Can you Reverse a 301 Redirect?

Introduction

You can reverse a 301 redirect, even though it’s technically permanent. However, the long answer is that this change may not work as you’d like or expect, and may even worsen your problems. So let’s take a look at the long answer with different steps.

First, in theory, this all sounds easy, but 301 redirects take time to process in the real world, and reversing them often takes even longer. Prepare for these delays and prepare your stakeholders. You can see the shift in ranking over this period. Most of the time, this will pass reasonably quickly, but reversals tend to get messy.

Sitewide URL Reversal – Reverse a 301 Redirect

Here’s where things start to go wrong. Let’s say you’ve changed the sitewide URL, such as switching HTTP to HTTPS, updating your subfolder structure, or adding/removing URL parameters. This change affects most or all pages on your site, but we’ll assume that your root domain and subdomain structure remain the same.

If you undo a change like HTTP → HTTPS because it did not do what you wanted (i.e. your ranking wasn’t boosted), then let me take a moment for you to ask to reconsider your decision. All sitewide URL changes are risky, and a reversal will confuse signals even more. You could easily make your problems worse.
With all those caveats noted, here are the key steps:

• Remove all 301 redirects from A → B
• Add sitewide 301-redirects from B → A Add self-referencing canonical to every page
• Re-point internal links to “type A” URLs
• Rebuild XML Plan(s) for Type A URLs
• Submit review pages to Google Search Console (GSC)
• Re-point select inbound links to type “A” URLs

Google Search Console appears to have some limits on the number of pages you can submit (the boundary seems to vary by the site in the new version). And currently, there is no easy bulk submission process, so focus on high authority and higher pages in the internal linking structure. This should encourage Google to redefine the lower pages, at least to some extent.

For a sitewide change, especially given the risks involved, it is also helpful to reach out to authoritative inbound links and ask users to redirect those links to the original URLs. , type A. This is ultimately a link outreach task that requires some fragility. Focus on quality over quantity. On sites, you have a good relationship with – even redirecting a few High-level links can help you emphasize your new signals.

Reversing Domain Change – To Reverse a 301 Redirect

If you’ve moved your entire site to a new domain, assess if the problem is as severe as you think. Unfortunately, it is often riskier because certain aspects of your domain and its history can affect rankings, whether or not you have implemented 301 redirects.

Choice, here are your critical steps:

• Remove all 301 redirects from A → B
• Add sitewide 301 redirects from B → A
• Add an automatic forward to all pages
• point of internal links to domain A
• Re-add Domain A to Google Search Console (GSC)
• Rebuild XML Sitemaps for Domain A
• Submit review pages on Google Search Console (GSC)
• Re-point select inbound links to domain A

In this case, you will need a separate GSC profile. If you deleted the old one, add it again and recreate your full XML Sitemap. Of course, you will always want to submit critical pages to speed up the procedure.

If anyone doesn’t have access to domain B, they cannot. The truth is that, in this scenario, the process will be long and probably painful. Secondary signals, such as inbound links, will play a vital role in this scenario.

How do I resubmit pages in a CGC?

I’m still learning about the new Google Search Console (GSC). I find the user interface a little too mysterious at times. Here are the steps to submit (or resubmit) a page for indexing:

• Inspect URL in the toolbar
• It’s hidden from view. At the top of the new CMS has an “Inspect any URL” search box at the top. To resubmit a URL, you must first inspect it.
• Enter the URL you wish to resubmit and press [Enter].
• Request (re)index

GSC will return a status page with the current index status and additional information. Whether you are indexing the URL for the first time or re-indexing it, click “Request Indexing.”

In most of our 301 redirect reversal scenarios, you should get the message “The URL is on Google.” “status back. If the URL is not currently indexed, the rest of the page will contain diagnostic information.