Craft sites tend to outlive the people who built them. That's partly the point of Craft: a well-built site is still easy to change in year five. But the developer who knows where everything lives doesn't always stay for year five.
Then a form stops sending, or an update fails, and nobody is quite sure who has the hosting login, whose name the domain is in, or whether the last backup actually works.
None of that is unusual, and all of it is fixable. This is the checklist I work through when I take over a Craft site, in the order I do it.
When does a Craft site need a new developer?
A Craft site needs a new developer when the current one can't or won't keep looking after it, or when the site has fallen behind on supported versions. The usual triggers are a developer moving on or going quiet, an agency closing or being acquired, or a site still running Craft 3 or Craft 4.
The version trigger is the one people miss, and it's the one that carries the risk. Craft 3 stopped getting security fixes on 30 April 2024, and Craft 4 on 30 April 2026. A site on either still works, but nobody is fixing new security holes in it. If nobody is watching the site, nobody is planning the upgrade either.
Not sure which version you're on? Ask your developer, or if you have an admin login, look under Utilities, then System Report.
What does taking over a Craft CMS site involve?
Taking over a Craft CMS site means getting five things in order: who owns the access, how up to date the site and its add-ons are, where it's hosted and how it's backed up, how the content is set up for your team, and who can log in. Each is checked before anything on the live site changes.
The Craft CMS handover checklist
This is the part that's yours. Make sure your business owns each of these, in its own name. I take care of everything else.
- The hosting account. The company whose server runs your site. In your business's name, and paid by your business.
- The domain. Registered to your business, with the login for the registrar (the company it's registered with).
- The DNS. The settings that point your web address, and often your email, to the right place. Ask where they're managed.
- The code. A copy of the site's code (your developer may call it the Git repository).
- A recent backup. A full copy of the site and its content, from this week.
- The Craft licences. In your business's own Craft Console account. More on that below.
- Your marketing logins. Google Analytics, Tag Manager, Search Console and the service that sends your website's emails.
- Your own admin login. A Craft login in your name, not a shared one.
Check the domain first. If it's registered to the developer, so is your web address.
What happens once the access is in your name?
Once the access is in your business's name, I review the site so nothing changes until I know how it works. You don't need to do any of this yourself.
- The Craft version and plugins. What's out of support, and what the next upgrade involves.
- Hosting and backups. That a backup actually restores, and that changes are tested before they go live.
- How your content is set up. So your team can publish without calling a developer.
- Who can log in. The old developer's accounts removed, and everyone else with the access they need.
How long does a Craft CMS takeover take?
A Craft CMS takeover takes from a few days to 2 weeks. A small site where the code, hosting and domain are already in your business's name takes a few days. A larger site, or one where access has to be chased, takes up to 2 weeks. The site stays live on its current hosting the whole time.
A larger takeover usually runs like this:
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| First few days | Access moved into your business's name; review of the version, add-ons, hosting and content set-up |
| End of week 1 | A working test copy of the site, a safe way to release changes, the site and its add-ons checked for known security issues and urgent updates applied |
| Week 2 | Hosting move if needed, the first changes, handover notes written |
It runs closer to 2 weeks when:
- There's no master copy of the code. It has to be rebuilt from the live server and checked against what's actually running.
- The version is out of support. Craft 3 and Craft 4 sites need more care before anything is updated.
- The site sells online. Sites running Craft Commerce take orders and payments, which raises the stakes on every change.
- It's connected to other systems. Links to a CRM or ERP need to be understood before they're touched.
Will the website go down during a takeover?
Most takeovers involve no downtime. The site stays on its current hosting while I review it, and nothing changes until that review is done. Downtime only becomes a question if the hosting moves, and how it's avoided depends on how much access you hold to the old hosting, the domain registrar and the DNS.
- The new hosting is built and tested first, before any visitor is sent to it.
- The switch is prepared a day or two ahead, so it takes minutes and can be reversed just as quickly.
- The old hosting stays on until the switch has reached everyone, and your email keeps flowing throughout.
Less access means more planning, not more downtime. If the DNS or the domain sits with the old developer or an agency, the switch is scheduled with whoever holds it, or the domain is moved into your business's name first and the hosting moved after.
