The Complete Guide to Partial WordPress Migrations with All-in-One WP Migration

  • Created:
  • / Author: Yani I

Introduction

Moving an entire WordPress site can be overkill when you only need to transfer specific content, themes, or plugins. That’s where partial migrations come in handy. This guide will show you how to use All-in-One WP Migration (free version) and All-in-One WP Migration Pro to perform selective migrations, saving time and reducing risks.

What Is a Partial Migration?

A partial migration means transferring only specific parts of your WordPress site instead of everything. Think of it like moving houses but only taking certain furniture pieces instead of packing up everything you own.

Why Use Partial Migrations?

Most Common Reasons Developers Use Partial Migrations:

  1. Testing New Features on Live Sites
    • You built a new feature on your development site
    • You only want to push that specific plugin or theme to production
    • No need to risk overwriting the entire live database
  2. Syncing Content Between Sites
    • Your client added 50 new blog posts on the live site
    • You want to pull just those posts to your development environment
    • Keep your dev site up-to-date without losing your test data
  3. Moving Media Files Selectively
    • The live site has gigabytes of images
    • You only need the latest product photos for testing
    • Save bandwidth and time by excluding old media
  4. Deploying Theme Updates
    • You redesigned the theme on staging
    • Push only the theme files to production
    • Keep all the live content and settings intact
  5. Database-Only Migrations
    • Moving to a new host but keeping the same theme/plugins
    • Transfer just the content, users, and settings
    • Useful when files are already synced via Git

Setting Up Partial Migrations

Using the Free Version of All-in-One WP Migration

The free version provides basic partial migration options through the Advanced Options menu:

  1. Navigate to Export
    • Go to All-in-One WP Migration → Export
    • Click on Advanced options to expand the menu
  2. Available Options:

    Database Options:

    • ✓ Exclude spam comments
    • ✓ Exclude post revisions
    • ✓ Exclude database (for file-only migrations)
    • ✓ Do not replace email domain

    File Options:

    • ✓ Exclude media library
    • ✓ Exclude themes
    • ✓ Exclude must-use plugins
    • ✓ Exclude plugins
  3. Create Your Export
    • Check the boxes for what you want to EXCLUDE
    • Click your preferred export destination
    • Download the .wpress file

Using All-in-One WP Migration Pro

The Pro version adds powerful features for more granular control:

  1. File Browser Selection
    • Check “Exclude the selected files”
    • A file browser appears showing your wp-content directory
    • Click to select specific folders or files to exclude
    • Much more precise than the free version’s all-or-nothing approach
  2. Database Table Selection
    • Exclude specific database tables
    • Include only specific database tables
    • Perfect for syncing just WooCommerce orders or specific custom tables
  3. Inactive Themes and Plugins
    • Automatically exclude inactive themes
    • Automatically exclude inactive plugins
    • Keeps your migration lean and clean
  4. Incremental Backups (with cloud storage extensions)
    • After the first full backup, only changed files are transferred
    • Dramatically reduces backup time and storage usage
    • Perfect for regular content syncing

Step-by-Step Partial Migration Examples

Example 1: Push Only Theme Changes to Production

Scenario: You’ve redesigned your theme on staging and want to deploy it without affecting content.

Steps:

  1. On staging site, go to Export
  2. Open Advanced options
  3. Check these boxes:
    • ✓ Exclude database
    • ✓ Exclude media library
    • ✓ Exclude plugins
    • ✓ Exclude must-use plugins
  4. Export the file
  5. On production, import the .wpress file
  6. Only your theme files will be updated

Example 2: Sync New Content from Production to Development

Scenario: Your client added new pages and posts that you need in your dev environment.

With Free Version:

  1. On production, go to Export
  2. Open Advanced options
  3. Check these boxes:
    • ✓ Exclude media library (if not needed)
    • ✓ Exclude themes
    • ✓ Exclude plugins
    • ✓ Exclude must-use plugins
  4. Export and import to dev site

With Pro Version:

  1. On production, go to Export
  2. Check “Exclude the selected files”
  3. In the file browser, select everything except the database
  4. Or use “Include specific database tables” to select only post-related tables:
    • wp_posts
    • wp_postmeta
    • wp_terms
    • wp_term_taxonomy
    • wp_term_relationships
  5. Export and import to dev site

Example 3: Move Only WooCommerce Products

Scenario: You need to sync product data between sites without affecting other content.

Pro Version Required:

  1. Go to Export → Advanced options
  2. Select “Include specific database tables”
  3. Choose only WooCommerce tables:
    • wp_woocommerce_*
    • wp_wc_*
    • Product-related post tables
  4. Exclude all file options
  5. Export and carefully import

Example 4: Quick Media Library Update

Scenario: Sync only the latest uploaded images from the last month.

Pro Version Method:

  1. Go to Export → Advanced options
  2. Check “Exclude the selected files”
  3. Navigate to wp-content/uploads
  4. Select all year folders except the current one
  5. Within the current year, select only recent month folders
  6. Check “Exclude database” if you don’t need media metadata
  7. Export and import

Best Practices for Partial Migrations

1. Always Backup First

Even though partial migrations are less risky, always have a full backup before importing anything.

2. Test on Staging

Before pushing partial changes to production, test the migration on a staging site first.

3. Check Dependencies

  • If migrating plugins, ensure required themes are present
  • If migrating content, check for required plugins (like ACF)
  • Media-heavy content needs corresponding uploads

4. Use Find & Replace Wisely

The free version includes automatic URL replacement. For partial migrations:

  • Be careful when mixing content from different domains
  • Consider disabling email replacement for partial imports

5. Mind the Database Relationships

When doing partial database migrations:

  • User-related tables often need to migrate together
  • Post meta is meaningless without its posts
  • Taxonomy terms need their relationships

Incremental Backups with Pro + Cloud Extensions

For regular partial syncing, Pro version with cloud storage extensions offers incremental backups:

  1. First Backup: Complete backup to cloud storage
  2. Subsequent Backups: Only changed files upload
  3. Benefits:
    • 80-90% faster backups
    • Less bandwidth usage
    • Smaller storage footprint
    • Perfect for daily content syncing

Common Partial Migration Workflows

1. Development → Staging → Production

  • Develop features locally
  • Push only code changes to staging
  • After approval, push same changes to production
  • Keep content separate from code deployment

2. Content Team Workflow

  • Content team works on production
  • Developers pull only database changes
  • Merge content with development work
  • Push combined updates back to production

3. Multisite Partial Sync

  • Share themes across network
  • Sync specific plugins between sites
  • Move users between network sites
  • Keep content isolated per site

Troubleshooting Tips

Migration Seems Incomplete?

  • Check if you excluded too much
  • Verify dependent files weren’t excluded
  • Look for JavaScript/CSS in excluded plugins

Database Errors After Import?

  • Ensure related tables migrated together
  • Check for missing user permissions
  • Verify plugin dependencies are met

Media Not Showing?

  • Check if database records exist for media
  • Verify upload folder permissions
  • Ensure year/month folders migrated

Conclusion

Partial migrations with All-in-One WP Migration give you surgical precision when moving WordPress content. The free version handles basic scenarios well, while Pro unlocks granular file selection and database table control.

Start with simple partial migrations like theme-only transfers, then work up to complex database-specific migrations as you get comfortable. Remember: partial migrations mean faster transfers, less risk, and more control over your WordPress workflow.

The key is knowing exactly what you need to move and understanding how WordPress components relate to each other. With practice, partial migrations become an invaluable tool in your WordPress development toolkit.