Website or Domain Forwarding

Domain forwarding is also known as :

• Website Forwarding ,aliasing or redirection
• URL redirection or forwarding

• Domain redirection

It is deployed normally when you have an existing Website provided on an ISP server or free hosting provider which is reachable on a non personalised Domain name i.e.  www.ISP.com/yourname or www.yourname.isp.com.

You want to have a personalised Domain name and so you purchase the Domain name and associate the new domain name with the existing Website. As an example let’s assume that we have an existing Website provided on our ISP’s server that is reachable using the domain name www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub.

You purchase a new Domain name called www.Therunningclub.co.uk. You now forward all requests to domain www.Therunningclub.co.uk  to www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub .The original Website is then reachable as www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub  or www.Therunningclub.co.uk. 

There are several ways of accomplishing this domain or website forwarding; they differ in what the user sees in the browser address window after he has been redirected. The 3 most common ways are:

1. Free Web Redirection

            This is sponsored by PopUp banners. When you use Free Web Redirection your domain name will not remain in the browser's address window and real URL such as www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub will appear in the browser's address window and a popup(s) will appear.

2. Simple Web Redirection (SWR)

            This is similar to Free Web Redirection, but with no banners or PopUp windows. Your domain name will not remain in the browser's address window and real URL such as www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub will appear in the browser's address window.
For example, the domain name www.Therunningclub.co.uk is re-directed to URL www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub, and the destination URL, www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub, appears in the browser window.

3. Framed or Cloaked Web Redirection

            Framed Forwarding allows the visitor to the site to always see your domain name in the browser address bar and not the redirected URL. A master 'frame' is used to pull other pages into it. Your Website will look professional and high profile, without incurring the cost of regular Website hosting.

For example, the domain name www.Therunningclub.co.uk is re-directed to URL: www.onetel.net.uk/Therunningclub; however www.Therunningclub.co.uk remains in the browser’s address window.

NOTE: If you use Framed Web Redirection your domain name will appear throughout your Website no matter what link you click on. If you wish to link to a site that is external to yours and would like the address bar to change accordingly use the TARGET=" _top"  parameter  to break out of the frame when you specify your link. For example

<a href="http://www.partnerssite.com" target="_top">

and not

<a href="http://www.partnerssite.com">

Advantages of Domain or Website Forwarding

• You can make use of an existing or free Website, and is therefore very inexpensive.
• It overcomes limitation of free or ISP provided Web space of non personalised Domain Names.
• You only need to register the domain name.
• Multiple Domain names can be forwarded/redirected to the same Physical Website. That is you could register the following domain names www.BYO1.co.uk , www.BYO1.com. www.BYO1.net, www.BYO1.org and forward/redirect them all to one Website i.e. www.BYO1.com.

Disadvantages of Website Redirection

• Search engines may not be able to index your Website properly. This depends on the how Domain forwarding has been implemented.
• If you follow a link from your site to an external Website your domain name will still show in the address bar rather than the domain of the site you have now moved on to. -This depends on how it is configured.
• You cannot always bookmark a page in your Website as www.Therunningclub.co.uk/page.html as it is only the domain name that shows in the address bar window.- This again depends on how the redirection is implemented.

Do You Use Domain forwarding ?

For a small personal home page or club page then it is fine. If you are running a Business then it is far better to purchase Web space as well as a domain name. Getting listed in search engines is difficult enough without having to worry about being rejected because of the way you have implemented the redirection.