HTTP to HTTPS Question
-
Hello,
I have a question regarding SSL Certificates I think I know the answer to but wanted to make sure. One of our clients’ site uses http for their pages but when they started creating Registration forms they created a full duplicate site on https (so now there are two versions of all of the pages).
I know due to duplicate concerns this could be an issue and needs to resolved (as well as the pros and cons of both) but if they are already set up with https does it make sense to just move everything there or in some instances would it pay to keep some pages http (using canonical tags, redirects, htccess…etc)? – Most of the information I found related to making the decision prior to having both or describing the process but I couldn’t find anything that specifically related to if both are already present.
I thought that the best approach because everything’s already set up is to just move everything over to the more secure one but was curious if anybody had any insight?
Thank you in advance.
-
Thank you Bernadette for that response and help. That’s what I thought would be the solution. Am I correct in assuming that because the http version is currently being indexed that there would most likely be an associated temporary drop in results while Google sorts everything out? – Because they are a seasonal-heavy business I’m trying to plan this accordingly so any experience/insight would be appreciated.
Thanks again.
-
Ben, Tom is right. Having both versions out there can lead to duplicate content issues, especially if the site is linking to both versions of the site (which tends to happen). The best option is to make EVERY page on the site HTTPs, and move completely away from HTTP in its entirety. You should set up 301 permanent redirects so that all HTTP pages get redirected to HTTPs.
Don't forget to verify the HTTPs version of the site in Google Search Console, and if you have done anything with the Disavow Tool you'll want to upload a new disavow file for HTTPs, as well.
-
Thank you Tom for your response. Currently only the http pages come up for the ‘site:’ search. I was considering implementing Search Console on the ‘https’ site to make sure it’s not being indexed…thoughts?
If the https version is not yet being indexed, as a preventative measure should we still migrate the site to the secure version (while pagerank is unaffected) or does it pay to go through every page that does not need it and keep as http?
Thanks again in advance.
Best,
-
Hi Ben,
Having both running I think is the worst outcome. If you do a site:https://domain.com query what pages show up? If you've got the https pages showing, then you're already indexed. I would personally look at moving fully over to https as long as all of the canonicals etc are all working properly.
Now is the best time to do the migration, due to http->https pages not losing pagerank (or apparently redirects not losing pagerank either)
Tom
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
HTTP vs HTTPS duplication where HTTPS is non-existing
Hey Guys, **My site is **http://www.citymetrocarpetcleaning.com.au/ Goal: I am checking if there is an HTTPS version of my site (duplication issue) What I did: 1. I went to Screaming Frog and run https://www.citymetrocarpetcleaning.com.au/. The result is that it is 200 OK (the HTTPS version exists - possible duplication) 2. Next, I opened a browser and manually replace HTTP with HTTPS, the result is "Image 1" which doesn't indicate a duplication. But if we go deeper in Advanced > Proceed to www.citymetrocarpetcleaning.com.au (unsafe) "Image 2", it displays the content (Image 3). Question: 1. Is there an HTTP vs HTTPs duplication here? 2. Do I need to implement 301 redirection/canonical tags on HTTPS pointing to HTTP to solve duplication? Please help! Cheers! uIgJv DsNrA El7aI
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | gamajunova0 -
Combining multiple HTTPS sites
Hi there! I am currently combining several sites (corporate brochure site and ecommerce site) for a client into one central website. All of the content and structure on the new site is set up and relevant pages have 301 redirects ready. My main concern is that the old .co.uk website has an SSL certificate and will be pointing to the new pages on the new .com website (with new SSL in place). Will this cause connection privacy issues? And if so, what's the best way to resolve them? Many thanks!
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | Daniel_GlueMedia0 -
Screaming Frog returning both HTTP and HTTPS results...
