Smart 404 Handler

Description

This custom 404 error script is designed to replace the default 404 error page which ships with IIS and is used whenever a page cannot be found on the website. Aside from providing the user with a page which looks and feels like an integrated part of the site when a page cannot be found, it also allows you to transparently move the user to a more appropriate page if one exists.

Why bother with a custom 404 error page? Well for one it looks more professional when you get taken to a non-standard error page, secondly since it is non-standard it will offer a user real advice beyond "sorry, page not found", but most of all it means that the user stands a better chance of finding what they want which in turn means that they are more likely to stay on your site.

Features

Supports permanent redirects (301), permanent redirects (302), gone responses (410) and access denied responses (403), all fully configurable by an administrator. Also supports basic script aliasing, allowing you to deliver shorter, more memorable URLs for special pages.

Can be used as a standalone/self-contained script or with a database-driven back-end - provides modular support for Microsoft Access, SQL Server or mySQL databases (providing your host supports the database type).

Database-driven installations support our new online editor which allows on-the-fly management of all your redirects and rules from your desktop.

Includes support for script-level URL rewrites allowing you to achieve effects similar to .htaccess or ISAPI_rewrite without switching servers or requiring your host to install extra software / DLLs. For more information see our URL rewriting guide.

Requirements

• IIS 4 or higher
• Ability to specify custom error handler pages for IIS to use.
• Database support (optional) - Access, MS SQL or mySQL.

Single Compressed Download

• Zip File

Installation & Setup

As the new system is modular there are now a variety of ways to install & setup your script so to keep it as simple as possible we've created a streamlined install document for each flavour of the script;

• Single script install - very similar to the previous versions of the script, a simple edit and upload affair which lacks the flexibility of the newer modular scripts, meaning it doesn't support the online editor.
• Inline rules - similar to the simple install, still uses inline rules hardcoded into the script but it gains a little flexibility by using the modular install allowing it limited access to the online editor.
• MS Access database - the next step up from inline rules, the database provides improved search functionality and also allows the online editor to be used fully.
• SQL Server database - the next step up from an Access database, retains all of the previous abilities (including online editor) but has a far better ability to scale under load / heavy traffic.
• mySQL database - the next step up from an Access database, retains all of the previous abilities (including online editor) but has a far better ability to scale under load / heavy traffic.

User Guide

Because the new system offers a variety of interfaces and methods to control your rules and redirects we've created several documents which deal with how to get the most out of your custom 404 error handling script;

• Creating & managing inline rules - discusses the various types of inline rules & redirects you can implement, how they work and how to create them.
• Creating & managing rules online - discusses how various types of rules & redirects you can implement via the online administration system and how to use the online editor to manage your rules & redirects.
• Testing your script & rules - a basic primer on how to test your script and the current rules directly without fully integrating the 404 script with your server.
• Using virtual aliases - a primer on virtual aliases, what they do, when you could use them, when you could use something better to do the same job and the limitations of the technology powering virtual aliases.
• Enabling URL rewriting - an advanced topic that discusses how you can use your 404 error handler to perform basic URL rewriting.

Additional Notes

If you are being redirected to the custom 404 error handler and the URL looks similar to "/my404script.asp?404;http://www.example.com/foo.asp") this isn't a fault with our script, it relates to the way IIS handles certain extensions.

Aside from looking a little messy at times it isn't really a major problem as it wont impact either your users or the search engines. But if you feel you want to fix it then it's relatively simple and involves a single IIS configuration change which corrects the problem - although once again I should point out the intermediate redirect doesn't seems to cause any problems that I'm aware of with either users or search engines.

1. Open the IIS Manager console.
2. Access the properties for your website.
3. Click the "Home Directory" tab.
4. Click the "Configration..." button.
5. Select ".asp" and click the "edit" button.
6. Ensure the "Check file exists" checkbox is enabled.
7. "Ok" the dialogs you've just opened.

Related Links

• Anti Hotlinking Enhancements, a script designed as a companion to our 404 error handler which enables IIS to stop certain images being hotlinked without requiring an ISAPI component.

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