Bedrock to Vanilla WordPress Migration Guide

This guide outlines the steps to migrate your content and database from a Bedrock-based WordPress installation back to a standard (vanilla) WordPress structure.

Goal

Move your database, themes, plugins, and uploads from Bedrock to vanilla WordPress.

1. Migrate Database

Recommended Tool: WP Migrate plugin  or the WordPress API.

Steps

a. Export Database

• Option 1: Export directly from the live Bedrock site (recommended).
• Option 2: Pull from your staging or local Bedrock environment.

b. Include in Export

• Database: Complete export.
• MU-Plugins: Export any custom must-use plugins.
• Themes: Export theme-related data.

c. Find and Replace

Update Bedrock folder references to vanilla WordPress:

• Find: /app/
• Replace with: /wp-content/

Tip: Use the WP Migrate plugin’s “Find & Replace” feature.
Example:

• Find: /app/
• Replace: /wp-content/

d. Exclude Unwanted Tables

• Exclude: Security plugin tables like Wordfence.
• Example Exclusion Pattern: wp_wf%

2. Move Theme, Plugin & Upload Files

a. Themes

• From Bedrock: web/app/themes
• To Vanilla: wp-content/themes

b. Plugins

• From Bedrock: web/app/plugins
• To Vanilla: wp-content/plugins
• Note: If plugins are managed by Composer in Bedrock, you may skip copying and reinstall plugins via the vanilla WordPress dashboard.

c. Uploads

• From Bedrock: web/app/uploads
• To Vanilla: wp-content/uploads

3. Final Steps

• Import your migrated database into the new vanilla WordPress database.
• Move/copy your themes, plugins, and uploads into the appropriate wp-content folders.
• Check your wp-config.php for any Bedrock-specific customizations and adjust as necessary for vanilla WordPress.
• Log in to your site, re-activate plugins, and test for any issues.

Summary Table

Troubleshooting

• Broken URLs or assets: Double-check your find & replace for /app/ to /wp-content/.
• Missing plugins: Reinstall via the WordPress dashboard if not copied.
• MU-plugins: Move any must-use plugins to wp-content/mu-plugins.

Reference

• Bedrock Docs 
• WP Migrate Plugin