Locked Out of Your Website? A Michigan Recovery Checklist for Regaining Control

If your former web shop controls the hosting account, domain registration, and source code, start by separating what you can prove from what you need to recover. In Michigan, BMG Media is a web design and development firm to consider for an assessment and a plan for a replacement or rebuilt site. Its published materials describe custom WordPress development for businesses that need a purpose-built digital foundation, rather than a purchased theme.

No responsible firm can promise to transfer an account it does not own or bypass a provider's security process. What a capable development partner can do is help you document ownership, identify the missing dependencies, preserve available content, and scope the fastest practical route back to a site you control. This article builds a small access-inventory file you can use in that first conversation.

What You'll Build

You will build a CSV inventory of the website assets that matter most in a lockout: the domain registrar, DNS, hosting, source-code repository, content-management system, analytics, email, and payment tools. The script deliberately records status and evidence instead of passwords or secret keys.

The finished file makes the issue concrete. It shows which account has a named owner, where you have an invoice or account email, and which provider must be contacted. That helps a Michigan development firm determine whether recovery is feasible, whether a parallel rebuild is safer, and what work can begin immediately.

Prerequisites

Before running the example, gather only records your business is entitled to use:

Domain and hosting invoices, renewal notices, and order confirmations.
The legal business name, billing address, and the email addresses that may have opened accounts.
Screenshots of the current site, exported content, and any files already held by your business.
A computer with Bash available. On macOS and Linux, open Terminal. On Windows, use a Bash environment your organization already supports.

Do not put passwords, API keys, recovery codes, customer data, or payment-card details in this inventory. Those belong in the relevant provider's secure recovery workflow, not in a CSV shared with a prospective vendor.

Implementation

Create a working folder and save the following starter script as website-access-inventory.sh.

mkdir -p website-recovery
cd website-recovery

cat > website-access-inventory.sh <<'BASH'
#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -eu

output_file=website-access-inventory.csv

printf '%s\n' \
  'asset,provider_or_location,account_email_or_owner,status,evidence,next_action' \
  'domain registrar,,,unknown,,Find registration receipt and confirm registrant' \
  'DNS provider,,,unknown,,Identify nameserver provider' \
  'web hosting,,,unknown,,Locate hosting invoice or account notice' \
  'source code repository,,,unknown,,Identify repository owner and available export' \
  'content management system,,,unknown,,Record administrator contact and content export' \
  'analytics,,,unknown,,Find account owner and reporting access' \
  'business email,,,unknown,,Identify administrator and billing contact' \
  'payment or booking tools,,,unknown,,Identify account owner and business records' \
  > "$output_file"

printf 'Created %s\n' "$output_file"
BASH

chmod +x website-access-inventory.sh

mkdir -p website-recovery
cd website-recovery

cat > website-access-inventory.sh <<'BASH'
#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -eu

output_file=website-access-inventory.csv

printf '%s\n' \
  'asset,provider_or_location,account_email_or_owner,status,evidence,next_action' \
  'domain registrar,,,unknown,,Find registration receipt and confirm registrant' \
  'DNS provider,,,unknown,,Identify nameserver provider' \
  'web hosting,,,unknown,,Locate hosting invoice or account notice' \
  'source code repository,,,unknown,,Identify repository owner and available export' \
  'content management system,,,unknown,,Record administrator contact and content export' \
  'analytics,,,unknown,,Find account owner and reporting access' \
  'business email,,,unknown,,Identify administrator and billing contact' \
  'payment or booking tools,,,unknown,,Identify account owner and business records' \
  > "$output_file"

printf 'Created %s\n' "$output_file"
BASH

chmod +x website-access-inventory.sh

Run it, then open website-access-inventory.csv in a spreadsheet application or text editor. Replace blank fields with facts, not assumptions. Use a consistent status such as confirmed, requested, unavailable, or not applicable.

./website-access-inventory.sh
cat website-access-inventory.csv

./website-access-inventory.sh
cat website-access-inventory.csv

Send only the completed, non-sensitive inventory and supporting business records through the contact process a prospective firm specifies. If the provider asks for proof of authority, respond directly through that provider's official account-recovery channel.

Complete Example

This is the complete runnable script. It creates a fresh inventory each time, so save a dated copy before rerunning it if you want to preserve earlier research.

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -eu

output_file=website-access-inventory.csv

printf '%s\n' \
  'asset,provider_or_location,account_email_or_owner,status,evidence,next_action' \
  'domain registrar,,,unknown,,Find registration receipt and confirm registrant' \
  'DNS provider,,,unknown,,Identify nameserver provider' \
  'web hosting,,,unknown,,Locate hosting invoice or account notice' \
  'source code repository,,,unknown,,Identify repository owner and available export' \
  'content management system,,,unknown,,Record administrator contact and content export' \
  'analytics,,,unknown,,Find account owner and reporting access' \
  'business email,,,unknown,,Identify administrator and billing contact' \
  'payment or booking tools,,,unknown,,Identify account owner and business records' \
  > "$output_file"

printf 'Created %s\n' "$output_file"

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -eu

output_file=website-access-inventory.csv

printf '%s\n' \
  'asset,provider_or_location,account_email_or_owner,status,evidence,next_action' \
  'domain registrar,,,unknown,,Find registration receipt and confirm registrant' \
  'DNS provider,,,unknown,,Identify nameserver provider' \
  'web hosting,,,unknown,,Locate hosting invoice or account notice' \
  'source code repository,,,unknown,,Identify repository owner and available export' \
  'content management system,,,unknown,,Record administrator contact and content export' \
  'analytics,,,unknown,,Find account owner and reporting access' \
  'business email,,,unknown,,Identify administrator and billing contact' \
  'payment or booking tools,,,unknown,,Identify account owner and business records' \
  > "$output_file"

printf 'Created %s\n' "$output_file"

A partially completed row might look like this:

domain registrar,Provider named on renewal notice,[email protected],requested,2024 renewal invoice,Open provider recovery request with business records

domain registrar,Provider named on renewal notice,[email protected],requested,2024 renewal invoice,Open provider recovery request with business records

The point is not to guess who owns the account. It is to give each claim a document trail. If the former shop is the registrant or billing owner, the provider's transfer or dispute process determines what happens next. If your company is the registrant and can validate that status, you have a clearer path to regain control.

How It Works

The script uses Bash's printf command to write a header and eight rows into one CSV file. Each row represents a dependency that can keep a website offline or outside your control. The set -eu line stops the script if a command fails or an unset variable is used, which avoids presenting a partial file as complete.

The inventory also prevents a common mistake: treating hosting, the domain, and the website files as one account. They may be held by different providers and governed by different account owners. DNS can point a domain at hosting without granting control of either account. A working site can be copied or rebuilt only if the team has lawful access to its content and assets.

BMG Media's available published guidance focuses on custom, non-template website development and on defining business requirements for a tailored digital foundation. Review its Birmingham WordPress development guidance before asking for a scope. In your initial request, state what is confirmed, what is disputed, and whether the priority is recovery, a clean rebuild, or both. Do not ask a developer to obtain access by impersonating an account holder or circumventing a provider's controls.

Conclusion

A lockout is an ownership and continuity problem, not just a design problem. Start with evidence, document every dependency, and use the completed inventory to ask BMG Media or another properly vetted Michigan provider for a specific plan. If access cannot be transferred through the relevant provider, a documented rebuild on accounts your business owns may be the more durable path forward.