301 Redirecting weird URLs with % in them
-
I've been working on redirecting links reported as 404 in Google webmaster tools.
I've stumbled upon 41 URLs that Google is reporting as 404 that include a '%' in the URL, but I don't know how to redirect. Here is an example:
URL:
bond_information.htm%20Surety%20Bond%20Information,%20with%20FAQ
Attempted redirect:
redirect 301 /bond_information.htm%20Surety%20Bond%20Information,%20with%20FAQ http://www.mysite.com/
Unfortunately, after implementing the redirect, http://www.mysite.com/bond_information.htm%20Surety%20Bond%20Information,%20with%20FAQ still resolves a 404 error.
Anyone successfully fix these errors using Apache .htaccess?
-
Hi,
I think the issue lies in the original redirect
If you notice the 404 URLS all have the ending extension, then additional items, there would probably be no space here, as this was probably from a previous domain level 301
Also for ones like
redirect 301 "/ 20Sponsored" http://www.mysite.com/ quotations are not necessary, as there appears to be no space.
It is really hard for me to give you specifics - can you PM me a specific URL string that is 404'ing then I will send you the correct 301 expression and we can check that way?
-
Thanks. I was hopeful, but no such luck. I believe I implemented what you meant....let me know if the redirects below are what you meant or if I screwed it up.
redirect 301 "/blog/how-to-get-licensed-widgeted/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/estimate.php" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/surety-widget-improvements-act-of-2006 22" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/estimate.php" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/contractor_license_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/auto_dealer_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/info 5C/videos 5C/l1-what-are-surety-widgets.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/blog 5C/how-to-increase-your-contract-surety-widget-line" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/contract-widgets 5C/applications 5C/apply_contract.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/getting-your-new-business-widgeted/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/info 5C/videos 5C/l1-what-are-surety-widgets.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/getting-your-new-business-widgeted/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/auto_dealer_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/alabama-air-conditiner-contract 3C/ul 3E 20 3C/div 3E 20 3Cdiv 20class=" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/getting-your-new-business-widgeted/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/contractor_license_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/page/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/estimate.php" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/page/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/blog 5C/how-to-increase-your-contract-surety-widget-line" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/page/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/info 5C/videos 5C/l1-what-are-surety-widgets.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/page/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/contract-widgets 5C/applications 5C/apply_contract.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/page/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/auto_dealer_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/page/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/contractor_license_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/contract-widgets 5C/applications 5C/apply_contract.htm" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/blog 5C/how-to-increase-your-contract-surety-widget-line" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/info 5C/videos 5C/l1-what-are-surety-widgets.htm" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/contractor_license_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/commercial-widgets 5C/auto_dealer_widget.htm" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/blog/what-widgeting-companies-look-for-in-a-contractor/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/surety-widgets 5C/contract-widgets 5C/applications 5C/apply_contract.htm" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/estimate.php" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/blog/what-widgeting-companies-look-for-in-a-contractor/ 5C/ 5C/www.mysite.com 5C/blog 5C/how-to-increase-your-contract-surety-widget-line" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/surety_widget.php 3Fwidget_form_id 3D1168 26widget_type_id 3D35" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/surety_widget.php 3Fwidget_form_id 3D12 26widget_type_id 3D105" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/ E2 80 8Bsurety_widget.php?id=346" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/ E2 80 8Bsurety_widget.php?id=304" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/ 20Sponsored" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/info/tool_surety_company.php 3Fid 3D106" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/blog/performance-widgets-how-times-change/ 20Performance 20widgets 20- 20How 20times 20change" http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/contract-widgets/construction_widget.htm 20?iframe=true&width=100 &height=100 " http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/licensed-states/maryland_surety_widget.htm 20?iframe=true&width=100 &height=100 " http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/surety-widgets/contract-widgets/performance_widget.htm 20?iframe=true&width=100 &height=100 " http://www.mysite.com/
redirect 301 "/widget_information.htm 20Surety 20widget 20Information, 20with 20FAQ" http://www.mysite.com/info/
