How do I stop a WordPress staging site from redirecting to the live domain?

[Abigail42]

I’ve been trying to set up a staging site for my main WordPress installation, but every time I copy the database over, it still tries to connect to the live domain. I’ve updated the site URL in the wp-config file and ran a search and replace on the database, but I must be missing a step because it keeps redirecting.

[Emily_R]

Yeah, I know the feeling. I copied the DB and the site kept loading the live URL. I updated the SITE_URL and HOME in the options table and did a search and replace, but the redirect kept happening.

[Mark_C]

Check for a hard redirect somewhere on the server like .htaccess or hosting redirect rules. Sometimes the staging domain is wired to forward to the live one and you only notice after a while.

[Anthony77]

Cache matters here. I cleared the server cache, purged the CDN, and even asked my browser to forget the old redirect, and it still showed the live domain at first.

[Scott47]

A plugin or theme can rewrite URLs on the fly. I started by disabling plugins on the staging copy and that helped isolate the issue a bit.

[Steven.W]

If you defined WP_HOME or WP_SITEURL in the config, make sure they actually match the staging URL rather than the live one. I ran into a mismatch that kept sending me back.

[Aubrey_W]

Are you sure the request is actually hitting the staging host, and not a DNS or hosts file mapping? It felt like it until I double checked the network path.

[ScottH]

One more thing I learned: serialized data can keep the old URL after a naive search and replace. If you’re seeing stubborn leftovers, you might need a tool that handles serialized values instead of plain string replace.