What should I ask my current developer for?
Ask your current developer for the code, an admin login to the hosting, a recent backup, the settings and passwords the site uses to connect to other services, the Craft and plugin licences, and the domain and DNS logins. Put the request in writing and ask for everything at once.
Here's a list you can copy into an email. You don't need to understand every item; your developer will.
- Access to the site's Git repository, or a full copy of the site files if there isn't one.
- An admin login to the hosting account, or confirmation that the account is in our name.
- A full backup of the site and its database, taken this week.
- The site's environment settings, and any passwords or API keys it uses to connect to other services.
- The Craft and plugin licences, transferred to our organisation in Craft Console, or released so we can claim them.
- The domain registrar login, and confirmation that the domain is registered to our business.
- Access to wherever the DNS is managed.
- Access to the email sending service, Google Analytics, Tag Manager and Search Console.
- Notes on any custom code, connections to other systems and scheduled tasks.
- Anything that's broken, half-finished or "on the list" that we should know about.
Most developers hand over cleanly when the request is specific. A vague "can you send us everything?" is the request that drags on for weeks.
What if my developer has gone quiet?
If your developer has gone quiet, you can still take over the site as long as your business controls the hosting account and the domain. The code, the content and the Craft licence key all sit on the server, so the takeover can start from there. If the developer controls the hosting, start with whoever owns that account.
Say the domain and hosting are both in your name, but the developer stopped replying two months ago. The takeover starts from the server: the files, the content and the licence key copied down, a master copy of the code set up, and the checklist above worked through from there. It takes a little longer than a cooperative handover, but nothing about it depends on them.
If the hosting or the domain sits in the developer's or the agency's own account, getting that access is the first job, and the request needs to go in writing. The steps for dealing with an unresponsive supplier are the same as when your agency goes quiet.
What if my developer won't hand over my website?
If your web developer won't give you access to your website, start with what your business already controls: who pays the hosting bill, whose name the domain is in, and who holds the admin logins. Then ask for everything in one written request, specific and polite, with a date. Keep any money dispute separate from access.
These steps keep things calm and keep your website safe:
- Find out what you already control. Before you contact them, check who pays the hosting bill, whose name the domain is registered in, and who holds the admin logins for the site, the hosting and the domain. Whoever pays and is the registered owner usually has the strongest hand.
- Put the request in writing. One email, specific and polite, with the full list from the section above and a date to reply by. No threats. A clear written request is easier to say yes to, and it's a record of what you asked for and when.
- Keep money separate from access. A disagreement over an invoice is a conversation to have. But your business still needs its website safe in the meantime, so deal with the two separately.
- Check the paperwork. The contract or quote often says who owns the code, the design and the accounts. If it becomes a real dispute, get legal advice.
- Check the domain. Under the rules set by auDA, the body that runs Australian domains, a .com.au domain must be held by an eligible Australian business, and the domain must match or relate to that business's name. A domain registered in your developer's own name doesn't fit that well. If that's your situation, the domain registrar is the place to start.
- Lock the doors once you're in. As soon as access is in your business's hands, change the passwords and remove the old developer's accounts. Some of those passwords also connect the site to other services, so they're changed in an order that keeps the site running. I handle that order as part of the takeover.
If the relationship broke down mid-build rather than after launch, that's project rescue, which starts with an independent read of where the work actually stands.
Should I upgrade to Craft 5 as part of the takeover?
No. Stabilise the site first, then upgrade to Craft 5 as its own piece of work. A takeover changes who looks after the site; an upgrade changes the site itself. Doing both at once makes it hard to tell which change caused a problem, and harder to undo it.
On a Craft 3 or Craft 4 site, though, the upgrade should be the first planned job after the takeover, not a someday item. Craft 4 stopped getting security fixes on 30 April 2026. Craft 5 gets bug fixes until 31 December 2030 and security fixes until 31 December 2031, which is a long, predictable runway.
If the takeover has you wondering whether to stay on Craft at all, settle that before paying for an upgrade.
Do I need a new Craft licence?
