Website End-of-Life (EOL) Checklist

# Website End-of-Life (EOL) Checklist

**Purpose:** Retire a live website, preserve a working development copy, and close out any site-related services and costs.

**Site / domain:** ____________________
**Person responsible:** ____________________
**Approved retirement date:** ____________________
**Development URL:** ____________________

## 1. Confirm the retirement scope

– Confirm approval to retire the website and the planned shutdown date.
– Decide whether the domain will be retained, redirected, or allowed to expire.
– Confirm whether email accounts and email forwarders must remain active.
– Identify any hosting, domains, subscriptions, or licenses shared with other sites before cancelling them.

## 2. Back up the live website

– Initiate a full site backup, including the database, uploads, themes, plugins, and configuration files.
– Save the backup somewhere independent of the hosting account being retired.
– Record the backup date, filename, storage location, and person responsible.
– Confirm the backup completed successfully.

## 3. Restore and verify the development site

– Restore the backup to the development site.
– Set the development build to **no-index**.
– Restrict access if the retained copy contains private information.
– Deactivate services that are unnecessary on the development site, including scheduled backups, image optimization, and other paid or automated services.
– Disable or redirect live integrations, automated messages, and outgoing form notifications as appropriate.
– Check that pages, images, galleries, forms, and required functionality work.
– Confirm that the development copy can be accessed by the people who need it.

**Completion gate:** Do not delete the live build until the backup has been successfully restored and the development copy has been checked.

## 4. Record DNS and email settings

– Export or save all current DNS records.
– Record the DNS provider, nameservers, and where DNS is managed.
– Record all email accounts, aliases, and forwarders.
– Confirm whether deleting the hosting account would also remove email services or DNS records.
– Arrange continued email service or migration where required before removing hosting.
– Save the records in the designated documentation location.

## 5. Retire the live build and manage the domain

– If required, configure the domain redirect and verify its destination.
– Delete the live site build from hosting once the earlier checks are complete.
– Cancel site-specific hosting when it is no longer required.
– Check the domain registrar and record the domain expiration date.
– If the domain will be allowed to expire, disable domain auto-renewal.
– Cancel paid SSL renewal when the certificate is no longer required.
– If retaining a redirect, confirm that the domain, redirect service, and necessary SSL remain active.
– Record any cancellation confirmation numbers and service end dates.

## 6. Review and close ongoing costs

Review each service below. Record whether it is **cancelled**, **removed from the site**, **retained**, or **shared with other sites**.

| Service | Purpose | Action to review |
|—|—|—|
| FooGallery | Galleries and images | Remove site activation; review subscription |
| Imagify | Image optimization | Disable processing; review subscription |
| Gravity Forms | Site forms | Remove site activation; review subscription |
| Solid Backups | Premium backups | Disable scheduled jobs; review subscription |
| WP Rocket | Site optimization | Remove site activation; review subscription |
| Other plugins or tools | Site-specific functions | Identify and review individually |
| SSL | Secure connections | Review certificate and renewal charges |
| Hosting | Live site hosting | Review plan, add-ons, and renewal |
| Domain | Domain registration | Confirm retention or expiration decision |

– Identify the billing owner, cost, billing frequency, and next renewal date for each service.
– Cancel unnecessary site-specific subscriptions and auto-renewals.
– Remove site activations from shared licenses where applicable.
– Confirm retained services have an owner and a documented reason.
– Save cancellation confirmations.

## 7. Complete final checks and update the spreadsheet

– Verify that the development site remains accessible and functional.
– Verify that the live site has been removed or the agreed redirect works.
– Verify any retained email accounts and forwarders.
– Confirm that backup files and DNS records remain accessible.
– Confirm all cancellation actions and any remaining costs.
– Document completion in the EOL tracking spreadsheet.
– Record outstanding actions, owners, and due dates.
– Obtain final sign-off.

### Suggested spreadsheet fields

Use one **site summary row** per website, with a separate **cost register row** for each subscription or service.

**Site summary:** Site name, domain, responsible person, approval date, retirement date, backup date and location, development URL, restore verification date, DNS records location, email/forwarder disposition, hosting deletion date, redirect destination, registrar, domain expiration date, auto-renew status, SSL status, outstanding actions, and final sign-off.

**Cost register:** Site name, service/vendor, account or license reference, billing owner, cost and currency, billing frequency, next renewal date, shared service status, cancellation or retention decision, action date, service end date, confirmation reference, and remaining cost.

**Completion standard:** The EOL process is complete when the retained site copy works, the live site has been retired as agreed, domain and email decisions are implemented, unnecessary costs are closed, and the spreadsheet contains the supporting records and final sign-off.