What Is cPanel Redirect Wildcard?

Redirects

When a Web page moves, all existing links to that page will break. This phenomenon is called “link rot,” and the links to the previous Web page location are called “dead links” or “broken links.” A 301 redirect enables a website administrator to forward directly to its new location any visitors to the old file's address. This avoids the necessity of maintaining the Web page in its old location and is a simple administrative task.

The 301 code refers to a function of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol, or HTTP. Each response from a Web server carries a status code in its headers. A successful delivery has the code 200, a request for a missing file is replied to with the code 404. The 301 code is accompanied by the new address of the required page, and it is the responsibility of the Web browser to implement the redirect by going to the new location.

Most websites are administrated through a system called cPanel. This is the console for the site and includes a series of configuration options. One of these options is a redirect option. The redirect configuration option is part of Site Management configuration. The redirect has five input fields. A list box offering either a permanent or a temporary redirect. A 301 redirect is permanent, a 302 redirect is temporary. The next two fields in this option are the “from URL” and the “to URL.” A URL is a Web address including the scheme at the front -- the “http://,” “https://” or “ftp://” part. The next few options allow the specification of whether only URLs including “www” are redirected, all but the “www” version are redirected or all variations are redirected.

The final field in the redirect setup screen is a “Wildcard” check box. If this is checked, all files in a directory will be redirected to the same file name in the corresponding new directory. To work with this option, the “Redirect from” and “Redirect to” URL must be the addresses of directories. This redirect goes live when the user clicks the “Add” button.