RedirHub’s matching options allow you to set up intricate redirect configurations effortlessly.
First, we check our database for a redirect that matches the full URL path. For instance, if a request for www.example.com/path?query-string=1 is received, we look for that exact match. If found, we use the specified destination. If not, we move on to the next matching criteria:
- Exact match path (case sensitive): www.example.com/path
- Without path: www.example.com
- root domain(only works in www version domain): example.com
- Wildcard domain: *.example.com
If none of these conditions are met, a 404 page is presented. To prevent this, we recommend setting up a “root path” redirect to ensure your users always have a valid destination.
URI Forwarding = no preference on root match#
When a request comes in without a specified path (i.e., the homepage), we prioritize sources with URL Forwarding disabled. This allows for the following setup:
• Redirect 1: example.com/ -> new.com – URI Forwarding = yes
• Redirect 2: example.com/ -> new.com/new-homepage – URI Forwarding = no
In this configuration, a request for example.com (the homepage) will redirect to new.com/new-homepage, while all other requests go to new.com/$PATH$ as specified by the source.
Match not found#
What happens when a redirect request doesn’t find a match?
Path not found#
Let’s say you have these redirects set up:
• https://example.com/ -> https://new-domain.com
• https://example.com/contact -> https://new-domain.com/contact-us
Example 1: A user visits https://example.com/contact and is correctly redirected to https://new-domain.com/contact-us.
Example 2: A user visits https://example.com/old-contact-page, which doesn’t match any path exactly. RedirHub then checks if there’s a redirect for https://example.com/. If found, the user is redirected to https://new-domain.com. This is why we always recommend setting up a “root path redirect” to avoid 404 errors.
We recommend this in our interface automatically to ensure a seamless user experience.
Because we fall back on the root path when no match is found, your visitors won’t encounter a 404 page. If you have a specific need for a custom 404 page, let us know and we can reconsider our approach.
Hostname not found#
If the hostname isn’t found (i.e., not set up in RedirHub), we can’t redirect the request. In this scenario, a “404 not found” page is served.
Want to customize the branding on this error page? You can utilize a Dedicated IP for more control. Check out our Dedicated IP article for more information.