You can test your website without the domain name pointing to the new server. You can do this by editing the hosts file. This allows you to check whether the website is functioning properly before adjusting the DNS of the domain name.
For Windows:
Step 1: Launch notepad as Administrator
Launch notepad as Administrator via -> in the search bar type: notepad -> right click the result and click run as administrator.
Step 2: Open hosts file in notepad
In Notepad, click File -> Open _> Select all files and not just *.txt -> open the following file (Disk station):/windows/system32/drivers/etc/hosts
Step 3: Entering your domain name in the hosts file
In the hosts file put your domain name on a new line:
For instance:
159.253.0.110 versio.uk www.versio.uk
Then save the file.
Step 4: Visiting your domain name
Relaunch your browser and surf to your domain name. This must now refer to the hosting package of which you provided the IP.
For Mac:
Step 1: Open hosts file
Go to Applications-> Utilities -> Terminal. You are now shown a terminal screen with nothing but text. Type:
sudo nano /private/etc/hosts
You must provide your password after this.
Step 2: Entering your domain name in the hosts file
In the hosts file put your domain name on a new line:
For instance:
159.253.0.110 versio.uk www.versio.uk
Save the file by pressing Ctrl + X. You will be asked if you wish to save the file. Press Y (yes) to do so. Subsequently, you will see the name of the file, after which you press Enter. The screen of the word processor will be closed. There is just 1 command left to be executed:
dscacheutil -flushcache
Step 3: Visiting your domain name
Relaunch your browser and surf to your domain name. This must now refer to the hosting package of which you provided the IP.
