• Sonntag, Septembre 28, 2025

Redirecting visitors from one web address to another is a common and essential practice for website management. Among the various methods available, 301 redirects are highly recommended because they are both user-friendly and highly effective for search engine optimization (SEO). A 301 redirect explicitly signals to search engines that a particular website or page has permanently moved to a new URL. For example, if you are rebranding an old business domain (e.g., oldbusiness.com) to a new one (e.g., newbusiness.com), a 301 redirect ensures that all traffic and accumulated search engine value from the old domain are seamlessly transferred to the new one.

To ensure these redirect methods function correctly (with the exception of manual code-based redirects), your domain's DNS settings must be properly configured. This typically involves ensuring your domain points to the correct hosting provider's DNS servers. If your DNS is managed through a different service, you may need to manually create or update the necessary DNS records in that control panel.

While various programming languages and server configurations, such as .htaccess files, PHP, JavaScript, or Perl, can facilitate redirects, it's crucial to understand that 301 redirects are versatile enough for both entire domain transfers and specific page migrations. However, some of the methods discussed below are primarily designed for whole domain redirection. Below, we explore several effective options for implementing domain forwards or redirects, particularly within a Plesk environment:

  • Plesk Domain Aliasing: This method is ideal for forwarding an entire domain to another, offering options for DNS, web, and mail services.
  • Plesk Domain Forwarding: Allows forwarding a domain to any specified URL, primarily affecting web traffic.
  • Plesk Subdomain Forwarding: Enables forwarding a subdomain to any specified URL, also primarily for web traffic.
  • Custom Web Server Directives or Code: Offers granular control to redirect any URL to another using server configurations like Nginx or Apache, or through application-level code.
  • Registrar Domain Forwarding: While an option, it's often not recommended unless your domain registrar explicitly supports proper HTTP status codes (like 301 or 307), as improper implementation can negatively impact SEO.

Redirect with a Domain Alias

If your goal is to forward an entire domain to another (e.g., mydomain.com to mynewdomain.com), adding it as a domain alias in Plesk is often the simplest and most efficient approach. Plesk automatically configures a 301 redirect for you with this method.

  1. Log in to Plesk and select the Add Domain Alias button.
  2. Enter the domain you wish to forward and then choose the destination domain you want to forward it to.
  3. Leave all checkboxes at their default settings. If you specifically do not wish to forward mail services, un-check the “Mail Service” box.
  4. Click the OK button to save your configurations.

Your domain-to-domain redirect is now successfully in place.

Advanced Usage Note:

Should you wish to alias the DNS and Mail services, but direct the domain to a particular page rather than the entire main site, you can disable the “Redirect with the HTTP 301 code” option. Then, add the following code to your site’s .htaccess file:

RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^(www.)?youraliasdomain.tld [NC]    
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://yourmaindomain.tld/location [L,R=301]

This directive instructs the server that if a user visits "youraliasdomain.tld," they should be redirected specifically to the new location on your main domain instead of merely aliasing the entire site. This technique is particularly useful for directing a custom domain to a specific landing page within your primary website.

Redirect with Domain Forwarding

Domain forwarding allows you to direct an entire domain to any specified URL. Here’s how to set it up in Plesk:

  1. If the domain has not yet been added in Plesk, log in and select the Add Domain button. Choose “Blank Website” and enter the domain name. If you see the option to select the “Hosting Type,” choose Forwarding. If this option isn't immediately visible, confirm adding the domain and proceed to the next step.
  2. If the domain already exists in Plesk, or if you did not encounter the “Hosting Type” option in step 1, locate your domain in the Plesk list. Click on “Hosting and DNS,” then navigate to “Hosting.” Just below the domain name, you will find “Hosting Type” with a dropdown menu. Click this dropdown and select Forwarding.
  3. Enter the complete destination URL where you want the domain to forward.
  4. Choose the appropriate forwarding type / response code. It’s important to select carefully:
    • For permanent moves where you don’t anticipate reverting, choose “Moved Permanently” (301).
    • If there’s any possibility you might remove this forward in the future, it’s recommended to choose “Moved Temporarily” (302).
    • Frame forwarding is generally not recommended due to potential SEO and usability issues.
  5. Click OK to save your settings.

Your domain-to-URL redirect is now active.

Redirect with Subdomain Forwarding

To forward a subdomain to another URL using Plesk (versions 11.5 and newer), follow these steps:

  1. Log in to Plesk and click the Add Subdomain button.
  2. Enter your desired subdomain name (e.g., blog.yourdomain.com) and keep the default settings as they are.
  3. Press OK to create the subdomain.
  4. Under the newly created subdomain’s settings, select Hosting Settings.
  5. Locate “Hosting type” and click the Change link next to “Website.”
  6. In the dropdown menu beside “Hosting Type,” select Forwarding.
  7. Enter the complete destination address to which the subdomain should forward and press OK to save the settings.

