What do I need? URL redirect query

[richrock]

Been mucking in with .htaccess, had some success in the past, but always find it a mare 

 

I need to redirect a shortened URL to a full original url - I don't need to show the shortened URL in the address bar, what's important for the client is that the URL works.

 

eg :

www.mydomain.com/willmotspage would redirect to index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:paul-a-vanessa-willmott&catid=36:full-time-evangelists&Itemid=56&authid=91

 

a horrendous url, but the built-in SEO will take care of most of that - I guess I'm looking for a config that's similar to these tinyurls I keep seeing.  I have tried this :

 

Redirect /willmott http://mydomain.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:paul-a-vanessa-willmott&catid=36:full-time-evangelists&Itemid=56&authid=91 [L]

 

but it's not redirecting properly, as some info on the page is quite dependent on the GET information sent....  Not sure what's going on there....  I tried it without the [L], also using R=301, and doing Redirect ^willmott...

 

:'(

[dreamwest]

RewriteRule ^ willmott index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:paul-a-vanessa-willmott&catid=36:full-time-evangelists&Itemid=56&authid=91 [L]

[richrock]

RewriteRule ^ willmott index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:paul-a-vanessa-willmott&catid=36:full-time-evangelists&Itemid=56&authid=91 [L]

 

Gave me a 500 internal server error - could it be that I'm testing on a subdomain before going live?

[Rebelrebellious]

Are you looking for a rewrite or a redirect?

 

I think that you may need to use the QSA flag to append your new query to the old query.

 

That space between the carat and the willmott is not good.

 

If that doesn't work, check in your error logs (found in cpanel, or wherever you keep them) for a clue.

 

for rewrite:

RewriteRule ^willmott index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:paul-a-vanessa-willmott&catid=36:full-time-evangelists&Itemid=56&authid=91 [L,QSA,R]

 

for redirect just remove the R flag:

RewriteRule ^willmott index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:paul-a-vanessa-willmott&catid=36:full-time-evangelists&Itemid=56&authid=91 [L,QSA]