Hi, About 10 months I switched from HTTP to HTTPS. I then switched back (long story). I noticed that Screaming Frog is picking up the HTTP and HTTPS version of the site. Maybe this doesn't matter, but I'd like to know why SF is doing that. The URL is: www.aerlawgroup.com Any feedback, including how to remove the HTTPS version, is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | mrodriguez14400 -
A 302 Redirect Question | Events Page Updates
Hello Moz World, I have a client that has a TON, like close to a thousand pages that have a 302 redirect set up. After further investigation, I found that every month they update their events page & Demo Request page, and the old events pages still exist but, get a 302 redirect to the updated page. From what I gather, this is a default mechanism set up by the hosting provider. My questions; is this an example of when to use a Rel=canonical? Also, is there a method for integrating this without having to go into every page and integrate the code snippet? And Lastly, How should I go about ensuring this doesn't happen in the future? Thanks ahead of time, you guys rock! B/R Will H.
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | MarketingChimp100 -
Merging two sites to one Rel Can Question
Hi All, We have 2 brands (1 main 1 product as a satellite domain) that we're merging into our main brand. When doing a 301 redirect - should we redirect everypage of the product satellite to the new site or is 1 main redirect fine? I'm Confusing ....yep. Ill do an E.G www.nike.com & www.air-jordan.com we are now shutting down www.airjordan.com and will be migrating all the content to www.nike.com/air-jordan Just of course there will be other pages like air-jordan.com/order-now . Should i do a rel can from air-jordan.com/order-now to www.nike.com/air-jordan/order-now ? Or is simply a 301 from www.airjordan.com to www.nike.com/air-jordan sufficient? Cheers!
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | CFCU0 -
SEO question
Hi there! I'm the SEO manager for 5 Star Loans. I have 2 city pages running. We are running our business in 2 locations: Berkeley, CA & San Jose, CA. For those offices we've created 2 google listings with separate gmail accounts. Berkeley (http://5starloans.com/berkeley/) ranks well in Berkeley in Gmaps and it shows on first page in organic results. However the second city page San Jose (http://5starloans.com/san-jose/) doesn't show in the Gmaps local pack results and also doesn't rank well in organic results. Both of them have authentic backlinks and reviews. It has been a year already and it's high time we knew the problem 🙂 any comment would be helpful. thanks a lot
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | moonalev0 -
Is Link Weight Lost Moving from HTTP to HTTPS?
I'm considering moving a site from http://www.domain.com/ to https://domain.com/. I would put a 301 redirect in place to make sure all of the links and traffic transfer over but am worried about losing rankings since we have many years worth of links going to the old urls. My understanding is that a 301 will transfer 90%+ of the link weight to the new url, but not 100%. Is there an exception to this rule when doing a 301 redirect within the same domain (but to a different protocol and subdomain)? Should we expect to lose 1-10% of our link weight if we chose to make this switch?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | DepositAccounts0 -
Information Architecture Question
I've got a site architecture / branding / SEO question for my own site (http://www.strikemodels.com/). In brief, the site sells kits and accessories for model warships that shoot and sink each other. My husband (Stephen) runs the business, and makes many of the parts we sell in our workshop/garage. Stephen wants to have a section where he talks about the equipment he is building/ using, and give updates on each of the pieces. This is equipment we use to make products, not equipment that we sell. For example, he's building an EDM machine, and getting a plastic injection molding machine and an ultrasonic welder up and running. We have a blog section where we post about updates about items that we sell, how to use our products, etc. This is more of a place for him to talk about what he's doing in the shop, and would also serve in future years as something he could point people to regarding his skills as an engineer if needed. I'm looking for opinions and options as to where to put this. Is there a way to use a different category in the blog and have items in the blog show up under a different page if they're in the "Stephen's Corner" category? Other options would be a separate site just for that, or to do threads on the a forum dedicated to the hobby. I'd prefer to keep things on our own site to keep all of the benefits together. Thoughts on structure or ways to make this work? Things I hadn't thought about? Thanks!
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | KeriMorgret0