Overview
This article is intended to teach you the basics of the mobile redirect and why it is important that you install it inside of your desktop site.
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What is a Redirect?
The redirect code is used to automatically send mobile visitors to the mobile website. This is how the majority of people will come to your mobile website, by visiting your desktop site and being redirected to the mobile version. The redirect needs to be installed at least on your homepage, and every other page that you would like to redirect visitors to the mobile version.
FTP or Direct File Access
If you have direct access to the files of your site, you will be editing these files directly to install the mobile redirect. While each hosting provider is different, the basic instructions are as follows:
- Login to your hosting provider or where you update your desktop website from.
- Find the file manager section.
- Find the public_html folder.
- Find the base file of your website. This is generally index.html, but can also be named default.asp or index.php as well. Note: You will need to set-up this redirect on all pages which you want to make mobile friendly.
- Open or Edit the base file of the site and find the <head> tag, this is generally a few lines down.
- Copy and paste the redirect code (found from the Redirect step in Duda) directly after the <head> tag.
- Repeat this process for every page of your site to ensure all visitors receive a mobile-friendly experience.
- Save the changes you just made. You're now redirecting!
Wordpress, Joomla, or other CMS
If you are using a CMS platform such as WordPress, Drupal, or Joomla you can redirect the site as well -- through slightly different directions. Here are general directions:
- Login to the Dashboard/Administrator section of the CMS.
- Find the templates section of the site.
- Edit the HTML of the main template file that you currently have applied to your site.
- Find the <head> tag in the template.
- Copy and paste the redirect code directly after the <head> tag.
- Save or update the changes you made to the template file.
- Test it! You should now be redirected to the mobile site when you visit your desktop site on your mobile device.
Other Drag and Drop Website Builder
If you are using a website building platform, such as Weebly, Squarespace, or Homestead, you will want to install the redirect into the website building platform. Follow these general directions to install it:
- Log in to your website building platform of choice.
- Start to edit the site you need to install the redirect for.
- We need to install the code into the <head> HTML section of the site, this is usually found in the settings or SEO settings of the site.
- Paste the redirect code into the <head> HTML section of the site. Save the changes and republish the site to make sure the changes go live.
Note: You will need to setup this redirect on all pages which you want to make mobile friendly.
Looking for other ways to redirect? Check out our alternate methods of redirecting post.
Troubleshooting and FAQ's
Do I need to paste this redirect on every page?
That depends on the way your desktop site is set up - Sometimes, pasting it in the header will populate all other pages. Other times, it doesn't - If you use something such as Dreamweaver, you can use page templates to apply the redirect to all other pages of your site.
I want to disable the redirect on one page only
There isn't a method of disabling the redirect - If you want to not have it work on one page, simply omit the redirect from that page.
If that is not an option, there is a workaround. Simply create that page in DudaMobile that, when landed on, prompts the user to click a button to visit the desktop site.
How do I uninstall the redirect?
Simply delete the redirect from the site. For more information, see this link for how to uninstall the mobile redirect.
Also, see this article for common issues with going live.