No. Craft licences belong to the project, not to the developer, so a new developer doesn't mean a new licence. What changes is who holds them. Licences live in Craft Console, the licence portal run by Pixel & Tonic, the company that makes Craft, and they should sit in an organisation your business owns.
Where the licence key lives
A licence key is the code that ties your site to its Craft licence. Every Craft site has one, usually in a small file in the site's code (your developer will know it as config/license.key), and sometimes in the hosting settings instead.
How to get your licences into your business's name
An organisation in Craft Console is a shared account for your business. It has no login of its own: people reach it through their own personal Craft Console accounts, as members. That's what makes it right for a business. A developer can be added to manage the licences, then removed later without anything moving.
- Set up an organisation for your business. Someone senior in the business, such as the owner, creates it from their own Craft Console account and stays on as an Owner. Owners have full control, manage the payment details, and get the renewal reminders and billing emails.
- Invite the old developer in. Add them as a Member. Members can manage licences, which is all they need to move them across.
- Move the licences. The developer transfers each licence from their account into your organisation. Plugin licences attached to the Craft licence are offered for transfer at the same time. If they'd rather not join, they can release a licence instead and your business claims it with the key. Anyone with the key can claim a released licence, so claim it straight away.
- Add your business card. Organisations and personal accounts don't share payment details. After a transfer, a licence set to renew automatically keeps the old payment method until you add one to the organisation.
- Remove the old developer. Once everything has moved, take them out of the organisation. A new developer can be added the same way, and removed just as easily.
When the developer won't help
Pixel & Tonic won't tell you which account holds a licence, so the outgoing developer, or whoever paid for the build, is the only route to it. Put the licence transfer in the written handover request, with the other access.
Renewals
A paid Craft licence keeps working even if the renewals lapse. The site keeps running on the version it has; it just stops getting updates and security fixes, and that's what the yearly fee pays for. Renewal reminders go to the organisation's Owners 30 days before, and the price is locked in at the reminder. Renewing late never charges for the gap. Plugin licences have their own renewal dates. If the licences still sit in the old developer's account, so do the reminders.
For reference, from craftcms.com:
| Edition | Price | Users |
|---|---|---|
| Solo | Free | One user |
| Team | USD $279 per project | Up to five users, one user group |
| Pro | USD $399 per project | Unlimited users and groups |
Team and Pro each include a year of updates, then USD $99 a year. Both are included if the site is hosted on Craft Cloud, Pixel & Tonic's own hosting.
Taking over a Craft CMS website in New Zealand
Taking over a Craft site for a New Zealand business works exactly the same way, done remotely. Same checklist, same timeline. New Zealand is two hours ahead of Melbourne most of the year, so calls fit easily into both working days. I invoice in AUD.
If you're looking for a Craft CMS developer New Zealand-side, hosting options include Craft Cloud, Servd, or managed hosting on Australian servers. More on that on the Craft CMS developer for New Zealand businesses page.
How I take over Craft sites
I'm Anthony Keal, an independent Melbourne-based Craft CMS developer who takes over Craft sites from other developers, for businesses in Australia and New Zealand, and works on existing sites as well as new builds.
I've done more than ten Craft builds as developer or delivery lead, including this site. I led an Australian agency's move to Craft as its standard platform, and I've connected Craft to CRMs such as HubSpot, Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics. Takeovers are some of the most common Craft work I do.
You deal with me from the first call to the finished work. Takeovers run on prepaid hours, with an estimate after a first look at the site.
Pricing works the same way for every job:
- A free 20-minute call. Tell me what's going on with the site and who has access to what.
- A ballpark by email, when the scope is clear. For most takeovers I can send one after the call.
- Paid scoping, when it isn't. If the work means learning your internal systems, such as a connection to your CRM or ERP, it starts with a paid scoping agreement, credited against the build if you go ahead.
Nothing starts until you've agreed the price.
After the takeover, the site can stay where it is, or move to my managed hosting on Australian servers, with updates tested before they go live, backups, the security certificate and monitoring, for $220 a month ex GST. More on Craft website maintenance and hosting, or on working with a Craft CMS developer in Australia.
Send me the site's address. I'll look at the version, add-ons and hosting before we talk.
