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Created February 10, 2017 19:28
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Redirecting GitHub pages after a repository move
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redirecting-github-pages.md

Redirecting GitHub Pages after a repository move

The problem

You have a repository, call it alice/repo. You would like to transfer it to the user bob, so it will become bob/repo.

However, you make heavy use of the GitHub Pages feature, so that people are often accessing https://alice.github.io/repo/. GitHub will helpfully redirect all of your repository stuff hosted on github.com after the move, but will not redirect the GitHub Pages hosted on github.io.

The solution

We solve this by:

  1. Moving the repository, thus breaking all the links
  2. Creating a new user GitHub Pages site for Alice (not project GitHub pages site), at https://alice.github.io.
  3. Adding a file repo/index.html to the user GitHub pages site, which uses <meta http-equiv="refresh"> to redirect to the new URL.

This means that https://alice.github.io/repo/ still exists as a working URL, even though the alice/repo repository does not. And it will redirect to the new URL, at https://bob.github.io/repo/.

The details

To create a new user GitHub pages site for Alice, Alice will just create a new repository on GitHub named alice.github.io, with a single branch gh-pages. This should work out of the box, although if it doesn't, Alice can check the settings tab for that repository to make sure it's publishing to GitHub Pages.

The file at repo/index.html in the alice/alice.github.io repository should look like this:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<title>Redirecting to https://bob.github.io/repo/</title>
<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="0; URL=https://bob.github.io/repo/">
<link rel="canonical" href="https://bob.github.io/repo/">
@kaizhu256
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thx, this document helped restore broken-links when moving sql.js to https://github.com/sql-js/sql.js

@k-hinnenkamp
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When I do this and click on the old link, it downloads the new file instead of redirecting. Any idea what I am doing incorrectly?

@paulirish
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Thanks @domenic! The meta refresh with 0 sec delay is great, and agree that canonical is the move.

I also like to add in some body content, but it's definitely optional.

<body style="text-align: center">
Redirecting to <a href="https://bob.github.io/repo/">https://bob.github.io/repo/</a>

@mukhtharcm
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can i just add this one file and get my github pages personal blog to netlify URL?

@MattPM
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MattPM commented Nov 13, 2020

thanks this worked perfect for me.

@EvokerKing
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I did it and it worked. Then I left my PC for a bit, came back and it stopped working. It only works if I go to /repo.

@EvokerKing
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I did it and it worked. Then I left my PC for a bit, came back and it stopped working. It only works if I go to /repo.

Update: It works now. I removed it from inside of repo

@hancush
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hancush commented Mar 15, 2021

worked like a charm – thank you!

@pranav-dabre
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Thank You

@QLVL
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QLVL commented Apr 1, 2021

This is awesome, thank you!

@Sneezry
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Sneezry commented Apr 25, 2021

This could be the only solution for this scenario. But I would like to remind people who is reading this. http-equiv refresh could make tons of security software (Avira, CEDF, CyRadar, ESET, Kaspersky, McAfee, Symantec, etc) mark your site as phishing by mistake. And you have to send requests to all of them to remove your site from their block lists. Some of them may just ignore your request, Kaspbersky for example.

@akashennn
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Initially didn't work then I triggered the deployment again (as per https://stackoverflow.com/questions/45362628/github-pages-site-not-detecting-index-html) -- then it started working, Thanks :)

@rdmolony
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Thanks @domenic If you anyone also wants to redirect subpages you can create a new file called 404.html with the same contents as index.html

@thumbarnirmal
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I was looking exactly for this. Thanks! 👍

@MattCopenhaver
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MattCopenhaver commented Sep 29, 2021 •
edited
Loading

This doesn't seem to handle redirection for different paths within the original site. For instance https://alice.github.io/repo/some-content won't get redirected at all.

Any ideas there? I don't know of an option other than creating a similar index file for each path you support...

@web-apply
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yes

@nvuillam
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nvuillam commented Oct 30, 2021 •
edited
Loading

In addition to root redirection as described upper, you can also override 404 error page using JS redirection, that preserves the rest of the URL :) ( full url and not just root domain, query, hashtag...)

Can be seen in its natural habitat there -> https://github.com/nvuillam/nvuillam.github.io/blob/main/docs/overrides/404.html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

<head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <title>Error 404 :(</title>

    <script>
        window.onload = function () {
            const destination = window.location.href;
            if (window.location.href.includes("nvuillam.github.io/mega-linter")) {
                const redirectLocation = window.location.href.replace(
                    "nvuillam.github.io/mega-linter",
                    "megalinter.github.io"
                );
                document.getElementById("body").innerHTML = "Mega-Linter has moved into an organization repository for its V5 !<br/><br/>Redirecting to " + redirectLocation + " ...";
                window.location.href = redirectLocation;
            }
        }
    </script>
</head>

<body id="body" style="text-align: center">
    Page not found
</body>

</html>

@abmptit
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abmptit commented Aug 22, 2022

Hello,
I ve got similar problem.
I created repos TOTO, I deployed github page https://USER.github.io/toto
After that I removed the TOTO repos, I recreate another with same name, I deployed github pages,
When I try to navigate to https://USER.github.io/toto I'm redirected to https://laughing-carnival-953f0f88.pages.github.io/
Any idea plz ?
:(

@akaszynski
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The 404.html is just what I needed to be able to redirect the subpaths of the original site. Thanks!

@PMIRNC
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PMIRNC commented Oct 27, 2022

Thank you

@vigneshibmpub
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Hi,

I have renamed my repo from Vignesh-es-test to vignesh-es.

Since it is the same repo, do you have any solution for that?

@oyepriyansh
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Hi,

I have renamed my repo from Vignesh-es-test to vignesh-es.

Since it is the same repo, do you have any solution for that?

create a repo with name Vignesh-es-test and do these actions with it
@vigneshibmpub

@oyepriyansh
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This doesn't seem to handle redirection for different paths within the original site. For instance https://alice.github.io/repo/some-content won't get redirected at all.

Any ideas there? I don't know of an option other than creating a similar index file for each path you support...

@MattCopenhaver

create a file named 404.html and add the meta redirect in it

@CCFenner
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🎉

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