You can test the new installation, but keep in mind, the domain is coupled to the database, so don’t run your existing domain on a empty database (don’t create any users) and don’t run your existing database with a new domain (for the domain, the url in the diaspora.yml is relevant).
So my suggestion is (what I did every time I moved my pod to a new server), copy everything to the new server:
- database
public/uploads- configs:
config/diaspora.ymlconfig/database.yml(or create that new with the new database config)config/initializers/secret_token.rbconfig/oidc_key.pem
- certs from the old server
Setup a new pod with the guide in the wiki, but skip the db:create db:migrate part use your existing database instead, then start everything and test if it runs. You can access the new server by adding an entry to your local /etc/hosts with your domain and the new IP address. You should be able to login (or already be logged in, because you copied the secret_token.rb), and see all posts.
Don’t let your new pod running, because if sidekiq is running at 0:00 UTC it will send birthday notification mails, and your users will receive them twice, from old and new pod. So just stop your new pod, until you do the final move, then shut down your old pod, do a final sync of database and uploads, start new pod, change DNS (lower your TTL before the move), and everything should be fine 