Your subdomain-to-URL redirect is now successfully in place.

Redirect with Web Server Configuration

For more granular control over redirects, you can directly configure your web server using directives for Nginx or Apache. This method is highly efficient as redirects are handled at the server level.

Nginx Redirects

If you have administrative access to Plesk, you can implement Nginx redirects by adding custom directives:

  1. Log in to Plesk and select “Apache & Nginx Settings” under the domain you wish to add the redirect to.
  2. Scroll down to the “Additional nginx directives” box. This option is only visible to administrators.
  3. Enter your chosen Nginx redirect variant into the box and click Apply or OK.

Here are examples of Nginx redirect directives:

# Simple path to path redirect:
rewrite ^/source_path$ https://www.destination.com/new_path permanent;

# Regex redirect to redirect *all* content from one domain to another:
rewrite ^/(.*)$ https://www.destination.com/$1 permanent;

Apache and .htaccess Redirects

How to Create a 301 Redirect with Plesk and Htaccess

The .htaccess file is a powerful configuration file used by Apache web servers, allowing for decentralized management of web server settings, including redirects. You’ll want to set up a manual redirect in your .htaccess file if you need to redirect specific URLs, such as mydomain.com/subfolder to mydomain.com/newfolder. While many content management systems offer plugins for easier redirect management, using the .htaccess file for redirects will generally be fractions of a second faster, leading to improved performance.

Feel free to use the following lines if you are setting up your own .htaccess 301 redirects. Remember to replace ‘yournewsite.com’ with your actual new domain or target URL.

# Redirect everything:
RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} !^.well-known/acme-challenge
RewriteRule ^(.*) https://yournewsite.com$1 [R=301,L]

# Redirect specific pages (use this OR the "everything" rule above, NOT BOTH):
redirect 301 / http://yournewsite.com/
redirect 301 /oldpage/ http://yournewsite.com/newpage/
redirect 301 /oldpage.html http://yournewsite.com/newpage/

Code-Based Redirects

You also have the option to implement redirects directly within your web application’s code, for example, by utilizing a WordPress plugin or writing raw PHP code. This method is often suitable for lightweight sites and when redirecting specific subpages to other pages within the application. To discover the most effective approach for your specific web application or programming language, a quick search (e.g., ‘WordPress redirects’ or ‘PHP redirects’) will yield numerous valuable resources and solutions.

Performance Warning:

It is important to note that code-based redirects typically incur a performance overhead compared to web server-level redirects. All the Plesk-integrated and custom Nginx solutions described above are executed at the web server level, making them significantly faster. If you anticipate a high volume of traffic hitting these redirects, utilizing a web server-based solution is strongly recommended for optimal performance. Plesk-integrated options or custom Nginx redirects will generally offer the best performance in such scenarios.

Understanding SEO Benefits of Domain Aliasing

When considering whether to alias various domains for SEO benefits, it’s important to clarify how search engines interpret these configurations. If a domain address does not host a unique website with distinct content, it typically does not gain direct SEO benefit. For example:

  • MAINDOMAIN.TLD – This represents your primary website with its unique content.
  • HEY-LOOK-I-GOT-A-KEYWORD.TLD – This is an additional domain, perhaps chosen for a specific keyword.

If HEY-LOOK-I-GOT-A-KEYWORD.TLD simply forwards (via a 301 redirect) to your main domain, search engines like Google will primarily acknowledge the destination domain. They largely disregard the existence of the forwarding domain in terms of its direct SEO value. It essentially acts as a signpost rather than a content hub.

However, if you develop an optimized and informational landing page, rich with relevant content, at HEY-LOOK-I-GOT-A-KEYWORD.TLD, and this page includes contextual links pointing to MAINDOMAIN.TLD, then it can indeed yield benefits. In this scenario, the keyword-rich domain gains its own SEO value from its content and also passes some of that authority and benefit to the destination page through those links.

Therefore, a primary reason for acquiring multiple domains for the same site is often defensive: to prevent typosquatting or brand hijacking. For instance, if you own DOMAINA.TLD, it might be prudent to also secure variations like:

  • DOMAINA.TL
  • DOMAIN-A.TLD
  • DOMAINAS.TLD

This strategy isn't primarily for direct SEO gain but rather to safeguard your brand and ensure that competitors or malicious actors cannot easily sideline your business by using very similar domain names. It's about protecting your online presence and guiding users to the correct destination.

Implementing 301 redirects correctly is a fundamental aspect of maintaining a healthy and search engine-friendly website. By utilizing the various options available within Plesk and understanding the implications of each, you can effectively manage domain and page migrations, ensuring a seamless experience for your users and preserving your valuable SEO rankings.

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