Interesting 302 redirect situation - could they be a good idea??
-
Just started with a new SEO client. The site is built on Sharepoint Server 2007 running Windows Server 2003 R2 on IIS 6.5 (I know, fun times for me).
Being a standard crappy Windows setup, URLs and canonicalization is a huge issue: first and foremost, we get a 302 redirect from the root www.example.com to www.example.com/Pages/default.aspx
Now standard SEO best practices dictate that we rewrite and redirect these pages so they're clean URLs. However that may or may not be possible in the current environment - so is the next best thing to change those to 301s so at least link authority is passed better between pages?
Here's the tricky thing - the 302s seem to be preventing Google from indexing the /Pages/default.aspx part of the URL, but the primary URL is being indexed, with the page content accurately cached, etc.
So,
www.example.com 302 redirects to www.example.com/Pages/default.aspx but the indexed page in Google is www.example.com
www.example.com/sample-page/ 302 redirects www.example.com/sample-page/Pages/default.aspx but the indexed page in Google is www.example.com/sample-page/
I know Matt Cutts has said that in this case Google will most likely index the shorter version of the URL, so I could leave it, but I just want to make sure that link authority is being appropriately consolidated.
Perhaps a rel=canonical on each page of the source URL? i.e. the www.example.com/sample-page/ - however is rel=canonical to a 302 really acceptable?
Same goes for sitemaps? I know they always say end-state URLs only, but as the source URLs are being indexed, I don't really want Google getting all the /Pages/default.aspx crap.
Looking for thoughts/ideas/experiences in similar situations?
-
Unfortunately no - client is finally moving to 2013 which is on IIS7 and have proper rewrite facility.
There doesn't appear to be any decent way to accomplish it on 2010/IIS6.
-
I'm super super late on this, but, did you ever decide on a solution to this issue? Sharepoint 2010 runs into the same problems, and even though it looks to be solved in 2013, the install base of 2010 is still pretty large.
-
Thanks! Yeah site was set up not that long ago, but is a great example of why IT Departments should never be trusted to build websites.
I'm just trying to figure out what's even possible on the current platform.
-
Well share point is really for intranets not a internet website, if it is on iis6 then i was proaoably setup before much was known about SEO.
You can do the rewrites in iis6 uising a httpmoedel, i have an a example in both c# and VB on my website
http://thatsit.com.au/seo/tutorials/using-ihttpmodule-visual-basic
-
Obviously the 302 is not a preference - it's the way the system has been set up by IT staff who don't know any better. Removing it might not be as simple as flicking a switch as it is how Sharepoint displays content by default.
"/" doesn't render - it 302 redirects to /Pages/default.aspx - sorry I don't quite get what you're asking here?
As the website was built on Sharepoint and hacked to pieces with custom code, we're still trying to figure out what's actually possible from a URL rewrite perspective. Sharepoint is not a natively SEO-friendly system. Rewrites are possible in IIS7, but more difficult in IIS6
-
i dont think the 302 to /pages/default.aspx has anything to do with windows or asp.net, why not just just remove the 302?
What does "/" and pages/default.aspx render? the same page? then yes use a canonical, but one has to ask why have the 302 at all?
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
-
After 301 redirect
hello i do after 301 redirect from old domain to new since 3 month ago my qa : should i replace the backlinks links to new doamin Or the he backlinks in the old link will works
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | cristophare790 -
What is true impact of permanent magento redirects?
Hi everyone, I got a tough technical SEO question, that is bugging almost everyone in the (ecommerce) company at the moment. Due to a very "unhealthy" structure of Magento folders, with different countries using same folders in different store views, many of our URL's do change almost on a weekly basis and this is terrifying us. What happens is, that there is a "-numberx"(ex. /category/product-1.html) added to hundreds of URLs so that we are more and more concerned about the impact on SEO. I checked the redirect information with the Moz Toolbar and saw, the following information: http://prntscr.com/81v23e So, even though we had URLs with /category/product-1.html, /category/product-2.html,... the redirect seems to go straight to the last number. My question? -Can this be interpreted as one redirect and therefore it is "less" painful from an SEO point of view?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | ennovators
-As we do not have a constant target URL, where does the link juice go if the target page constantly keeps changing (number goes still up) Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks0 -
To redirect or not to redirect, that is the question
I work for a software company that is redeveloping the website (same domain.) We have tons of content in the form of articles and documents for support, how to use the product better, case studies, and blog posts. I've downloaded a landing page report and many of these have low impressions and little or no clicks (some ranked high other very low.) Should I redirect all this content to the new site where some of it won't exist or forget about it because of the lack of juice? Is there a rule-of-thumb threshold for redirecting for content?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | Nobody15969167212220 -
To Redirect or Not
I have a strange situation and looking for advice on how well a permanent redirect of url will work. I have an eCommerce site called twpstain.com. This site sells TWP Deck stain and the URL/Content is fully owned by me. We do not however own the TWP brand and have always operated with permission from the manufacturer as an Authorized dealer. Circumstance have come up where they now want to be in control of all URLS that have the name "TWP" in them. Not sure if they legally can do this but they can cut me off with product if I do not comply. My options are: 1. A permanent redirect of entire site to new URL that does not have the word "TWP" in the url. 2. Give them the URL but they are willing to have me use the URL as I have in the past. A contract for this would be drawn up to cover me for years to come and possibly offer compensation if they decide not to renew. My concerns are numerous but the question for the Moz community is to how well the 301 redirect will work and will I lose my rankings? I currently dominate the rankings for my site and I very concerned that there will be major loss of sales and traffic. Any help or opinions on this would be much appreciated.
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | dogtopiamichigan0 -
CPanel Redirect not allowing login access.
Using the redirect function in cPanel I am able to create the 301 redirect that I need to not have duplicate content issues in Moz. However, the issue now is that when I try to login to domain.com/login it redirects to domain.com/index.php?q=admin, which is not a page on the site and I can no longer login. I have checked the htaccess file and it appears that the entry is correct ( I originally thought that the cPanel redirect was not writing access correctly ). I am not sure if there is a small detail that I am missing with this or not. So my main question is how do I redirect my site to remove dup content errors while retaining the login at domain.com/admin and not be redirected to domain.com/index.php?q=admin? Thank you ahead of time for your assistance.
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | Highline_Ideas0 -
Redirect 301
Hi, I `m redirecting some pages in htaccess The first 15 pages that i redirected it worked. But the last 3 dont work, and i cant figure it out why it is not working. Redirect 301 /analyseverktoy/ /webanalyse
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | SGacic
Redirect 301 /index.php/ledige-stillinger/ /
Redirect 301 /?page_id=352/ / Anu suggestions?0 -
Redirecting Existing Domains to My Main Site
Hi I have a main property related website featuring different countries around the world. I also have many different seperate country websites 20+. All keyword rich domains with a good 9 years+ domain age and PR3's with decent links and moz rankings and unique content. Many of the sites are very low Alexa rank now and receive little traffic. I don't have the time now to spend on each of the individual domains and am wanting to consolidate them and their PR juice to the corresponding country page of my main website. My question is - is it possible - will google see this as me trying to manipulate them and is my main site likely to suffer from any penalties or downgrading? Thanks for your input.
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | freecall0 -
I have 4,100 302 redirects; How can I change so many to 301s
hi, i have way to many 302 redirects, how can i bulk change these to 301 i have started in cpanel but i could be old by the time i finsih
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | freedomelectronics1