solved Keeping SEO links: /forum/topics

My web site has a lot of external linked content, meaning other people linked to a specific discussion. If possible, I would like to keep my discussion links the same to avoid tens of thousands of 404 errors in google webmaster.

The url for existing posts is /forum/topics/post-slug (as determined by ning)

Since I have a custom domain already, I can keep the first part the same.

My question is:
1) can I configure something to keep the /forum/topics/post-slug format when I move to Jamroom?
2) Does migrating forum posts keep the post slug?

Thanks!
updated by @elise: 12/11/16 04:26:43AM

Sure.

You'll want to add the URL Mapper module to your site:

Docs: "URL Mapper"
https://www.jamroom.net/the-jamroom-network/documentation/modules/2956/url-mapper

That will allow you to redirect the existing URL's to where their new location is.

To help you understand which URL's exist but are hitting 404's turn on "Log 404 Not Found" option under
ACP -> MODULES -> CORE -> SYSTEM CORE -> GLOBAL CONFIG

Docs: "System Core : Global Config"
https://www.jamroom.net/the-jamroom-network/documentation/modules/2857/system-core#global-config

Then any time a 404 url is hit by someone you will see it in your "Activity Log"

Docs: "Activity Log"
https://www.jamroom.net/the-jamroom-network/documentation/jamroom-admin-handbook/4290/activity-log

Once you know what URLs are hitting 404's you can then map them to where they should be going to.

--edit--
Q: Does it keep the same slugs?
A: no, jamroom has its own system that relies on numeric id's to identify the topic, eg
https://www.jamroom.net/the-jamroom-network/forum/new_posts/43023/keeping-seo-links-forum-topics

The format is:
(domain name) / (profile name) / (module name) / (category name) / (group id) / (seo url)
updated by @michael: 09/05/16 04:58:06PM

Oh, so I'll end up with 404 that I'll have to fix one by one. Ah well, better than not knowing. Thanks!

Not necessarily, If you have a set pattern that is followed, you have other options. Paul is the import specialist and knows the import process far better than I do, so may have some tricks to get urls lined up with where they need to go. (probably does)

If it was me and i had 10,000 url's coming into
site.com/cats/funny-videos/cat-does-backflip
site.com/cats/funny-videos/cat-catches-bird
site.com/cats/funny-videos/cat-........

Then I would come up with a module to do the work for me.


Something like:
* Catch the incoming url thats about to hit a 404
* search the datastore to see if it matches any known pattern
* redirect to where it should go.

Because writing 10,000 urls by hand would suck. if it was 5 urls a month though, I would go with the "URL Mapper"