Friendly URL Solutions

h1. Apache mod_rewrite .htaccess Solutions for MODx

MODx supports Friendly URLs via this .htaccess file. You must serve web pages via Apache with mod_rewrite to use this functionality, and you must change the file name from ht.access to .htaccess. Additional tweaks and environment specific additions follow the default template below:
{code:none}
# For full documentation and other suggested options, please see
# http://svn.modxcms.com/docs/display/MODx096/Friendly+URL+Solutions

Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /

# Fix Apache internal dummy connections from breaking [(site_url)] cache
RewriteCond %{HTTP_USER_AGENT} ^.*internal\ dummy\ connection.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule .* - [F,L]

# Rewrite domain.com -> www.domain.com -- used with SEO Strict URLs plugin
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} .
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} !^example\.com [NC]
RewriteRule (.*) http://example.com/$1 [R=301,L]

# For Friendly URLs
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ index.php?q=$1 [L,QSA]

# Reduce server overhead by enabling output compression if supported.
#php_flag zlib.output_compression On
#php_value zlib.output_compression_level 5
{code}
{tip}
If Windows IIS serves your pages, you're not left out of the Friendly URLs party, but optimal solutions do require a commercial IIS add on. For more information, see the [SEO Friendly URLs with IIS|http://modxcms.com/forums/index.php/topic,10915.0.html] page in the MODx forums.

For other web servers such as Zeus or lighttpd, see our [General Requirements|http://modxcms.com/learn/general-requirements.html] page under supported web servers.
{tip}

h2. Common Edits to the Default Template

Make sure RewriteBase points to the directory where you installed MODx. E.g., "/modx" if your installation is in a "modx" subdirectory:
{code:none}
RewriteBase /modx
{code}
Note in the last block of directives the gzip compression was left commented out since this can potentially cause issues in some environemnts. For a faster webserver experience, ucomment the last two lines as follows:
{code:none}
# Reduce server overhead by enabling output compression if supported.
php_flag zlib.output_compression On
php_value zlib.output_compression_level 5
{code}
You may also want to make your URLs non-case-sensitive by adding a NC directive to the directive in the "For Friendly URLs" part:
{code:none}
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ index.php?q=$1 [L,QSA,NC]
{code}
If you prefer your website to always add the "www." part to always show "www.example.com" URLs, then the section below should be changed as follows:
{code:none}
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} .
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} !^www\.example\.com [NC]
RewriteRule (.*) http://www.example.com/$1 [R=301,L]
{code}

h2. Session Handling

If you are deployed in an environment that has problems with aggressive garbage collection, as evidenced by unexpected and frequent logouts from the manager, then you can adjust the location of the sessions to remove them from the default and shared global tmp/session location:
{code:none}
php_value session.save_path /path/to/your/web/content/sessions/
php_value session.gc_maxlifetime 28800
{code}

h2. Register Globals

To verify that this option has been set to OFF, open the Manager and choose Reports \-> System Info and then click the phpinfo() link. Do a Find on Page for "register_globals". The Local Value should be OFF. If the Master Value is OFF then you do not need this directive here.

IF REGISTER_GLOBALS DIRECTIVE CAUSES 500 INTERNAL SERVER ERRORS:

Your server does not allow PHP directives to be set via .htaccess. In that case you must make this change in your php.ini file instead. If you are using a commercial web host, contact the administrators for assistance in doing this. Not all servers allow local php.ini files, and they should include all PHP configurations (not just this one), or you will effectively reset everything to PHP defaults. Consult www.php.net for more detailed information about setting PHP directives.
{code:none}
# Turn off register_globals because I have a lazy webhost that doesn't care about security
php_flag register_globals Off
{code}

h2. Solving Internet Explorer Woes

If htc files are being used on your site, some servers may serve this with the incorrect mime type. The following can be added to resolve this. The following is critical for MS Windows XP SP2 surfers:
{code:none}
# Fix .htc mime type for Internet Explorer
AddType text/x-component .htc
{code}
The following directives stop screen flicker in IE on CSS rollovers. If needed, un-comment the following rules. When they're in place, you may have to do a force-refresh in order to see changes in your designs.
{code:none}
# Fix screen flicker for images in Internet Explorer
ExpiresActive On
ExpiresByType image/gif A2592000
ExpiresByType image/jpeg A2592000
ExpiresByType image/png A2592000
BrowserMatch "MSIE" brokenvary=1
BrowserMatch "Mozilla/4.[0-9]{2}" brokenvary=1
BrowserMatch "Opera" !brokenvary
SetEnvIf brokenvary 1 force-no-vary
{code}