Redirection Pattern Guide

Pattern Types Explained

1. Exact Match

Use when: You want to redirect one specific URL only.

Example:
From: /old-page
To: /new-page
Pattern: Exact Match

Matches: ✅ yoursite.com/old-page

Doesn't match: ❌ yoursite.com/old-page/ or yoursite.com/old-page-2

2. Starts With

Use when: You want to redirect all URLs that start with a specific path.

Example - Category to Articles Migration:
From: /category/blog/
To: /articles/article/
Pattern: Starts With

Matches:
✅ yoursite.com/category/blog/my-post → yoursite.com/articles/article/
✅ yoursite.com/category/blog/2024/january → yoursite.com/articles/article/
✅ yoursite.com/category/blog → yoursite.com/articles/article/

Doesn't match: ❌ yoursite.com/old-category/blog/post

Note: This pattern does NOT preserve the path after the matched part. All matching URLs redirect to the same destination. For path preservation, use Wildcard (*) pattern instead.

3. Ends With

Use when: You want to redirect URLs that end with specific text or file extensions.

Example - PDF Redirect:
From: .pdf
To: /downloads/
Pattern: Ends With

Matches:
✅ yoursite.com/document.pdf
✅ yoursite.com/files/report-2024.pdf

4. Wildcard (*) - Path Preservation

Use when: You want to redirect URLs and preserve the remaining path structure. Perfect for section migrations!

Example 1 - Blog to Articles (Preserve Full Path):
From: /blog/*
To: /articles/*
Pattern: Wildcard (*)

Result:
✅ /blog/my-post → /articles/my-post
✅ /blog/2024/tech/ai → /articles/2024/tech/ai
✅ /blog/category/news/post-123 → /articles/category/news/post-123

Example 2 - Year Archive Restructure:
From: /2024/*
To: /archive/2024/*

Result:
✅ /2024/january/post → /archive/2024/january/post
✅ /2024/sales-report → /archive/2024/sales-report

Example 3 - Prefix Addition:
From: /post/*
To: /blog/post/*

Result:
✅ /post/hello-world → /blog/post/hello-world

How it works:
The * wildcard captures everything after the matched part and replaces the * in the destination URL.
Much simpler than regex for common use cases!

5. Regex Pattern (Advanced)

Use when: You need complex pattern matching with path preservation.

Example 1 - Category to Articles Migration (Preserve Path):
From: category-blog (label only)
Regex Pattern: /^\/category\/blog\/(.*)$/
To: /articles/article/$1
Pattern: Regex Pattern

Result:
✅ /category/blog/my-post → /articles/article/my-post
✅ /category/blog/2024/tech → /articles/article/2024/tech
✅ /category/blog/news/item-123 → /articles/article/news/item-123

Example 2 - Product ID Redirect:
From: product-id (label only)
Regex Pattern: /^\/product-(\d+)$/
To: /products/view?id=$1

Result:
✅ /product-123 → /products/view?id=123
✅ /product-456 → /products/view?id=456

Regex Syntax:
/^ $/ = Pattern delimiters (required)
^ = Start of URL path
$ = End of URL path
(.*) = Capture everything (use $1 in destination)
(\d+) = Capture numbers only
\/ = Escape forward slash
\. = Escape dot for literal match

HTTP Status Codes Guide

301 - Permanent Redirect (SEO Friendly)

Use for: Permanent URL changes, site restructuring

Benefits: Search engines transfer page rank to new URL

Example: Old domain to new domain, permanent page moves

302 - Temporary Redirect

Use for: Temporary changes, A/B testing, seasonal campaigns

Note: Search engines don't transfer page rank

410 - Content Deleted (No Destination)

Use for: Permanently removed content that won't return

Note: No destination URL needed - page shows as permanently gone

Better than 404 for SEO

451 - Unavailable for Legal Reasons

Use for: Content blocked due to legal requirements

Common Use Cases

Blog to Articles Migration (WITH Path Preservation):

Use Wildcard: /blog/* → /articles/*
This preserves the entire path structure automatically!

✓ Multiple Old URLs → One New URL:

Add multiple source URLs (click "Add Another") all pointing to same destination.

✓ Entire Section Migration (Simple):

Use "Starts With" pattern for /old-section/ → /new-section/ (doesn't preserve sub-paths)

✓ File Extension Redirect:

Use "Ends With" pattern for .pdf → /downloads/ to redirect all PDF files

Best Practices

Test with 302 first, then change to 301 when confirmed working
Use Exact Match when possible (faster performance)
Use Regex only when path preservation is needed
Monitor hit counts to identify most-used redirects
Add descriptions to help identify redirect purpose later
Keep redirects active to maintain SEO value

Source From:	'exact']; $url_redirect_to = ''; $http_code = '301'; $status = 'active'; $uri = ''; $get_data = metasync_sanitize_input_array($_GET); if (isset($get_data['action'])) { if (isset($get_data['uri']) && ($get_data['action'] == 'redirect' && !empty($get_data['uri']))) { // Decode the URI and sanitize it properly $uri = urldecode($get_data['uri']); $uri = sanitize_text_field($uri); // Ensure URI starts with / if (!str_starts_with($uri, '/')) { $uri = '/' . $uri; } } if (isset($get_data['id']) && $get_data['action'] == 'edit') { // Get database instance $db_instance = isset($this) && isset($this->db_redirection) ? $this->db_redirection : null; if ($db_instance) { $record = $db_instance->find(intval($get_data['id'])); if ($record) { $id = isset($record->id) ? esc_attr($record->id) : ''; $source_form = isset($record->sources_from) && $record->sources_from ? unserialize($record->sources_from, ['allowed_classes' => false]) : []; // phpcs:ignore WordPress.PHP.DiscouragedPHPFunctions.serialize_unserialize $url_redirect_to = isset($record->url_redirect_to) ? esc_attr($record->url_redirect_to) : ''; $http_code = isset($record->http_code) ? esc_attr($record->http_code) : ''; $status = isset($record->status) ? esc_attr($record->status) : ''; } } } } $search_type = [ ['name' => 'Exact Match', 'value' => 'exact'], ['name' => 'Starts With', 'value' => 'start'], ['name' => 'Ends With', 'value' => 'end'], ['name' => 'Wildcard (*)', 'value' => 'wildcard'], ['name' => 'Regex Pattern', 'value' => 'regex'], ]; ?> $source_type) { ?> ', esc_attr($id)); printf(' '); ?>
Destination URL:
Redirection Type:	> 301 Permanent Move > 302 Temporary Move > 307 Temporary Redirect > 410 Content Deleted > 451 Content Unavailable for Legal Reasons
Regex Pattern:	Enter a valid regex pattern. Example: `/^\/old-path\/.*$/` to match all URLs starting with /old-path/
Description:	Optional description to help identify this redirection rule.
Status:	> Active > Inactive