{"id":4471,"date":"2014-07-09T12:00:32","date_gmt":"2014-07-09T17:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/?post_type=support&#038;p=4471"},"modified":"2026-04-08T04:54:40","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T10:54:40","slug":"importing-database","status":"publish","type":"support","link":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/importing-database\/","title":{"rendered":"Import a WordPress Database"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>This article will cover how to import a WordPress\u00ae database file into your WP Engine environment; accessing phpMyAdmin through our User Portal (our version of the cPanel), clearing out the current default database, and importing your database file.<sup><a href=\"#legal-disclaimer\">1<\/a><\/sup> For this article you will need to already have exported and saved your database file as a .sql on your local computer. If you do not have a database file yet:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Follow this article to <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/exporting-database\/\">export a database<\/a> from another host<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Or, check out this article to get your database file from a <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/restore\/#Download_a_Backup\">WP Engine backup<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"color:#32373c;background-color:#00d1b2\" class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-notice gb-font-size-18 gb-block-notice\" data-id=\"10de4b\"><div class=\"gb-notice-title\" style=\"color:#fff\"><p>NOTE<\/p><\/div><div class=\"gb-notice-text\" style=\"border-color:#00d1b2\">\n<p>Prefer WP CLI? Try SSH Gateway to import your database instead. <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/ssh-gateway\/\">Learn more here.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<a name=\"accessdatabase\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Access phpMyAdmin<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>At WP Engine we use the phpMyAdmin utility to allow our customers to easily view and access their database directly from the browser. With one click you can securely login and access the database from the User Portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>From the <a href=\"https:\/\/my.wpengine.com\/sites\">Sites page<\/a>, select the environment <strong>name<\/strong> where the database will be imported<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Click <strong>phpMyAdmin<\/strong> at the top<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/open-phpmyadmin-1-1024x251.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-108875\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<a name=\"select\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Select Database<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ensure the correct database name is selected on the left. The database for the environment should be titled: <code>wp_<em>environmentname<\/em><\/code><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All Production, Staging, and Development <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/environments\/\">environments<\/a> will use this naming convention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/2-phpmyadmin.png\" alt=\"2-phpmyadmin\" class=\"wp-image-4395\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<a name=\"drop\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Drop Database Tables<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Before importing your database you must create a clean slate and make room for your incoming database.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Click on&nbsp;<strong>Check All<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>From the dropdown, select <strong>Drop<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Click <strong>Go<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/3-droptables.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4473\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"4\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Another screen will display confirming the change, click <strong>Yes<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/3-dropconfirm-1024x202.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4472\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Typically all tables should be dropped before attempting a database import. These steps may need to be performed several times, until no tables show and the interface reads \u201cNo tables found in database.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/import_database_notables-1024x258.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-95072\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<a name=\"import\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Import New Database<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Now that the previous database has been cleared, we can import the new database file.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Click <strong>Import<\/strong> near the top<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Click on <strong>Choose File<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Locate the new database file on your local system and select it\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In many cases this file is called something like <code>wp_environmentname.sql<\/code> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Click&nbsp;<strong>Go<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/3-importsteps.png\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/3-importsteps.png\" alt=\"3-importsteps\" class=\"wp-image-4474\"><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"5\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>You will now see the new tables in the database, along with a report stating that the import has been successfully finished.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/3-importsuccess.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4475\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>If your site contains existing <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/platform-settings\/\">revisions<\/a>, please contact our support team from your <a href=\"https:\/\/my.wpengine.com\/\">User Portal<\/a> prior to migrating or importing your content to avoid a loss of data. WP Engine disables revisions by default and old revisions may be removed automatically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"color:#32373c;background-color:#00d1b2\" class=\"wp-block-genesis-blocks-gb-notice gb-font-size-18 gb-block-notice\" data-id=\"10de4b\"><div class=\"gb-notice-title\" style=\"color:#fff\"><p>NOTE<\/p><\/div><div class=\"gb-notice-text\" style=\"border-color:#00d1b2\">\n<p>phpMyAdmin is limited to 50MB database imports. If you need to import a larger database, skip down to the <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/importing-database\/#Failed_Import\">Failed Import<\/a> section for further options.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<a name=\"prefix\"><\/a>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Confirm Database Prefix<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you have successfully imported your database, you will need to check if your table prefixes are not default. A database using the default table prefix looks like the following. Note how each table begins with: <code>wp_<\/code><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/my-admin.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5749\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>If your tables do not start with <code>wp_<\/code>, please read <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/changing-table-prefix\/\">How to change the table prefix<\/a> to ensure your site works properly on our system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span class=\"s2\">If your expected row count within phpMyAdmin doesn\u2019t match what\u2019s on display, it may be due to how the table\u2019s information is handled within MySQL.&nbsp;To get more information on the desired table, run the following commands from the SQL page within PHPMyAdmin after selecting a database:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>View exact count of rows for a table:<\/strong><br><code>SELECT COUNT(*) FROM wp_posts;<\/code><br><strong>View information from PHPMyAdmin table status:<\/strong><br><code>SHOW TABLE STATUS;<\/code><br><a name=\"errors\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Failed Import<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If your database import failed, there could be a few different reasons for this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Your database is too large, the maximum database import size is 50M. This limit is industry standard and cannot be increased. There are 3 alternatives:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Upload the file to <code>_wpeprivate<\/code> using SFTP and <a href=\"https:\/\/my.wpengine.com\/support\">reach out to Support<\/a> to have it imported.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Connect using <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/ssh-gateway\/\">SSH Gateway<\/a> and import the database using <a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/developer.wordpress.org\/cli\/commands\/db\/import\/\" target=\"_blank\">WP CLI.<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Export the database from the previous host as groups of fewer tables, rather than the whole database. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There was an issue with the exported content.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Attempt the export again, but this time with just a few tables. If this works continue importing tables a handful at a time until an issue is found. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>WP Engine runs daily maintenance processes that enforce limits on database options to preserve the stability of the site and the platform. Autoloaded rows (generally located within the <code>wp_options<\/code> table) are limited to 1MB of data per option. Database rows that are not automatically loaded are limited to 4MB of data per option.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>If your import failed, and you\u2019re unable to deduce why, please contact our support team at <a href=\"https:\/\/my.wpengine.com\/support\">WP Engine Support<\/a>. We are more than happy to help!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\">\n\n\n\n<p><strong>NEXT STEP: <a href=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/support\/migration-process\/#Import_wp-content\">Import your wp-content directory<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Learn steps to import your database using phpMyAdmin in your WP Engine User Portal, as part of your manual migration process. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":126216,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"mediapress_authors_byline":[],"mediapress_draft_name":"","_mediapress_is_draft_copy":false},"support-categories":[68,37,21],"support-tag":[41,29,35],"mediapress_author":[],"class_list":["post-4471","support","type-support","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","support-categories-databases","support-categories-migrations","support-categories-setup","support-tag-database","support-tag-migration","support-tag-userportal"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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