Migrating from WordPress

Use Tools → Migrate to bring WordPress posts and pages into Cedros from an export file. Preview each batch, import it as drafts, then review the content before publishing.

The importer moves supported content and settings. Plan to recreate your site's design and any WordPress plugin behavior separately.

Prepare your move

Keep the WordPress site available while you prepare and check the Cedros site. If the Cedros destination already contains work, create a backup before importing.

You need access to export from WordPress and data operations access in Cedros. If Preview or Import is unavailable, ask your administrator to check your feature access.

A standard WordPress XML export can supply titles, slugs, HTML content, excerpts, tags, and the first category on each item. Choose one destination per import:

• Blog: WordPress posts.
• Page: WordPress pages.
• Docs: WordPress pages that you want to turn into documentation.

Import posts and pages in separate runs. An export containing both is filtered to the selected destination; its total item count will not equal every record in the file.

WordPress authors, comments, original publication dates, publication status, featured-image assignments, and arbitrary custom fields are not transferred with these articles. Custom post types, such as products, are not included in the standard post/page import. Plan those transfers separately.

WordPress themes, page-builder layouts, shortcodes, and plugin features do not become equivalent Cedros features. Check the imported body for content that needs to be rebuilt or reformatted.

Export from WordPress

1. In the WordPress dashboard, open Tools → Export.
2. Choose Posts or Pages and apply any filters needed for your batch. Choose All content if you want a file containing multiple content types for separate imports.
3. Select Download Export File and save the XML file.

WordPress calls this format WXR. See the official WordPress export instructions for its export options. Use the downloaded XML file, not a full-site backup ZIP or a database dump.

Start with a small, representative batch: for example, a short article, a longer article with images, and a page with unusual formatting. This helps you spot work needed before moving the rest.

Preview a content batch in Cedros

1. Open Tools → Migrate on the intended Cedros site and use Structured data import.
2. In Plan, set Source platform to WordPress and choose Blog, Page, or Docs as the Destination. Select Continue.
3. In Source data, use Upload export file to load the XML, or paste its complete contents into Export contents. Confirm you have supplied your own export rather than the example text.
4. Leave Advanced options → Reader on Auto-detect, or choose WordPress export (XML) for a standard WXR file. Leave field mappings blank initially.
5. Select Review, then Preview. Preview checks the supplied content without importing it.
6. Check the number of ready items, their titles, destination paths, and any Needs fix issues. Correct the source or field mappings, then preview again.

Changing the source, destination, or mappings clears the previous preview. Import stays unavailable until there is a nonempty preview with no row issues. For a large batch, the table shows all problem rows and only some ready rows; use the totals as well as the visible list.

For standard XML imports, Cedros builds paths from the slug: a post such as hello-world becomes /blog/hello-world, while a page such as about becomes /about. Date-based WordPress permalinks and parent-page paths are not carried over automatically. Check the paths before proceeding and plan redirects for URLs that will change.

Preview does not check every condition needed to finish an import. For example, an existing Cedros content path can stop the import even after preview succeeds. Import does not overwrite an existing article at that path.

Import and review the drafts

1. Confirm the site, destination, and previewed batch are correct, then select Import. This starts the import directly.
2. Wait for Import summary and check the item count and destinations.
3. Open the imported entries in their Blog, Pages, or Docs area. They start as drafts, including items that were published in WordPress.
4. Review the body, images, links, excerpt, category, tags, URL, and search information. Set any missing author, date, or featured image as needed, then preview and publish the entries when ready.

Repeat the process for the other content types you need. Keep a record of which batches completed so you do not accidentally import the same material again.

If an import fails or the page disconnects, check what was saved before retrying. Some items may already have been imported. A message about a history-saving problem also does not, by itself, mean the import failed. Resolve the reported problem and prepare a batch containing only the remaining items.

Start over clears the import form; it does not undo imported content.

Move images and other supported items

These destinations use separate imports. Preview each one and check what it will change before selecting Import.

Media library. An XML export with attachment records can supply media URLs and details such as alternative text and captions. Import downloads the files into Cedros; the source files must still be publicly reachable. Preview does not download them or prove that they are accessible. Use direct file URLs, since redirected downloads are not followed. Importing media does not automatically replace image URLs in article bodies or assign featured images. Update those references before retiring the old host.

Navigation menu. Menu records can supply labels, links, and order. Import replaces the items in the matching Cedros menu. Check the Menu key before importing, then review every link and rebuild any nested menu structure. Old WordPress links may still need to be changed.

Forms. Supported Contact Form 7 and WPForms exports can supply basic form fields. Check each field, required setting, choice list, confirmation, placement, and notification setup in Cedros. Do not assume plugin integrations, conditional behavior, or existing submissions moved with the form. Submit a test before relying on it.

Redirects. Use a supported Redirection export or a JSON/CSV file; the standard WordPress XML export does not contain these rules. Resolve any unsupported regular-expression rules or external destinations reported in preview, and test the resulting redirects.

Theme & site settings. Despite its name, this destination does not install or convert a WordPress theme. A standard XML export can supply the site title, description, address, and language. Import can replace those Cedros settings, including the canonical site address. Skip this destination if you intend to configure them yourself.

Check the site before switching over

Open representative published pages on desktop and mobile. Check formatting, menus, forms, images, downloads, and links that still point to the WordPress host. Visit important old URLs and confirm that they lead to the intended Cedros pages.

Keep the original site and export until you have verified the transferred content and completed any separate transfers. Publishing imported content does not switch your domain to Cedros.

No matching items found. Check that the export contains the selected type. A pages-only export will not produce Blog items, and a file without attachment records cannot supply a Media library batch.

Invalid WordPress XML. Download a fresh export and load the complete file. If it came from a plugin, choose the appropriate Reader or supported JSON/CSV format instead of treating it as WXR.

A content path already exists. Inspect the existing Cedros entry. If it is from an earlier successful import, leave it out of the next batch. If the content is different, choose a distinct path rather than deleting an existing page just to make the import pass.

Images failed to import. Check that the source URL opens the actual file without sign-in or redirection and that media storage is available on the Cedros site. Check for already imported files before retrying the batch.