Short Links and Redirect URLs

The short link mechanism makes it possible to define short URLs (the source URL), which the system internally maps onto complete Intershop Commerce Management URLs (the target URL). Short links can be used to enable direct access to special storefront pages, such as pages containing special offers or products related to a certain topic. For example, you can define the short link http://www.intronics-specials.com to map on the Intershop Commerce Management URL displaying the products of the respective catalog category:

http://<hostname>/INTERSHOP/web/WFS/inSPIRED-inTRONICS-Site
/en_US/-/USD/ViewStandardCatalog-Browse?
CatalogID=Specials&CategoryName=Specials

The source URL and the target URL can be either absolute or relative. Absolute URLs include the protocol (http|https) and the host and may, optionally, specify a port number. Using relative URLs, however, makes the short links independent from the server. In data replication scenarios, for example, this allows for preparing a set of short links in an editing environment and simply transferring them to a production system.

Table 1. Absolute URLs in short links
URL	Example
Source URL	`http://<hostname>/inTRONICSDemoStore`
Target URL	`http://<hostname>/INTERSHOP/web/WFS/inSPIRED-inTRONICS-Site/en_US/-/USD/Default-Start`

Table 2. Relative URLs in short links
URL	Example
Source URL	`/inTRONICSDemoStore`
Target URL	`/INTERSHOP/web/WFS/inSPIRED-inTRONICS-Site/en_US/-/USD/Default-Start`

For each short link, a time period can be defined in which the link is valid. For every domain, one short link can be marked as default. The link marked as default is used to resolve the target URL if other short links are not valid anymore, for example because their end date has passed.

The short link mechanism can be used to define URL redirects. This helps to support "moved" URLs (in case, for example, the catalog structure has changed). Using redirect URLs (301 or 302 server headers) is the most efficient and bot-friendly strategy for online shops to keep stable acquired page ranks with search engines.

To facilitate link management, they can be assigned to link groups. It is also possible to export short links.

Short links and link groups can be searched via a simple search or an attribute-based advanced search.

Short links do not hide the target server or the complete target URL from the customer. In fact, what the customer will see when clicking on a short link is the standard URL of the target page. Also, when browsing other links starting from the target page, standard URLs are displayed as well, and not the short link.

Note: For short links to work with absolute URLs defined as source URL or target URL, additional configurations are required. For example, short links may need a DNS entry, enabling clients to resolve the address behind the short URL. Contact your system administrator. For short links with relative URLs defined as source URL or target URL, no additional configuration is required.

Tip: Most search engines will rank down sites with insecure URLs. Web applications can use secure URLs in order to achieve a good search index position. More detailed information on how to achieve this can be found in the Intershop Organization Management Online Help | Manage Site Settings | Secure URL only server configuration.