Moving to a Different Mastodon Server

When I first signed up for Mastodon, I created my account salcode on mastodon.social. Eventually I decided I wanted to be on a smaller server, specifically phpc.social. These are my notes on how I made this move.

The data move is limited to: (1) Updating your new account to follow the people you followed on your old account and (2) redirecting anyone following your old account to follow you at your new account. Other data can be exported from your old account before or after the move.

1. Create a New Account on the New Server

Setup an account on the new server and waited for it to be approved. You can use the same username as the old server or a new username. I used the same username, salcode, on both.

2. Configure the New Account to Accept a Move from the Old Account

To ready the new account (phpc.social/@salcode), create an alias to your old account (mastodon.social/@salcode).

To do this on the new account, click Edit profile

Then click Account in the sidebar menu.

On this page, scroll down to Moving from a different account and click the create an account alias link.

For a shortcut, you should be able to go directly to /settings/aliases on the new server (e.g. phpc.social/settings/aliases).

Here you enter the old account using the “handle” format (e.g. salcode@mastodon.social).

and click CREATE ALIAS.

3. Move the Old Account to the New Account

Go to the Account page on the Old Account, i.e. go to /auth/edit on the old server (e.g. mastodon.social/auth/edit).

Scroll down to Move to a different account and click the configure it here link.

Enter your new account using the “handle” format (e.g. salcode@phpc.social) and your “Current Password” on the old account, then click MOVE FOLLOWERS.

and you should get a message that says

Your account is now redirecting to salcode@phpc.social and your followers are being moved over.

Sal Ferrarello (@salcode)

Sal is a PHP developer with a focus on the WordPress platform. He is a conference speaker with a background including Piano Player, Radio DJ, Magician/Juggler, Beach Photographer, and High School Math Teacher. Sal can be found professionally at WebDevStudios, where he works as a senior backend engineer.