Wordpress and Redirects?
-
I want to update my permalinks - actually I want to change the URL's to fit the content and keywords better. I can choose "edit" the URL, but don't I need a redirect? I don't see any htaccess Plugin installed.......is that what I need to be able to change my URL's in Wordpress?
-
Access .htaccess via Cpanel > File Manager (select view hidden files) or use and FTP program. Don;t rely on yoast. Not everyone uses Wordpress or yoast. Also Yoast can break with wp updates.
-
Hi Courtney! Did you see Dan's response to your question?
-
Hi Courtney
It should be under Yoast->Edit Files -- see this screenshot. If it's not there, are you using some sort of special host for WordPress? You're using WordPress.ORG (not .com)?
I agree that its good for you to learn, but .htaccess is something that can take down your site with one misplaced character, so I would be careful if you're going to edit it. Have a friend you can call on who might know how to fix it if something goes awry. Also, you should have FTP access readily available, in case it does break, that's how you're going to get in and fix it.
Certainly not discouraging you from learning it - just be careful and have FTP access in case you need it!
-Dan
-
All great answers guys! Thanks. Still a little confused which way to go, as it seems I have a few options. I already have Yoast installed. Where is the htaccess in wordpress?
I think I need to learn the correct way also as big spin suggests. I have been writing content for over a year, but 301's is something I haven't mastered yet.
-
Highly suggest the idea by Dan... Yoast SEO is the great plugin!
-
I recommend you learn the correct way of 301 redirects as it's handy with other CMS like Joomla or Drupal etc.
Hopefully you're using cpanel. Login to Cpanel, go to redirects tab. Create the redirect. When using Wordpress, you won't see any changes. Go back to Cpanel home and login to File Manager. Ensure to select view hidden files.
In File Manger select edit code .htacccess.
From here you will see the redirect code thnat you created in Cpanel a moment ago at the bottom. Cut and Paste this and move
It will look like this:
BEGIN WordPress
<ifmodule mod_rewrite.c="">RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]</ifmodule>END WordPress
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^yourdomain.com$ [OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.yourdomain.com$
RewriteRule ^sample-page/$ "http://www.yourdomain.com/" [R=301,L]You now need to move the rewrite so it appears above #BEGIN WordPress, like below. Presto. 301s work. You don;t need to worry about plugins breaking etc.
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^yourdomain.com$ [OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.yourdomain.com$
RewriteRule ^sample-page/$ "http://www.yourdomain.com/" [R=301,L]BEGIN WordPress
<ifmodule mod_rewrite.c="">RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]</ifmodule>END WordPress
-
Try this plugin : http://wordpress.org/plugins/change-permalink-helper/
I have had good success with it . As with any plugins test it out after you deploy .. there might be conflicts with other plugins or with the theme you are using
-
Thanks for that! Just want to add for Courtney - if she uses Yoast SEO plugin, you can also edit .htaccess right in wordpress without having to FTP.
-
I agree John this is the most user friendly way to do the redirects. The only thing I would add is - shut OFF the features which automatically adds redirects when you change URLs. It sounds like a nice feature, but it can get confusing because I found it to do them automatically a little too aggressively. Best to use the plugin but keep it on manual.
-
I think you could use a redirect plugin for this, for example this one here. This way you don't have to manually edit .htaccess. Just make sure the resulting URLs are using 301 redirects. It looks like there are a lot of plugins for this, so try a few out and see which you like the best!
As you change your URLs, keep track of the old and new URL mappings, and add those redirects to the plugin.
-
Hello,
Yes, if your pages are indexed and you want to change the URLs then a 301 redirect is your best bet. Edit the URL on the page or post you are looking to edit. Then add the redirect to the .htaccess file. You may need to create one to add to the root directory of your wordpress install. The general .htaccess file looks like this.
BEGIN WordPress
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
END WordPress
Just add in the redirect to the end of this file. It could look something like..
redirect 301 /old-page http://www.something.com/new-page
Then you should be all set.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Redirecting an Entire Website?
Is it best to redirect an old website to a new website page by page to like pages or just the entire site all at once to the home page of the new site? I do have about 10 good pages on the site that are worth directing to corresponding pages on the new site. Just trying to figure out what is going to preserve the most link juice. Thanks for the help!
Technical SEO | | photoseo10 -
301 Redirect Expert
I have hired two website people from odesk and had bad experience in 301 redirects. One never got it done and the other cause my website to crash on a 500 error code, he load all the redirects in a script on .htaccess on my wordpress site on godaddy, there were 1400 redirect.Can somebody recommend a expert for my redirect problem.
Technical SEO | | tjacquet0 -
Questions about the Sandbox and 301 Redirects
Does the sandbox still exist? What if you have a brand new URL and do a 301 redirect from another website because the name of the service business changed? Thanks for any insight and help.
Technical SEO | | SDSLaw0 -
301 redirect chains
Hi everyone, I've had my site for a while now and have changed the structure a number of times. I'm confident my 301's work well and am not concerned about dead ends on my site. My question is, is there a way to find 301 redirect chains? i.e. can I export my link data from webmaster tools and run it through some software that tells me how many steps my 301's are taking to get to the final page? I don't know for sure that there are long 301 chains in my link structure, but I have a suspicion and it's very hard to check by going through them manually. Thanks in advance Will
Technical SEO | | madegood0 -
Redirecting Parked Domain
I just recently switched hosting. We have 3 domains and 1 being the main domain. Right now they are set up as parked domains. Can I redirect the parked domains under my main websites .htaccess file ? I am just worried that good we will get hit for duplicate content, even though technically the content is only on our main domain. right now if I type in my parked domains in Google, they appear in search. The site is all hand coded and not using a CMS.
Technical SEO | | hfranz0 -
301 redirect on wordpress.com
Hi, How/where do I input a 301 redirect for my http site within wordpress.com. I am already redirecting my wordpress url to myy new non wordpress domain Thanks Lisa
Technical SEO | | lisamarieCunn0 -
Someone is redirecting their url to mine
Hello, I have just discovered that a company in Poland www.realpilot.pl is directing their domain to ours www.transair.co.uk. We have not authorised this, neither do we want this. I have contacted the company and the webmaster to get it removed. If you search for the domain name www.realpilot.pl we (www.transair.co.uk) come up top. My biggest worry is that we will get penalised by Google for this re-direct as it appears to be done using some kind of frame. Does anyone know anything about this kind of thing? Many Thanks Rob Martin
Technical SEO | | brightonseorob0 -
Redirects
Hello, My question is: how important is it to wait for the a redirect to get seen and cached before you take down the old page? More in depth: my old platform has seriously limited my ability to add sitemaps and make edits to htacces. I just want to change nameservers (which will delete everything on there) and upload the htaccess is that alright? Another way of saying it: when redirecting a page, is it necessary for google to see the old page before it is deleted? Thanks Tyler
Technical SEO | | tylerfraser0