# curl-redirect-lies

Idea IB-0238. Status: DRAFT, nothing posted.

## Slides

**Cover.** The redirect check that says 200 is lying. It follows the redirect and hides the page that is gone.

**Slide 2.** Moving a site comes down to one question: does every old URL that ranks go somewhere useful?

**Slide 3.** Data slide. Curl with -I -L reports 200 and looks fine. The real check reports 404, so the page is lost.

**Slide 4.** The usual check follows the redirect all the way to a 200. That 200 can be the wrong page or just the homepage.

**Slide 5.** The real check: curl, silent, throw away the body, write out the status code and the redirect URL, on the old URL, with no -L so nothing is followed. Read the code and the target.

**Slide 6.** Reading it. A 301 to a topical page is good. A 404 is a lost ranking. A 301 to the homepage needs a second look.

**Slide 7.** Quote. Cutovers fail silently. The bleed shows up weeks later as lost calls.

**Slide 8.** Comment AUDIT for the redirect check sheet plus the free Fleet Room invite.

## Claims and sources

| Claim | Source | Read-date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| curl -I -L reports 200 where the real check shows a 404 | Pack 05 hook and script | 2026-10-11 | Illustrative test URL I own |
| 301 to a topical page is good, 404 is a lost ranking | Pack 05 script | 2026-10-11 |  |
| 301 to the homepage needs a second look | Pack 05 script (wrong page or just the homepage) | 2026-10-11 | Phrasing is mine, rule is from the script |
| Cutovers fail silently, the bleed shows up weeks later as lost calls | Pack 05 script | 2026-10-11 |  |