If you purchased a domain through Godaddy, you can point that domain to a specific IP address (for website hosting) or have it forwarded to another url. For forwarding, there are a few options to consider and your settings depend on your particular needs. Below is an overview of domain forwarding and masking options in Godaddy.
Forwarding Types
There are two types of domain forwarding.
Permanent (301)
Permanent redirects are typically used when you have changed your website domain. For instance, if your website used to be olddomain.com but is changing to newdomain.com, then you will want to permanently forward the old domain to the new one. This also tells search engines that you want them to index the new domain and replace references to the old one.
Temporary (302)
Conversely, temporary redirects tell search engines that you wish to keep indexing for the current domain, even though it’s being forwarded to another. The redirect may be temporary, for one reason or another, and you intend to remove the forwarding at some point.
Be sure to enter the exact domain that you would like to forward to. It can be any url, such as a home page or subpage of another website.
Forwarding and Masking
Forward Only
Forward only sends people to the domain that you entered. Visitors will see the domain of that new website. For example, if you are forwarding olddomain.com to newdomain.com, visitors will see newdomain.com in their browser once they reach that website. As they navigate to different pages on that website, they will see the precise url for each page, i.e. the contact page might be http://newdomain.com/contact.
Forward with Masking
Masking displays the forwarded url in the browser window at all times, hiding the real domain of the website. So, if olddomain.com is forwarding to newdomain.com with masking, visitors will only see olddomain.com in their browser. As they navigated to subpages, the url does not change or display any direct links to those pages. For example, users may be viewing http://newdomain.com/contact but the browser still displays http://olddomain.com.When using the masking option, you will be asked to enter a title, description, and keywords.
What Else You Should Know About Domain Forwarding and Masking Options in Godaddy
If you are forwarding and masking in Godaddy, here are a few things you should know.
- Search engines only see the real url of the websites and pages. Although visitors may see olddomain.com because of masking, this does not apply to search engines. Search engines see and index results for newdomain.com since that’s the actual domain for the website.
- Masking only works if visitors specifically go to olddomain.com. If they reach newdomain.com in some other way, such as a Google search, then that’s what they will see in their browser. There’s no retroactive way to make the website appear under olddomain.com.
- Forwarded domains offer no search engine value. Some folks mistakenly think that if they buy 10 domains and forward them all to the same website, then all 10 domains could appear in search results and dominate a keyword search result. The reality is, only the domain that a website actually lives on will be indexed and offer SEO value. In cases where you have moved a website from one domain to another, both may temporarily appear during the time it takes for search engines to update their indexing.
Your selections impact both SEO and visitor experience, so be sure to keep this in mind when selecting among the domain forwarding and masking options in Godaddy.
FAQs
Forward with masking: Forward with masking sends visitors to your domain over to the destination URL, but keeps your domain in the browser address bar. It also gives you the option to enter meta-tags for search engine info. Note: Some websites don't support masking and may not properly display the desination site.
What is the difference between domain forwarding and domain masking? ›
Domain forwarding redirects users to a new domain or website with straightforward responses to why they are being turned. But domain masking hides the URL of the new site or part from the users.
What is masking in URL forwarding? ›
A masked redirect is also called URL cloaking or domain masking. The mask (or cloak) refers to how the URL in the address bar isn't the actual URL of the content on the page. So, your user thinks they are on one domain when they're really on another.
What is the difference between forwarding and redirecting a domain? ›
To a web application developer, a Forward and a Redirect are indeed different things. A Forward changes URLs on the server without telling the browser, but a Redirect tells the browser to fetch the new URL. But when it comes to DNS, you can think of a Redirect and a Forward as practically the same thing.
What is the difference between forwarding with masking and forward only? ›
There are two types of domain forwarding: forwarding only and forwarding with masking. Both options will redirect your visitors, but forwarding with masking provides additional functionality and it is not available to any Bluehost account.
What is an example of a domain masking? ›
Domain name masking allows you to show one URL in the browser's address bar, while another website's content is loaded. For example, when somebody opens your website, you can have yourdomain.com shown in the browser's address bar while the actual site loaded will be yourOTHERdomain.com.
What is the purpose of domain forwarding? ›
Web forwarding, also known as domain forwarding, is used when you want your domain name to automatically redirect visitors to another URL. It is easy to set up and it's free.
What are the benefits of domain forwarding? ›
Domain forwarding can help you build domain authority and stop domain squatting. If done properly, having multiple domains point to a main website can increase your brand authority and your search engine rankings, ultimately leading to increased conversions.
How does domain masking work? ›
Domain Masking (or URL Masking) is when you set up a website to display the content of another while hiding the destination's URL. For example, using Domain Masking makes the website examplemail.com show the content of mail.example.com/email/login , without the user knowing they're accessing mail.example.com .
Does domain forwarding change the URL? ›
URL redirects, also known as URL forwarding, allow you to redirect your domain visitors to a different URL, whether a new domain or another website. You have the option to configure three types of redirects: 301 (Permanent) 302 (Unmasked)
Setting a forward should not affect email.
How do I redirect a URL to another URL in godaddy? ›
To manually create a URL redirect:
- In the side panel, click Settings, then click URL Redirect.
- Click Add a New Redirect.
- Type the original URL to be redirected in the Source URLContent Field. ...
- Select the redirect Destination page. ...
- To edit or delete your custom URL redirects, click Edit or Delete in the redirect menu.
A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect that passes full link equity (ranking power) to the redirected page. 301 refers to the HTTP status code for this type of redirect. In most instances, the 301 redirect is the best method for implementing redirects on a website.
Is domain forwarding the same as a 301 redirect? ›
Forwarding a domain sends visitors to your domain over to another site. 301 and 302 redirects determine whether this forwarding is permanent or temporary, and tells search engines how to handle the redirect.
Does domain masking hide your original website address URL from being displayed? ›
Domain masking – as its name suggests – refers to the hiding of a website's real URL from a user's browser. While it can be a useful tool for websites, it can also negatively impact the user experience if designed to be misleading.
Why domain masking? ›
Domain masking prevents users from being able to see the actual domain website, whether it be due to length or privacy/security issues.
Permanent redirects are typically used when you have changed your website domain. For instance, if your website used to be olddomain.com but is changing to newdomain.com, then you will want to permanently forward the old domain to the new one. This also tells search engines that you want them to index the new domain and replace references to the old one.
