automattic/wpcom-legacy-redirector

WordPress plugin for handling large volumes of legacy redirects in a scalable manner.

1.3.0 2017-07-21 11:08 UTC

Requires

• composer/installers: ~1.0

GPL-2.0+

• Automattic

README

Stable tag: 2.0.0-alpha Requires at least: 6.4 Tested up to: 6.7 Requires PHP: 8.2 License: GPLv2 or later License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html Tags: redirects, 301, legacy, migration, seo Contributors: automattic, WordPress VIP

A WordPress plugin for handling legacy redirects in a scalable manner. Designed for high-traffic sites with large volumes of redirects.

At a Glance

• Scalable: Handles thousands of redirects efficiently using MD5-indexed lookups
• Admin UI: Add and manage redirects through the WordPress admin
• WP-CLI support: Bulk import/export via command line
• Multisite compatible: Works on single sites and multisite networks
• Query parameter preservation: Optionally preserve UTM and other tracking parameters
• VIP-ready: Built for WordPress VIP environments

Installation

1. Upload the plugin folder to /wp-content/plugins/ or install via the WordPress admin
2. Activate the plugin through the 'Plugins' menu in WordPress
3. Navigate to Tools > Redirects to add or manage redirects

Usage

Adding Redirects via Admin

1. Go to Tools > Redirects > Add Redirect
2. Enter the "Redirect From" path (e.g., /old-page)
3. Enter the "Redirect To" destination (URL or post ID)
4. Click "Add Redirect"

Adding Redirects via WP-CLI

# Add a single redirect
wp wpcom-legacy-redirector insert-redirect /old-page https://example.com/new-page

# Redirect to an internal post by ID
wp wpcom-legacy-redirector insert-redirect /old-page 123

# Import redirects from CSV
wp wpcom-legacy-redirector import-from-csv /path/to/redirects.csv

# Export redirects to CSV
wp wpcom-legacy-redirector export-to-csv /path/to/export.csv

Programmatic Usage

use Automattic\LegacyRedirector\Domain\Destination;
use Automattic\LegacyRedirector\Domain\SourceUrl;
use function Automattic\LegacyRedirector\container;

// Get the redirect manager via the helper function (recommended for third-party code)
$manager = container()->manager();

// Add a redirect to an external URL
$source      = SourceUrl::from_string( '/old-page' );
$destination = Destination::from_mixed( 'https://example.com/new-page' );
$result      = $manager->create_redirect( $source, $destination );

if ( $result->is_error() ) {
    // Handle error: $result->error_code(), $result->error_message()
}
$redirect_id = $result->redirect_id();

// Add a redirect to an internal post by ID
$source      = SourceUrl::from_string( '/another-old-page' );
$destination = Destination::from_mixed( $post_id );
$result      = $manager->create_redirect( $source, $destination );

// Check if a redirect exists and get its data
$redirect_data = container()->executor()->get_redirect_data( '/old-page' );
if ( $redirect_data ) {
    $redirect_url    = $redirect_data['url'];
    $redirect_status = $redirect_data['status_code'];
}

Multisite Support

The plugin works on WordPress multisite installations:

• Per-site redirects: Each site manages its own redirects independently
• No cross-site leakage: Redirects on Site A do not affect Site B
• WP-CLI support: Use --url=site.example.com to manage specific sites

WP-CLI Multisite Examples

# Add redirect on specific site
wp wpcom-legacy-redirector insert-redirect /old /new --url=site2.example.com

# Export redirects from specific site
wp wpcom-legacy-redirector export-to-csv /path/to/export.csv --url=site2.example.com

How It Works

Redirects are stored as a custom post type (vip-legacy-redirect) with:

• MD5 hash of the source URL in post_name (indexed for fast lookups)
• Original URL in post_title (human-readable)
• Destination as either post_parent (internal) or post_excerpt (external)

The plugin intercepts 404 requests early (priority 0 on template_redirect) and performs a redirect if a match is found.

Hooks and Filters

Preserve Query Parameters

By default, query parameters are stripped during redirect lookup. To preserve specific parameters (like UTM codes):

add_filter( 'wpcom_legacy_redirector_preserve_query_params', function( $params, $url ) {
    return array( 'utm_source', 'utm_medium', 'utm_campaign' );
}, 10, 2 );

Modify Redirect Status Code

Change the HTTP status code (default: 301):

add_filter( 'wpcom_legacy_redirector_redirect_status', function( $status, $url ) {
    return 302; // Temporary redirect
}, 10, 2 );

Modify Request Path

Alter the path before redirect lookup:

add_filter( 'wpcom_legacy_redirector_request_path', function( $path ) {
    return strtolower( $path ); // Case-insensitive matching
} );

WP-CLI Commands

Command	Description
insert-redirect	Add a single redirect
import-from-csv	Bulk import from CSV file
import-from-meta	Import from post meta
export-to-csv	Export all redirects to CSV
find-domains	List destination domains

For detailed command options, run wp help wpcom-legacy-redirector.

Documentation

See the Wiki for detailed documentation.

Support

• Bug reports & features: GitHub Issues
• VIP customers: Contact WordPress VIP Support

Please use GitHub Issues only for bug reports and feature requests, not general support questions.

Contributing

We welcome contributions! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for the full list of changes.

License

Licensed under GPL-2.0-or-later. See LICENSE for details.