Retire your website

If your website is no longer needed, the best option is to retire the site, removing it from the web:

1. (Recommended) Back up any needed files to IU-provided file storage or another location recommended by your local UITS support person.
2. (Optional) Request an archive copy of your website to be stored on archive-it.org.

   Be aware that completing this form does not automatically guarantee archival of your site.

3. (Required if your site is on Sitehost and uses MySQL) Do one of the following:
   • Manually drop tables and users
   • To request removal of the MySQL account associated with your group account, contact Tier 2.
     Note:

     Once a MySQL account is removed, it cannot be restored. Be sure to back up any needed data.
4. (Required if your site has a virtual host) Transfer or delete the virtual host before proceeding to the next step.
5. (Required if your site is on Sitehost) Select the appropriate group account.
   1. Select Account details: [group account].
   2. Select the Sitehost sub-menu.
   3. Under Retire, select the box and click Retire Sitehost to retire the account and remove all virtual hosts and DNS entries.
6. (Required if your site was built in the WCMS) To request archival of the WCMS site contact Tier 2, including:
   • The site name
   • A request to archive the site
7. (Required) To notify us that your site has been retired and should be removed from SiteImprove, go to the SiteImprove request form and select Other.

Consider these additional recommendations when you retire your site:

• Use a backlink checker to find other sites that link to yours, and then let them know your site will be taken offline.
• Use a 301 redirect to redirect content to a relevant site for at least six months.