When you want to copy a Joomla site, the process involves two main processes. For the website copying to be successful, you have to copy both the files and the database. The database contains all the content. These two steps are not carried out at the same time. The step you start with when you want to copy a website will depend on the specific situation but you can begin with either of them. If you regularly update your site, you will probably need to have it offline as you copy website content. In such a case, you should copy your database last so that you can lessen the downtime.

One of the methods you can use to get website copy from a Joomla installation is by using FTP software. This will allow you to download all the files from their current location and upload them to a new one. The new location that you clone a website on can be the same server but in another directory. It can also be in an entirely different server. When you are producing copy for websites, it is important to make sure that you use one directory structure in all the files and folders when you are moving them. With a website cloning software like FTP, this happens automatically when you are downloading and uploading the folders and files. After website copying, the configuration files need to be edited to ensure they are working properly in the new location. You may also have to change some of the settings on the server to get the website clone to function efficiently.

In some cases, when you are trying to figure out how to copy a website, one or two files can become corrupted. This can happen during a transfer and when it does only a section of the file is transmitted successfully. When this happens, you can try uploading the files once more.

If there are many files that you need to copy as you clone websites, FTP is not the best website cloning software to use. If you have many files, the transfer will work better if you compress them. The compressed file will be decompressed when it gets to it destination system. Before you can compress them, you need to have an archive file. There are various programs that you can use to create the archive file depending on the operating system you use. This archive file is the one you will copy to your preferred destination. Once it is at the desired location, you will have to unpack it using the same command that you used to create it.

Copying websites by exporting a database can be easily done using a phpMyAdmin tool.  With this tool, you can be able to duplicate the contents of the database using different names. The copy can be exported to a personal computer or to an entirely new database. To export the entire database when you copy websites, you need to log into it and then select the export option.