martinsbca
10-21-2005, 11:01 PM
My main page is currently indexed as "index.html". I want to make this page in ".php". If I switch to php would that somehow harm my page rank with google? Thank you.
Chris_D
10-21-2005, 11:44 PM
Hi Martinsbca
Welcome to SEW forums!
Yes it will - as search engines index urls. and changing the URL from www.yoursite.com/index.html to www.yoursite.com/index.php will change the url.
The best way to do it is to use a 'persistent' url for your homepage - so you can change the underlying server technology in the future.
My advice? Go and change all the internal homepage links to your site from www.yoursite.com/index.html to just www.yoursite.com/
i.e. don't specify the file name or file type. As long as the file name is an accepted default file name for you server - it will return the 'home' page.
See if any of the incoming external links are to www.yoursite.com/index.html and see if you can get them changed to just www.yoursite.com
Then - once the SE's have indexed your home page as www.yoursite.com without the file/extension - go and change to .php Then there should be no interuption to your SE traffic to your home page.
Mind you - there will still be an issue with deeper files when you change them from www.yoursite.com/aboutus.html to www.yoursite.com/aboutus.php - so you can 301 the old .html pages to the new .php pages.
There will be a lot less interuption if you do it this way. Hope that helps