Server

Soft Link from Public to Document Root

On your local server, it is a good idea to create a soft link from ~/Public to the document root(I think that is /var/www/html. This helps to create a situation where the same absolute paths will work whether the file they are in is in your local server or your production server.

Starting Local Apache

  steve:~/Public$ /etc/init.d/apache2 start
  [ ok ] Starting apache2 (via systemctl): apache2.service.
  steve:~/Public$
    

Fast Domain Name Transfer

See: https://nickjanetakis.com/blog/how-to-transfer-a-domain-name-with-zero-downtime

Create DNS records 48 hours before transfer so DNS servers round the world can catch up. After that update the DNS records on your old registrar to point to your new hosting provider so after 48 hours all requests will go through your new hosting provider's nameservers. Now transfer the domain.

On old registrar: Make sure your WHOIS contact details are up to date before starting and you can receive email on that address. Disable WHOIS privacy?. Get EEP auth code. Unlock the domain.

On New registrar: Initiate transfer with EEP auth code (there may be a form for this). Keep checking the WHOIS registered email account. The email they send will have a link which initiates the transfer. Pre configure anything you can eg webmail etc. The new registrat can clone your old registrar's DNS records and you should be able to check everything. Edit WHOIS once transfer has happened.