Title: External Links
Last modified: May 10, 2023

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# External Links

 *  Resolved [adamplayfair](https://wordpress.org/support/users/adamplayfair/)
 * (@adamplayfair)
 * [3 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/)
 * I have two domains for my site, the main one, [https://richmond-holidays.com](https://richmond-holidays.com)
   and the one for short urls: [https://rmhols.uk](https://rmhols.uk).
   I want to
   be able to redirect someone to an external URL by creating a short link i.e. 
   to gather google reviews:[https://rmhols.uk/GReviews](https://rmhols.uk/GReviews)
   to redirect to [https://g.page/RichmondHolidays/review](https://g.page/RichmondHolidays/review)
 * At present, redirecting to my own site is working fine but none of the external
   links I’ve created are functional, they just redirect to a 404 page on my site.
   Any guidance, greatly appreciated.
 * The page I need help with: _[[log in](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fwordpress.org%2Fsupport%2Ftopic%2Fexternal-links-37%2F%3Foutput_format%3Dmd&locale=en_US)
   to see the link]_

Viewing 8 replies - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)

 *  Moderator [Jan Dembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/)
 * (@jdembowski)
 * Forum Moderator and Brute Squad
 * [3 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16727525)
 * Excuse me [@adamplayfair](https://wordpress.org/support/users/adamplayfair/) 
   but the plugin author replied in a way that was not appropriate. It hit the pending
   queue and you never saw it but I now have to address the plugin author.
 * [@mikeatkaizencoders](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mikeatkaizencoders/)
   I have archived your reply. If you again ask for access to a forum user’s site,
   be it temporary, a staging site, a test site or any site then you may lose access
   to these forums.
 * Yes, it is that serious. Please reply that you understand this here.
 * While I know you have the best of intentions, it’s forum policy that you _not_
   ask users for admin or server access. Users on the forums aren’t your customers,
   they’re your open source collaborators, and requesting that kind of access can
   put you and them at high risk.
 * If they _are_ paying customers (such as people who bought a premium service/product
   from you) then by all means, direct them to your official customer support system.
   But in all other cases, you need to help them here on the forums.
 * Thankfully are other ways to get information you need:
    - Ask the user to install the [Health Check plugin](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/health-check/)
      and get the data that way.
    - Ask for a link to the [http://pastebin.com/](http://pastebin.com/) or [https://gist.github.com](https://gist.github.com)
      log of the user’s web server error log.
    - Ask the user to create and post a link to their `phpinfo();` output.
    - Walk the user through [enabling WP_DEBUG and how to log that output to a file and how to share that file.](https://wordpress.org/support/article/debugging-in-wordpress/)
    - Walk the user through basic troubleshooting steps such and disabling all other
      plugins, clear their cache and cookies and try again (the Health Check plugin
      can do this without impacting any site visitors).
    - Ask the user for the step-by-step directions on how they can reproduce the
      problem.
 * You get the idea.
 * We know volunteer support is not easy, and this guideline can feel needlessly
   restrictive. It’s actually there to protect you as much as end users. Should 
   their site be hacked or have any issues after you accessed it, you could be held
   legally liable for damages. In addition, it’s difficult for end users to know
   the difference between helpful developers and people with malicious intentions.
   Because of that, we rely on plugin developers and long-standing volunteers (like
   you) to help us and uphold this particular guideline.
 * When you help users _here_ and in public, you also help the next person with 
   the same problem. They’ll be able to read the debugging and solution and educate
   themselves. That’s how we get the next generation of developers.
 *  Plugin Author [Mike L](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mikeatkaizencoders/)
 * (@mikeatkaizencoders)
 * [3 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16727605)
 * [@jdembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/) I can understand.
 *  Moderator [Jan Dembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/)
 * (@jdembowski)
 * Forum Moderator and Brute Squad
 * [2 years, 12 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16748710)
 * [@mikeatkaizencoders](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mikeatkaizencoders/)
   Did you read what I posted at all? That’s an honest question because you literally
   ignored what I posted.
 * I archived your new reply from 5 minutes ago. If you seek off forum contact again
   there is a good chance you will lose access to these forums.
 *  Plugin Author [Mike L](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mikeatkaizencoders/)
 * (@mikeatkaizencoders)
 * [2 years, 12 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16748795)
 * [@jdembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/) Thanks for the
   moderation.
   I have a question. Sometimes, we need to understand how customer 
   has setup the plugin. And to give quick resolution of their issue, it would be
   a good idea to get the access and see how things are setup and provide the solution
   rather than asking them to check all of possible scenarios. Isn’t a good idea
   to get the access? What do you think?
 *  Moderator [Steven Stern (sterndata)](https://wordpress.org/support/users/sterndata/)
 * (@sterndata)
 * Volunteer Forum Moderator
 * [2 years, 12 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16748968)
 * [@mikeatkaizencoders](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mikeatkaizencoders/)
   No, IT IS NEVER A GOOD IDEA and will get you into a lot of trouble here. 
   IN 
   addition to what Jan listed, consider the liability you take on when you log 
   into another’s site. If anything happens to the site, ever, you’re likely to 
   get blamed. So, no, don’t do it, don’t ask for it, and don’t accept it if offered.
 *  Thread Starter [adamplayfair](https://wordpress.org/support/users/adamplayfair/)
 * (@adamplayfair)
 * [2 years, 11 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16758495)
 * Thank you for you help, sorry to have stirred a problem here. Thanks for the 
   offer of support and for your diligence in moderation. I’m please to report that
   external links are now all working as they should.
 * I updated the link to [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Richmond+Holidays/@50.7396332,-1.8634175,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x4171cafbff847fa1:0xf80f210c88d3fb55!8m2!3d50.7396332!4d-1.8634175!16s%2Fg%2F11b6z_znx6?entry=ttu](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Richmond+Holidays/@50.7396332,-1.8634175,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x4171cafbff847fa1:0xf80f210c88d3fb55!8m2!3d50.7396332!4d-1.8634175!16s%2Fg%2F11b6z_znx6?entry=ttu)
    -  This reply was modified 2 years, 11 months ago by [Jan Dembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/).
      Reason: Short link expanded. Don't use those here
 *  Plugin Author [Mike L](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mikeatkaizencoders/)
 * (@mikeatkaizencoders)
 * [2 years, 11 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16758519)
 * Glad to hear that it works for you. 
   If you like the plugin, please consider 
   leaving us your [review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/url-shortify/reviews/)
   Thanks in advance!
 *  Moderator [Jan Dembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/)
 * (@jdembowski)
 * Forum Moderator and Brute Squad
 * [2 years, 11 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16773152)
 * Side note to [@adamplayfair](https://wordpress.org/support/users/adamplayfair/)
   Do not use short links in these forums, that has been abused in the past and 
   is expanded when found. I have expanded yours.

Viewing 8 replies - 1 through 8 (of 8 total)

The topic ‘External Links’ is closed to new replies.

 * ![](https://ps.w.org/url-shortify/assets/icon-256x256.png?rev=3360016)
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## Tags

 * [external](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/external/)

 * 11 replies
 * 4 participants
 * Last reply from: [Jan Dembowski](https://wordpress.org/support/users/jdembowski/)
 * Last activity: [2 years, 11 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/external-links-37/#post-16773152)
 * Status: resolved