.htaccess newby

[GlobalLingo]

Sorry to ask a really dumb question. I want to sort out a load of old 404 errors. I've exported the list of URL and I'm more than happy to go through that and work out what needs to go where.

After that my only option at the moment is to use the re-direct function in my WordPress install and do all the work manually. There are loads to do so I want to be able to upload all the re-directs.

I know I need to create a htaccess file and upload it. I know where to upload it.

This is where I get nervous. I need to get this file right. Is there a really obvious idiots file which I can use and then save as the correct file type? I've got all the URLs in a CSV at the moment.

Sorry for being a bit thick. Hope you can help.

[TomRayner]

Hey Richard

This isn't a thick question at all - you're very wise to take care with this. A faulty .htaccess file can cause chaos!

Just wanted to make a suggestion - if you're running WordPress have you tried the Redirection plugin? It does all of the rewriting for you - just pop in the old URL and the new URL and you're on your way.  Comes with a few other features too and has had tons of downloads over the years.

If you want to go down the route of self-education, check out the SEOMoz redirection guide and also this blog post on some useful .htaccess snippets.

I'd recommend using the redirection plugin for 2-3 urls, check it works then look at the generated .htaccess file in your website's backend.  From there, you can see the correct format and filetype etc.  If the tool works, just continue to use it.

Hope this helps!

[GlobalLingo]

Hi Tom,

Thanks for the quick response. That's why I'm being very careful. I have used the re-direction tool but as there are quite a lot to do I was looking for some way to create one big file and then upload rather than copy and paste nearly 300 entries

[Matthew_Edgar]

Hi Richard,

Updating htaccess files can be tricky, especially with that risk of wrecking your site if you do something wrong. So, not a dumb question at all.

WordPress is a great way to add redirects, but if you are dealing with hundreds that can equal a lot of time.

So, if you are looking for a way to quickly build the htaccess file vs. doing everything manually in WordPress, my trick is use to a concatenation function in Excel. That way I can write hundreds of redirects at once and then copy the resulting text into the htaccess file.

The general idea is you have your old URL path in col A, the new URL (full URL) in column B, and then in column C, you'd have a formula that looks something like this (obviously line numbers might change):

="redirect 301 " & A2 & " " & B2

You could then copy column C and add that to your .htaccess file. Of course, back up the htacecss file first. The only word of caution would be to make sure you have valid paths in column A (no special characters, no full URLs, etc.).

Hope that helps.

[GlobalLingo]

Hi Matthew,

That is the perfect answer, thank you so much. Just creating the file was where I was getting stuck and knowing what to put in the columns.

what I have at the moment is:

Column A = 404 url

Column B = URL I want

That solution is perfect, I'm more than happy using that!

[GlobalLingo]

Hi Matthew,

Sorry, pretty nervous now!

Here's what I have in the columns

A = http://www.global-lingo.com/news/2009/12/news-internet-translations/

B = http://www.global-lingo.com/blog/

C = redirect 301 http://www.global-lingo.com/news/2009/12/news-internet-translations/ http://www.global-lingo.com/blog/

I think I got a little lost with the full URL in column A. What should I remove? Or have a got it correct? Sorry to use the real URL I just want to make sure I get this correct.

Thanks

Richard

[Matthew_Edgar]

Hey Richard,

You are really close! In column A, do a find for "http://www.global-lingo.com" and replace with nothing. That way you are left with:

A = /news/2009/12/news-internet-translations/

B = http://www.global-lingo.com/blog/

C = redirect 301 /news/2009/12/news-internet-translations/ http://www.global-lingo.com/blog/

Thanks,
Matthew

[GlobalLingo]

Brilliant, thanks Matthew

[GlobalLingo]

Ok now I'm stuck again!

I have the list, in the right format, thanks to Matthew.

I can see where to upload the file, but now I'm worried that it will replace all my existing redirects. From the WordPress site I can't see where I can export all the existing redirects so that I could at least add my new ones to the existing ones and upload a new file.

Any ideas guys?

[Matthew_Edgar]

Hey -

Glad you got everything in the right format!

Can you download your current .htaccess file via FTP? I'd download that and then add the new redirects at the bottom of the file and then upload the file. Be sure to save a backup of the htaccess file before you make changes.

Let me know if that works? Thanks,
Matthew

[GlobalLingo]

That's what I want to do. But I can't be sure I have the right file. There are .htaccess files in a few folders

Thanks for bearing with me Matthew

[Matthew_Edgar]

Ah, I see what you are saying. You want to download the one from the site root for redirects. Typically, that is going to be something like a /public_html or /httpdocs folder. Do you have an htaccess file there?

[GlobalLingo]

Got one.

This is the content - not certain that's what I need?

redirect permanent /index.html http://www.global-lingo.com/index.php

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

[Matthew_Edgar]

Yeah, that looks to be the right file. So, in this case, I'd put the new redirects right after the current redirect.

redirect permanent /index.html http://www.global-lingo.com/index.php

PUT NEW REDIRECTS HERE

BEGIN WordPress

Let me know if that works!

[GlobalLingo]

Thanks for that.

All done now, fingers crossed!

Richard

[GlobalLingo]

Tested and all working!