Ai Software
At Howell Studios, we’re proactively upgrading the WordPress hosting infrastructure behind every client site we manage. This upgrade is already rolling out in phases and is included in your existing plan at no additional cost.
Here’s everything you need to know.
What’s Changing
We’re migrating all managed WordPress sites to a next-generation hosting infrastructure in carefully monitored batches. Our team handles the entire process – no action is required on your end, and your site will never go offline during the transition.
Once your site migrates, you’ll notice a new single-page management dashboard inside your Brand Vault account, replacing the previous multi-tab layout. Everything you need to manage your site will be in one place.
Why We’re Doing This
Traditional shared hosting environments create performance bottlenecks, security vulnerabilities, and unexpected downtime – problems your business can’t afford. This upgrade resolves those challenges by moving every site into its own isolated, containerized environment, so a traffic spike or technical issue on any other site never touches yours.
The result: a dramatically more reliable, faster, and more secure digital presence for your business.
What’s Included
1. Higher Performance and Reliability
- 99.999% uptime – potential annual downtime drops from 8.7 hours to just 5 minutes
- Up to 66% faster page loads – powered by auto-scaling PHP workers and a global CDN
- Dedicated, isolated environments – your site runs in its own container; no neighbor can slow it down
2. Enterprise-Grade Security and Stronger Backups
- Built-in DDoS mitigation, brute-force defense, and a customizable Web Application Firewall (WAF)
- 30-day rolling daily backups with database snapshots every few hours when changes are detected
- One-click restore and the ability to download any backup locally
- Your existing 60 days of daily backups and prior-year monthly backups are fully preserved and migrated
3. A Hands-Off Migration – We Handle Everything
- Zero downtime: Your site stays live throughout the entire transition
- Automatic PHP and WordPress updates: Sites are brought to PHP 8.3 or higher
- Compatibility tested before every batch
- We’ll only contact you if there’s an issue – otherwise, your migration is handled automatically
- Staging environments migrate alongside live sites on PHP 8.3
- SSL certificates are provisioned, renewed, and managed automatically
4. A New Single-Page Management Dashboard
The updated Brand Vault experience consolidates everything into one modern dashboard:
- Overview – Live site preview, PHP/WordPress versions, pending updates, cache flush, CDN toggle
- Performance – Google PageSpeed scores, historical trends, optimization opportunities
- Core Web Vitals – LCP, TBT, and CLS monitoring
- Analytics – Built-in visitor analytics plus Google Analytics integration
- Email History – Complete log of transactional emails
- Domains and SSL – Custom domain management and SSL status
- Plugins and Themes – Install, update, activate, or deactivate from the UI
- Staging – Test changes on an exact copy, then push to production in one click
- Advanced Tools – SFTP/SSH, phpMyAdmin, PHP error logs, per-site cron jobs (new), WAF provisioning (new)
- Backups – Automated snapshots or on-demand backups with one-click restore
Coming Next: Templates and New Site Creation
In the final phase of this rollout, we’ll migrate website templates to the new infrastructure.
Estimated timeline: July – August 2026
Once complete, every new site we build for you will launch on the upgraded platform from day one.
What You Need to Do
Nothing, for most sites. We’re handling this automatically.
To access your updated dashboard: Log into your Brand Vault account and open your WordPress hosting management area. Any migrated site will load the new single-page experience automatically.
To unlock the full enterprise security suite (recommended): Copy the IP address shown on your new dashboard and point your domain’s A record directly to it within 90 days of migration.
Questions? Reach out to your Howell Studios account manager directly – they’ll be happy to help at every step.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this cost more?
No. This upgrade is included in your existing plan at no additional cost.
Will my site go down during the migration?
No. The transition is fully zero-downtime.
Do I need to change my DNS after the migration?
Your site will function normally without DNS changes. To activate the full WAF, we recommend pointing your A record to the new IP within 90 days – but this is optional.
When does my site migrate?
Migrations are rolling now through the end of July. You’ll only hear from us if something needs your attention.
What happens to my staging environment?
Staging environments migrate automatically alongside live sites on PHP 8.3.
When will templates move to the new infrastructure?
Estimated July to August 2026. All new sites will then build on the upgraded infrastructure from day one.
