As a website operator who is deeply familiar with the operation of AnQiCMS, I know the importance of URL structure to the health of the website, especially in terms of search engine optimization (SEO) and user experience.Every adjustment of the URL may affect the 'sinews and bones' of the website, therefore it must be treated with caution.Now, let's discuss in detail the necessity of handling traffic from old links and the need for 301 redirection after modifying the 'custom URL' of AnQiCMS categories.

Understanding AnQiCMS Custom URL Classification

In AnQiCMS, the "Custom URL" feature of categories is a very powerful function, which allows us to define a personalized, semantic URL path for the website's category pages.In AnQiCMS backend, when you create or edit a document category, you will find the option 'Custom URL' in 'Other Parameters'./newsHowever, in order to better match the brand image, keyword strategy, or to have a simpler path, we can manually modify this alias, for example, to/company-newsor/latest-updates.

The effectiveness of this custom URL cannot be separated from the pseudo-static rules of AnQiCMS. In the pseudo-static configuration, when the rules have been used{catname}Such a variable, the custom URL you set for the category will be adopted by the system and become the final external link of the category page.A clear, concise, and keyword-rich URL structure is very beneficial for search engine crawling and user understanding of page content.It not only enhances the professionalism of the website, but is also an important manifestation of SEO-friendliness.

The impact of changing the custom URL on old links

After you modify a category's 'custom URL' in the AnQiCMS backend, for example, changing the URL of the category 'product display' from/product-showto/our-products表面上看起来只是一个简单的路径调整，但实际上，这会对网站造成一系列深远的影响。

首先，最直接的影响是，所有指向旧URL（/product-showThe links will become invalid. These old links may exist in:

  • in the search engine index:The search engine spider has crawled and indexed the old URLs of your website and presented them in the search results.
  • Friendship links or references from external websites:Other websites may have linked to your old category page.
  • Social media sharing:Old links shared on social media.
  • User bookmarks:The user may have added the old category page to the browser favorites.
  • Internal links on the website:Your website content (such as article detail pages, other category pages, navigation menus, sidebars, friend links, etc.) may contain links pointing to the old category page.

Once these old links are clicked, users will no longer be able to access your updated category page, but instead will see a '404 Page Not Found' error page.This will not only severely damage the user experience and cause user loss, but more importantly, it will have a devastating impact on the SEO performance of the website.

The necessity of 301 redirect

Facing the negative impact of outdated links, 301 redirection has become an indispensable solution.301 redirect is an HTTP status code indicating that the web page has been 'permanently' moved to a new URL.It communicates a clear message to browsers and search engines: the old page no longer exists, please visit the new page.

In AnQiCMS, as explicitly stated in its 'Project Advantages' and 'Update Log', the system supports 'URL Rewrite and 301 Redirect Management', and 'supports 301 redirect links have been added'.This indicates that AnQiCMS has built-in mechanisms for handling URL migration, which can help us effectively solve the problem of traffic loss that may arise after the adjustment of content structure.

The necessity of enabling 301 redirect is reflected in the following aspects:

  • Preserve SEO value:The search engine will pass the accumulated ranking weight (PageRank, link assets) of the old URL through 301 redirect to the new URL.This means you will not lose your existing search engine rankings and traffic due to changes in the URL.If there is no 301, the search engine will consider the old page to be deleted and the new page to be brand new, requiring a new evaluation.
  • Maintain user experience:The user will be seamlessly redirected to the new page after clicking the old link, rather than encountering a dead link.This greatly enhances user satisfaction and avoids the feeling of frustration and increased bounce rate due to the page not being found.
  • Guide search engine spiders:301 redirect clearly informs search engine spiders of the new page location, guiding them to recrawl and index the new URL, thereby speeding up the inclusion of the new page.
  • Prevent traffic loss:By redirecting all old link traffic from external, internal, or search engines to new pages, it can effectively avoid a sudden drop in traffic due to URL changes.

In short, whether for SEO considerations or user experience maintenance, when you modify the custom URL of AnQiCMS categories, a 301 redirect is a mandatory operation.

Implement 301 redirect in AnQiCMS

AnQiCMS provides the "Feature Management" under the "301 Redirect Management" module, making the implementation of 301 redirection relatively simple. The operation steps are usually as follows:

  1. Confirm the old URL and new URL:Before modifying the custom URL of the category, you need to specify the full URL path of the old category page and the full URL path of the new category page.
  2. Enter AnQiCMS backend:Log in to your AnQiCMS management interface.
  3. Navigate to the 301 redirect management:In the left menu, find and click "301 Redirect Management" under "Function Management".
  4. Add redirect rule:In the 301 redirect management interface, you need to create a new redirect rule.This usually involves filling in the 'Original URL' (old URL) and the 'Target URL' (new URL).Ensure that the path entered is relative to the website root directory or a complete URL (depending on the specific implementation of AnQiCMS).
  5. Save and test:Save your redirect rules and then make sure to visit the old URL through the browser to verify that it can be correctly redirected to the new URL.Also, check if the HTTP status code (using developer tools) is indeed 301.

After implementing 301 redirect, it is recommended:

  • Update internal links:
  • Resubmit Sitemap:Resubmit the updated Sitemap in tools like Google Search Console or Baidu Webmaster Tools, and inform search engines of the changes in the website structure.
  • Monitor website performance:Keep a close eye on the website traffic data, keyword rankings, and search engine crawling reports in the coming weeks, to ensure that URL changes have not had a negative impact.

Summary

Modifying the custom URL of AnQiCMS categories is a sensitive website operation that has a direct and profound impact on the SEO and user experience of the website.The traffic from the old link must be processed through a 301 permanent redirect to ensure that the search engine rankings are inherited, users can access the new page seamlessly, and potential traffic loss is minimized.AnQiCMS built-in 301 redirect function provides solid tool support for us. Properly utilizing this feature will keep your website healthy and efficient after structural adjustments.

Common Questions and Answers (FAQ)

1. What if I modified the custom URL of AnQiCMS category and forgot to set up a 301 redirect?If you forget to set up a 301 redirect, all external links and search engine indices pointing to the old category URL will be invalid, and users will see a 404 error page when they access these links.This will result in the loss of the search engine rankings and traffic accumulated from old links, severely damaging the website's SEO performance and causing a decline in user experience.