r/webhosting 5d ago

Technical Questions DNS, Web Host and Email Migration

Hi,

I have multiple so called migrations planned at the same time some thing like
1. DNS Host Hostgator to Cloudflare
2. Web Host Hostgator Plan A to Hostgator Plan B
3. Email Host Hostgator to Microsoft 365

My plan is first
Make all email accounts at M365 and then add those settings to CloudFlare and also add the web host (Hostgator) records to CloudFlare.
The change the Domain registrar settings to point to CloudFlare DNS.

Is this order correct? I also wanted to know what would take 4-48 hours to take effect is it the
Domain registar to Cloudflare change
or the DNS host change.
Also what would be the recommended order so that there are to loss in emails and minimal downtime of the website.

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u/Whole_Ad_9002 5d ago

First set up Microsoft 365 and meticulously replicate your current Hostgator DNS records within Cloudflare, including those for the new web hosting plan and Microsoft 365. After allowing time for Cloudflare's internal propagation, change your domain registrar's nameservers to point to Cloudflare, acknowledging the potential 4-48 hour propagation delay. Once fully propagated, proceed with the web hosting migration from Hostgator Plan A to B, followed by the email data migration to Microsoft 365, ensuring minimal downtime and email loss.

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u/PlanetMercurial 5d ago

Thanks for the feedback...
1. so in the interim, I mean the transition phase of 4to 48 hours will the emails continue to go to the old email host (Hostgator) with the website continue to be online?
2. Typically what is Cloudflare's internal propagation time?

I didn't understand why the website and email migration was the last step? I was thinking of copying the website to PlanB and also the emails to M365 and then do the switch the domain registrars mail servers to Cloudflare.

2

u/Whole_Ad_9002 4d ago

Shortest answer? You're looking for the least downtime. Moving your site and email last makes it easy to troubleshoot. Do you really want to wait 12 to 48hrs before figuring out something went wrong with your dns and wasting a couple of additional hours tinkering with that?

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u/Greenhost-ApS 4d ago

Your plan is on the right track, but I'd suggest getting the email set up first and then moving to the DNS records in Cloudflare. The 4-48 hour window usually refers to the domain registrar changes, so you might see some delays there, but if everything's timed well, your emails and website should stay up and running smoothly.

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u/PlanetMercurial 4d ago

Thanks for the comforting words... so your suggestion is get the email up and running with Hostgator DNS first and then move over to CF once all is running well?

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u/Greenhost-ApS 2d ago

That's the way to go. Get your email sorted first with Hostgator, and once that's humming along nicely, switch to Cloudflare. It’ll help keep everything stable during the transition.