WebSite X5 builds websites from an editable desktop project. A page contains objects placed on a layout grid, while a separate export process creates the files that a web server can publish. Editing the project changes the source used for the next export. WebSite X5 also treats a project archive and a folder of publication files as different objects, so copying one cannot replace the other.
Two export commands preserve different things
Export to disk writes the generated publication files to a local destination. Those files contain the online result that can move to a hosting account. They do not contain the complete editable project in the form that WebSite X5 can reopen for normal page work.
Export the Project creates an IWZIP archive instead. That archive contains the project and its linked files for transfer or recovery. Project Selection imports an IWZIP archive on another installation. A folder created by Export to disk cannot stand in for that archive when the original project disappears.
This separation matters before a computer replacement. Generated publication files remain separate from an IWZIP recovery archive. Exporting the site files does not create that archive.
The desktop grid becomes a reading order
WebSite X5 places page objects on a desktop grid, then linearizes them for narrower responsive breakpoints. The object display order decides which block appears first after the available width can no longer preserve the desktop arrangement.
The automatic order can differ from the intended reading sequence. Desktop position alone therefore does not establish which object appears first after the page reaches a narrower breakpoint.
An inseparable object block adds another limit. Its members remain tied together at later viewports, which restricts reordering or hiding. Its members also cannot be separated freely. The official workflow therefore calls for checking every breakpoint in the offline preview.
External FTP can bypass live-data updates
Export to disk supports a workflow in which another FTP client uploads the generated files. That route can publish ordinary page files, but some advanced functions rely on WebSite X5 publishing to update their live data. The official documentation names product availability and registered-user lists as examples.
An external upload can therefore leave the visible page files current while the associated live records remain unchanged. This limit belongs to the external FTP route; it does not describe the built-in publishing path.
Save-menu backup commands protect project data
The official workflow names the Save menu backup commands as one path for preserving editable project data. This backup path belongs to the editable project workflow. It remains separate from the publication directory.
Export the Project handles transfer through an IWZIP archive instead. Project Selection imports that archive on another installation. Export to disk writes site files and cannot replace the IWZIP object that the import command expects.
