# Redirects

SmartCrawl's Redirects module manages URL redirection from within WordPress, without editing `.htaccess` or server config. Found under Advanced Tools > Redirects.

## Redirect Types

| Code | Type | When to Use |
|------|------|-------------|
| **301** | Permanent | Page permanently moved. Passes ~90-99% of link equity. Default choice. |
| **302** | Temporary | Page temporarily moved. Does not pass link equity permanently. Use for A/B tests, maintenance. |
| **307** | Temporary (method preserved) | Like 302 but preserves the HTTP method and body. Rare use case. |

**Default recommendation:** Always use **301** unless you have a specific reason for temporary.

## Creating Redirects

### Basic (Plain Text)

1. Go to SmartCrawl > Advanced Tools > Redirects
2. Click "Add Redirect"
3. Enter the **source URL** (old URL path, e.g., `/old-page/`)
4. Enter the **destination URL** (new URL, e.g., `/new-page/` or full URL)
5. Select redirect type (301/302/307)
6. Save

### Regex Pattern

Switch to "Regex" mode for pattern-based redirects:

```
Source: /blog/(\d{4})/(\d{2})/(.*)
Destination: /blog/$3
Type: 301
```

This redirects dated blog URLs to non-dated versions.

**Regex tips:**
- Test patterns on [regex101.com](https://regex101.com) before applying
- Use capture groups `()` and backreferences `$1`, `$2`, etc.
- Some users report regex patterns not working despite being valid — test thoroughly

### Wildcard Redirects

Use regex mode for wildcards:

```
Source: /old-section/(.*)
Destination: /new-section/$1
Type: 301
```

This redirects all URLs under `/old-section/` to `/new-section/` while preserving the path.

## Auto-Redirect Deleted Posts (v3.9.0+)

Enable this to automatically create a 301 redirect when a post or page is deleted. The redirect points to:
- The parent page (if it was a child page)
- The homepage (if no logical parent)

**Recommendation:** Enable this to prevent 404s when content is removed.

## Bulk Import/Export

### Export
- SmartCrawl exports redirects as JSON
- Useful for backing up redirects before changes

### Import
- Import redirects from JSON file
- Useful when migrating between sites or restoring from backup

### Bulk Edit
- Change redirect types in bulk (e.g., convert all 302s to 301s)
- Delete all redirects at once (use with caution)

## Pro Features

### Location-Based Redirects

With SmartCrawl Pro + MaxMind GeoIP database:
- Redirect visitors based on their country or region
- Example: Redirect Canadian visitors to a `.ca` domain
- Requires MaxMind DB configuration in settings

## When to Use Redirects

| Scenario | Action |
|----------|--------|
| Page URL changed | 301 from old URL to new URL |
| Page deleted, replacement exists | 301 to the replacement page |
| Page deleted, no replacement | 301 to the most relevant parent or category page |
| Site migration (domain change) | 301 all old URLs to new domain equivalents |
| HTTP to HTTPS migration | 301 all HTTP URLs to HTTPS (better handled at server level) |
| www to non-www (or vice versa) | 301 (better handled at server level) |
| Temporary maintenance | 302 to a maintenance page |
| A/B testing | 302 to the test variant |
| Consolidating duplicate content | 301 all duplicates to the canonical version |

## Common Redirect Chains to Avoid

A redirect chain is when URL A redirects to URL B, which redirects to URL C. This wastes crawl budget and dilutes link equity.

**Bad:** `/old-page/` → `/newer-page/` → `/newest-page/`
**Good:** `/old-page/` → `/newest-page/` (and `/newer-page/` → `/newest-page/`)

When adding a new redirect, check if the destination already has a redirect pointing elsewhere. If so, update the chain to point directly to the final destination.

## Known Limitations

| Issue | Workaround |
|-------|-----------|
| Cannot reorder redirects | Delete and recreate in the desired order |
| Regex patterns sometimes fail | Test on regex101.com first; try simpler patterns |
| No 404 monitoring (Free) | Pro includes a site crawler that detects 404s |
| No redirect chain detection | Manually audit for chains |
| Large redirect lists can be slow | Consider moving high-volume redirects to `.htaccess` or server config |

## Best Practices

1. **Always redirect, never delete** — A 404 loses all SEO value the old URL had
2. **Redirect to the most relevant page** — not always the homepage
3. **Audit redirects quarterly** — remove redirects for URLs that no longer receive traffic
4. **Keep redirect lists manageable** — if you have 500+ redirects, consider server-level handling
5. **Test after creating** — visit the old URL in an incognito window to verify the redirect works
6. **Check redirect response code** — use [httpstatus.io](https://httpstatus.io) or browser dev tools Network tab