently managed by Softaculous.
Find the WordPress website that you want to copy and click the Clone icon next to that installation.
The Clone Installation page will open. Select the destination for the cloned website.
Configure the destination details carefully:
- Choose Protocol: Select
https://if SSL is active on the destination domain. - Choose Domain: Select the domain or subdomain where you want to create the clone.
- In Directory: Enter a directory only if you want the cloned site inside a subfolder.
- Database Name: You can normally use the database name generated by Softaculous.
- Choose Protocol: Select
Choosing the correct directory #
The In Directory field determines where the cloned website will be created.
For example, if the destination domain is example.com:
Leave In Directory empty to clone the website to:
https://example.comEnter
testto clone the website to:https://example.com/test
If you are cloning to a subdomain such as staging.example.com and want the website directly on that subdomain, select the subdomain and leave In Directory empty.
Review the source and destination details one more time.
Click Clone Installation.
Softaculous will copy the WordPress files and database and configure the cloned installation. The time required depends on the size of the website.
- When the cloning process is complete, Softaculous will display the URL of the cloned website and its WordPress admin URL.
WordPress login details #
The cloned WordPress installation normally keeps the same WordPress administrator username and password as the source website.
You can access the cloned site’s dashboard at:
https://your-destination-domain.com/wp-admin
After cloning #
Open the cloned website and verify that:
- The homepage and important pages load correctly.
- Images and other media files are working.
- You can log in to WordPress Admin.
- The destination website is loading over HTTPS.
- Plugins and themes are functioning normally.
- Contact forms, payment gateways, email delivery and other integrations are configured appropriately for the cloned environment.
Important when cloning a live website for testing #
If the clone is being used as a staging or development website, be careful with features connected to external services. A cloned site can contain the same API keys, SMTP settings, payment gateway settings, analytics codes, webhooks and scheduled tasks as the live website.
For a test copy, consider disabling or changing anything that could send real emails, process real payments, submit live orders or trigger external automation.
You may also want to discourage search engines from indexing a temporary clone by enabling Discourage search engines from indexing this site under WordPress Dashboard > Settings > Reading.
Clone option not available? #
If the website does not appear in Softaculous, it may have been installed manually or migrated without being imported into Softaculous. Import the existing WordPress installation into Softaculous first, then return to All Installations and use the Clone option.
If you still cannot clone the website or receive an error during the process, contact Hostnil Support with the source domain, destination domain and a screenshot of the error.