redirect 301 "/blog/congress-pushes-more-regulation-on-personal-sureties&sa=U&ei=pQwtT_rOPKbi2AW3oOCQDw&ved=0CC4QmAEwBA&usg=AFQjCNE-HBRRWwzjaNERMro6sEcFdmdd7Q" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/congress-pushes-more-regulation-on-personal-sureties&sa=U&ei=lhUpT-6aEez4sQL29sHVAg&ved=0CC0QmAEwBA&usg=AFQjCNGLStPFLxiEzY35YzA6NFvM7aeQLQ" http://www.mysite.com/blog/
redirect 301 "/blog/congress-pushes-more-regulation-on-personal-sureties&sa=U&ei=jsAnT6LPD634sQK3panRAg&ved=0CC0QmAEwBA&usg=AFQjCNE0uBycDO_lWcgkRaC4iD_a5FLGkA" http://www.mysite.com/blog/ -
Hi -
Those are spaces -
Which in htacess would just be a space - but encapsulate the URL with spaces with " "
Such as
redirect 301 "/bond_information.htm Surety Bond Information, with FAQ" http://www.mysite.com/
Also i know formatting here is awful, but you need a space between old and new URI's
PS. it is not just the % --- %20 equals a space in HTTP resolves
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
-
URL structuring / redirect question
Hi there, I have a URL structuring / redirect question. I have many pages on my site but I set each page up to fall under one of two folders as I serve two unique markets and want each side to be indexed properly. I have SIDE A: www.domain/FOLDER-A.com and SIDE B: www.domain/FOLDER-B. The problem is that I have a page for www.domain.com and www.domain/FOLDER-A/page1.com but I do NOT have a page for www.domain/FOLDER-A. The reason for this is that I've opted to make what would be www.domain/FOLDER-A be www.domain.com and act the primary landing page the site. As a result, there is no page located at www.domain/FOLDER-A. My WordPress template (Divi by Elegant Themes) forced me to create a blank page to be able to build off the FOLDER-A framework. My question is that given I am forced to have this blank page, do I leave it be or create a 302 or 307 redirect to www.domain.com? I fear using a 301 redirect given I may want to utilize this page for content at some point in the future. This isn't the easiest post to follow so please let me know if I need to restate the question. Many thanks in advance!
Technical SEO | | KurtWSEO0 -
Site blocked by robots.txt and 301 redirected still in SERPs
I have a vanity URL domain that 301 redirects to my main site. That domain does have a robots.txt to disallow the entire site as well. However, for a branded enough search that vanity domain still shows up in SERPs and has the new Google message of: A description for this result is not available because of this site's robots.txt I get why the message is there - that's not my , my question is shouldn't a 301 redirect trump this domain showing in SERPs, ever? Client isn't happy about it showing at all. How can I get the vanity domain out of the SERPs? THANKS in advance!
Technical SEO | | VMLYRDiscoverability0 -
301 redirects reverting to 302 redirects
We recently built a new website with a new site structure. To prevent there being a load of 404's I redirected the old pages to the new relevant pages with 301 redirects. A few days later the SEOmoz crawl report alerted me to a load of 302 redirects. When I looked into this for some reason all of the 301 redirects I set up are reverting to 302 redirects. I did a test by 301 redirecting a made up URL to an existing page and the same thing happens - it 302 redirects. I can't find any settings in WordPress to possibly explain why this is happening. Has anyone got any ideas why this could be?
Technical SEO | | Tone_Agency0 -
Can you do a 301 redirect without a hosting account?
Trying to retire domain1 and 301 it to domain2 - just don't want to get stuck having to pay the old hosting provider simply to serve a .htaccess file with the redirect rule.
Technical SEO | | TitanDigital0 -
301 Redirect
Hi there, We are re-branding & re-structuring our website, there will be quite a number of 301 re-directs, possibly hundreds. The question is: Should i wait until the re-branding has been completed and do al the 301's in one go?, or should I try and do 301's as i go along? Kind Regards
Technical SEO | | Paul780 -
Link Juice passing through a redirect of a disallowed URL
Hey guys! Suppose I disallow search bots from indexing anything on my secure server in my robots.txt, and 301 redirect all of my secure server traffic to my non-secure site. Will the search bots see the redirect before they realize that they're disallowed from accessing that page? Or will they see that page is disallowed and not follow the redirect? Should I change my robots.txt to allow search bots to crawl my secure site so they can find the redirects?
Technical SEO | | john4math0 -
301 an old URL with a ? in the URL?
I am redoing a site and the URL's are changing structure. The client's site was in magento and in the store they would get two URLs, for example: /store/categoryname/productname and /store/categoryname/productname?SID=dslkajsfdoiu947598whouieht983hg98 Do I have to 301 redirect both of these URL's to their new counterpart? Both go to the same content but magento seemed to add these SIDs into the navigation and Google has both versions in the index.
Technical SEO | | DanDeceuster0 -
Will Google index a 301 redirect for a new site?
So here is the problem... We have setup a 301redirect for our clients website. When you search the clients name it comes up with the old .co.uk website. We have made this redirect to the new .com website. However on the SERPs when it shows the .co.uk it shows the old title pages which currently say 'Holding Page'. When you click on that link it takes you to the fully functioning .com website. My question is, will the title tags in the SERPs which show the .co.uk update to the new ones from the .com? I'm thinking it will be just a case of Google catching up on things and it will sort itself out eventually. If anyone could help I would REALLY appreciate it. Thanks Chris
Technical SEO | | Weerdboil0