> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.premsoft.de/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.premsoft.de/en/plugins/seo-tools/management-dashboard/urls-and-redirects.md).

# Urls and redirects

Clean, descriptive URLs and working redirects are a foundation for good rankings. This chapter shows how to maintain URLs, avoid duplicates and make sure no visitor – and no search engine bot – ends up on an error page.

## Canonical URL management (Basic)

**What is it good for?** When the same product is reachable under several URLs (e.g. via different categories or as a variant), Google sees "duplicate content". The canonical URL tells Google which is the authoritative address – bundling the ranking power on one page.

**How to use it:** In the SEO tab of a product or category you can derive the canonical URL automatically from the entity or enter your own. For variants you can set them to point to the parent product (individually or globally in the [Configuration](/en/plugins/seo-tools/configuration.md)). A **duplicate warning** points out when the same canonical URL is assigned more than once.

## SEO URL preview & duplicate check (Basic)

**What is it good for?** Before you assign a URL, you want to know whether it is already taken – duplicate URLs cause errors and poor rankings.

**How to use it:** When editing the SEO URL, the preview shows you the final address and checks in real time whether it is already used by another product, category or landing page. This lets you fix conflicts before they go live.

## Bulk URL generator (Premium)

**What is it good for?** Like the meta generator: consistent, clean URLs for your entire catalogue – automatically instead of manually. Ideal after an import or during a URL restructuring.

**How to use it:**

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

## Open the URL generator

Open **SEO Tools → URL generator**.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

## Define a URL pattern

Define a URL pattern with placeholders, e.g. `{category}/{product_name}`.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

## Let the plugin generate clean URLs

The plugin automatically turns the text into clean URLs (umlauts are replaced, special characters removed, lowercased).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

## Optionally enable automatic redirects

Optionally enable **automatic 301 redirects**: if an existing URL changes, the old address is automatically redirected to the new one – so no rankings and no visitors are lost.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

## Preview the results

**Preview (dry run)** opens a window with the first 20 results – nothing is saved yet. If URLs that are already taken are among them, a **warning with their count** appears at the top of the window; those products are skipped during generation. The **duplicate** column additionally shows you row by row which URL is affected.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

## Execute the generation

If the result looks right, you start the generation straight from the preview window via **Execute**. Alternatively close the preview and use the **Execute** button on the page.

The execution runs in the background with a progress indicator.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

## Redirect manager (Premium)

**What is it good for?** Old links from catalogues, emails or external sites should not lead nowhere. With the redirect manager you create targeted redirects – and keep an overview of which ones are used, and how often.

**How to use it:** Under **SEO Tools → Redirects** you create rules:

* **From URL** and **target URL** freely definable,
* **301** (permanent) or **302** (temporary),
* **regex patterns** to redirect whole URL groups at once (e.g. `/old-category/(.*)` → `/new-category/$1`),
* **priority** when several rules could apply,
* an **active/inactive** switch per rule.

In the list you see the **hit count** and last-used time for each redirect. The rules are cached for fast storefront responses.

## Redirect import & export (Premium)

**What is it good for?** During a relaunch or shop migration you often have hundreds of redirects. Entering them by hand would be tedious – with CSV import/export you handle it in one step.

**How to use it:** In the redirect manager you can **import a CSV file** (columns for from URL, target URL, HTTP code, regex, comment). A **dry run** shows you in advance what would happen, including warnings for duplicates or redirect loops. You can export existing redirects as CSV at any time.

## 404 monitoring (Premium)

**What is it good for?** Every error page (404) is a missed chance – a visitor does not find what they are looking for. Monitoring automatically collects which non-existent addresses are being requested, so you can create targeted redirects.

**How to use it:** Enable the **404 log** in the [Configuration](/en/plugins/seo-tools/configuration.md#redirects-premium). Under **SEO Tools → 404 errors** you see the requested error URLs with **hit count** and time. With one click you create a matching **redirect** directly. A daily cleanup removes old entries automatically (retention period configurable). On the [SEO dashboard](/en/plugins/seo-tools/management-dashboard/seo-analysis.md#seo-dashboard-premium) you additionally see the 404 trend of the last 30 days.


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