Fifteen years of content,
a brand-new core
An EmpireCMS site (GBK encoding, Zend-encrypted files) rebuilt on WordPress: categories, lists, article pages, law firms and lawyer profiles matched one by one, with native WordPress editing behind it. Not a single file on the original site was written to.
Why not ship a static skin
The core is what had to go — not the design. So the rebuild started at the template level: left column (news, admin login, firm updates, about), main column with three paired cards (photo news / latest, statutes / industry, case reviews / procedures). Same DOM hierarchy, same stylesheet, down to the “more >” placement and date format.
Original and rebuild
Original (EmpireCMS, GBK)
Rebuild (WordPress + hand-written PHP theme)
Feature parity
| Capability | Original | Rebuild |
|---|---|---|
| Category lists | EmpireCMS templates | WP archives, same pagination |
| Article page | date + view counter | date + read count |
| Firms / lawyers | separate content models | custom post types + fields |
| Site search | articles/lawyers/firms | one page, three modes |
| Publishing | EmpireCMS admin | native WordPress editor |
| Media | /static/d/ | 600 MB re-hosted |
How it was done
- Read-only source: the original SQLite database is read directly, never written.
- Timestamp fix: the source stored Unix epochs — converted to local time before insert, so dates match exactly.
- Field mapping: director, phone, fax, address, website, lawyer photo, firm and view count each land in the right slot.
- No page builder: plain PHP templates and one stylesheet, so upgrades cannot break the layout.
- SQLite database: a single file to back up, fully isolated from the production site.
Live demo
The front end is public; “Open admin” signs you straight into the WordPress dashboard (disposable demo data — edit anything).
Physically isolated from the original: its own directory and its own SQLite database. The production site was never written to.
A real rebuild; demo content comes from public pages.