🚨 6 must-dos while editing an .htaccess file

Published 2 months ago • 1 min read

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What you need to do instead is to start speaking the same language with developers (and it does not = becoming one 😉).

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Let’s talk about the almighty .htaccess (most SEOs avoid).

The .htaccess file configures how your Apache-based web server operates.

You can set up site-wide (like www to non-www) and individual (like Page A to Page B) redirects there.

Note:

Never EVER edit .htaccess directly in your CMS (even if plugins give you this option). Especially if you don't have FTP access to revert the changes in case any error occurs.

The .htaccess file rules to NEVER break:

Make a backup of the website installation before accessing .htaccess
Always download the initial .htaccess file before editing it. Save its unedited copy if you need to revert your changes quickly.
Make sure that the .htaccess file is saved in the right format and that no invisible characters are added to it.
Before uploading your edited .htaccess to the server, run it through a validator (this will help to identify if there are any special characters which are not directly seen in the file)
If everything is OK, upload the updated file to the root folder, replacing the old one
Check the website in different browsers to make sure it works (and not just cached).

Have you ever edited an .htaccess file? Any stories to share? Let me know.

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6 must-dos while editing an .htaccess file

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