{"id":2615,"date":"2024-08-12T09:00:42","date_gmt":"2024-08-12T13:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/marcom-team\/?page_id=2615"},"modified":"2026-02-03T12:22:22","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T17:22:22","slug":"redirects-and-broken-links","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/marcom-team\/departments\/interactive-design\/helpful-id-updates-links\/redirects-and-broken-links\/","title":{"rendered":"Redirects and Broken Links"},"content":{"rendered":"

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When a redesign launches, it\u2019s not unusual for the site structure to have changed significantly, which creates a significant number of broken links. Before site launches, we take several steps to catch broken link errors to the best of our ability.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Broken Links<\/strong><\/h4>\n

NOTE: To request a Broken Link Report or Full Link Report, file a help ticket with IS&T.<\/span><\/p>\n

Broken Link Report vs Full Link Report<\/strong><\/h4>\n

There are two types of reports you may need to be certain your site is full of successful links.<\/span><\/p>\n

Broken Link Report<\/strong><\/h4>\n

A Broken Link Report is a scan of all links on the new site \u2013 inline links, menu items, buttons, etc. This allows the client to be sure that all links on the new site successfully link somewhere else before you launch.<\/span><\/p>\n

Full Link Report<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The Full Link Report is a report that lists all URLs on the CURRENT site against all URLs on the NEW site. This allows the client to see where all current links will point once the new site is live. If pages\/posts have been removed, renamed, or reorganized in the navigation structure, you will need to create redirects for the links on the current site so that they point to the new location.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Example 1<\/span><\/h5>\n

On the CURRENT site the URL might be http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/academics\/eng\/undergraduate-policies\/academic-progress-and-graduation\/<\/span><\/p>\n

However, on the NEW site, the URL is https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/academics\/eng\/policies\/undergraduate-policies\/academic-progress-and-graduation\/<\/span><\/p>\n

Using the old link without a redirect, WordPress may send you to http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/academics\/sargent\/undergraduate-policies\/academic-progress-and-graduation\/<\/span><\/p>\n

The reason why you get Sargent\u2019s version instead of ENG’s version is because WordPress is trying its hardest to NOT serve a 404 error. It thinks, \u201cI\u2019m looking for academic-progress-and-graduation\u2014oh, Sargent has one, I\u2019d rather give that than a 404.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

With a redirect we can safely point the old page to the new page, which guarantees all search engine results, bookmarked pages, and links from other sites get updated and all point to the same new location.<\/span><\/p>\n

Example 2<\/span><\/h5>\n

http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/marcom\/profile\/tom-coolguy links to a profile for Tom Coolguy, the MarCom FunTime Manager, on the current site. However, on the new site Tom Coolguy\u2019s profile has been removed because he\u2019s moved on to other cool guy things.<\/span><\/p>\n

Using the old URL without a redirect, WordPress may send you to http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/marcom\/profile\/tom-otherdude because once again WordPress thinks it is smart enough to solve the problem and doesn\u2019t want to look bad sending you a 404. But Tom Otherdude isn\u2019t the new MarCom FunTime Manager, he\u2019s just another Tom.<\/span><\/p>\n

With a redirect pointing to http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/marcom\/profile\/ we could be sure that the user is getting sent to the Profile Archive page and can find the new MarCom FunTime Manager on their own.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Team and Client Broken Link and Redirection Responsibilities<\/strong><\/h2>\n