iFinity Products and Downloads

iFinity Url Master Module for DotNetNuke

FAQ for iFinity Url Master

Licensing and Support Questions

Q: Why do I have this yellow message at the top of my page, telling me I have an unlicenced copy/invalid licence/trial licence?

A: The Url Master is a premium module and you have to purchase a licence for it to remove this message. If you have purchased a licence and you are still getting the message, you might have a problem with your permissions. The asp.net worker process needs to have read permission on the licence subdirectory, and all files in that subdirectory. On some DNN installations, when you FTP the file up, it isn't given the correct read permissions automatically.

Q: How does the licensing system work?

A: The iFinity licence system works like this for all types of licence - except for a 'Host' Licence, which is explained in the next FAQ.

When you purchase a 1 or 5 domain license, you are licensing the module for 1 to 5 named, top-level domains. Sub-domains and child portals are all treated as a member of the top-level domain and do not require an additional license.

You may distribute the license across any combination of unique DNN installs and domain names as long as the total number of top-level domains is less than or equal to the number of domains licensed from iFinity.

You tell iFinity the number of DNN installs in which you will install the module and the unique top-level domain names within each DNN install.

We generate the necessary license file(s) and send them to you.

If you have more domains than licenses in a DNN install, all non-licensed domains display a message that says “unlicensed software is used on this site”.

If you need 3 domains today but know that you will want a 5-domain name license in the future, purchase the 5-domain today. iFinity will generate the license files for the 2 additional names when you request them in the future.

Example 1 : 5 Domain Licence, issued for:

domain1.com
domain2.com
domain3.com
domain4.com
domain5.com.

DNN Install 1 Server 1	DNN Install 2 Server 1	DNN Install 3 Server 2
www.domain1.com Licensed	domain3.com Licensed	www.domain4.comLicensed
domain2.comLicensed	domain3.com/childportalLicensed	product.domain5.comLicensed
test.domain1.comLicensed	domain3.orgUnlicensed (wrong top level domain)	domain6.com Unlicensed (not in licence file)

Example 2 : 1 Domain licence, issued for 'domain1.com', installed on two servers making up a webfarm for domain1.com

DNN Install 1 Server 1 (webfarm)	DNN Install 1 Server 2 (webfarm)
www.domain1.comLicensed	www.domain1.comLicensed
www.domain1.orgUnlicensed (wrong top level domain)	www.domain2.comUnlicensed (domain not in licence file)

Q: What does a 'Host' licence give me?

A: A 'Host' licence is a special type of licence unique to the Url Master software. This is because the Url Master works across all domains in a DNN install - so all domains needs to be licensed. A Host licence gives you unlimited domain names in a single DNN install. A Host licence does NOT give you unlimited domains for any DNN install - all of the domains must be associated with portals in a single DNN installation.

All we need for a host licence is the 'host' portal domain, and the Host guid. To order a host licence, use the link shown in the first secton of the 'Friendly Url Settings' page. This will link to the iFinity Licensing page, and will pre-fill out the required details for you.

Q: Can I get a licence for my development/staging/test server?

A: If you've got a test domain, just request it with your licence. There is no charge for test domains, as long as they're obviously a test/staging/development site. You can request 'localhost' or 'devmachine' - whatever domain your testing site runs on.

Q: I've got 2 domains that I'd like to use the product on, and I'm going to have another 2 in a couple of months. Can I purchase a 5 domain licence even though I don't have all 5 domains right now?

A: Yes you can purchase a 5 domain licence, and then 'use up' the domains over time. Just submit a licence request for each additional domain name as you need. Once you've used up the 5 domains, you can also upgrade to a host licence, if all the domains are on the one DNN install. Otherwise, just purchase another 5 domain licence.

Q: I asked for a licence for a particular domain, now I've decided not to use that domain. Can I substitute another domain instead?

A: No. Once a domain licence has been issued, it can't be exchanged for another. Please take the time to choose your licensed domain names carefully as substitutions will not be made.

Q: What does a licence file look like?

A: A licence file is an Xml file containing all the details about the domains you have licensed. It will be sent to you, and when saved in the specified location, will remove the licensing messages from the software. You can't modify the licence files yourself as they are signed with an encrypted key - if you modify the licence file it will become invalid, and you'll need to request a new one to fix it.

Q: I have three domains : mydomain.com, mydomain.co.uk and mydomain.com.au - do I need a single domain licence or a 5 domain licence?

A: You need a 5 domain licence, as the separation of domains occurs at the top-level domain. You can use as many subdomains as you like.

Q: What Support do I get with my licence?

A: In general, you'll get all the support you need to get the software running as advertised when you first install the product. Our lawyers make us put a sunset clause on the support clause in the End User Licence Agreement, so there is an 'official end' to the support you'll get. Support is given via the support forum, and in some cases through instant messaging, email and other arrangements. It may be necessary for you to grant host access to your portal, and possibly FTP access. As of yet, there hasn't been a single install where the software couldn't be configured to work, as long as it's got the right DNN version (4.6 onwards).

Sales Questions - or 'Can it do....'?

Q: What's the difference between the standard DotNetNuke Friendly Url Provider, the free iFinity Friendly Url Provider and the Url Master module.

A: The answer to that question is long and complicated - the top three differences are:

1) The Url Master installs using the DotNetNuke installer

2) The Url Master module allows you to specify your own Urls for pages

3) The Url Master module allows you to create custom redirects for pages.

Of course, there are many more differences. Please see the blog post - What's the difference between the Friendly Url Provider and the Url Master software?

Q: I've seen other SEO Friendly Url solutions available for cheaper than the Url Master module. Why wouldn't I purchase one of those?

A: It's true this isn't the cheapest solution available in the marketplace - but for many customers the price is very little compared to the extra search engine results and traffic the module provides. The price reflects the time and skills required to build a module like this and support it through many DNN releases. It has the most comprehensive set of features and compatibility for all products in the DNN SEO Url space. If you like the software and price is a problem, consider trying out the Free iFinity Friendly Url provider and modifying the source code of it to suit your needs. The Friendly Url Provider has many of the same features and the source code is provided.

Q: Can't I just use a generic Url Rewriting solution for ASP.NET, or an ISAPI rewriter?

A: No, you can't. For DotNetNuke, you need a module that :

1) Rewrites the incoming urls according to the details stored in the DNN database

2) Generates Friendly Urls for each page in the site

3) Decides which request is for which portal in the installation, and instances and caches important portal-specific information for the request.

All of these require a dedicated DNN Friendly Url Provider / Url Rewriter, which the Url Master is. It doesn't sit on top of the DNN application as an extra layer, it directly integrates into the DNN Core (while not modifying the core code, allowing you to upgrade). None of this is possible with an off-the-shelf, generic ASP.NET rewriter or IIS ISAPI filter.

Q: Can the Url Master module redirect from the 'www' version of my domain name to the base domain name (ie www.domain.com to domain.com, or domain.com to www.domain.com?)

A: Yes, the Url Master can do this. You first need to add both versions of the domain as portal aliases to your site, then you need to check the option of 'Do 301 Redirect to single subdomain', and specify the 'www', or leave it blank to redirect to the domain name only.

Q: Can the Url Master module redirect from www.mydomain.com/default.aspx to www.mydomain.com?

A: You can redirect the /default.aspx path to the site root, but only if you are running your DNN installation on an IIS website with 'wildcard' extensions enabled. See the section in Installation Instructions on how to configure wildcard extension mapping for IIS. If you're not running a wildcard extension, you're stuck, because IIS will always append the 'default' document, as specified in your IIS configuration for your website. Thus, it is impossible to redirect away from this as IIS will keep appending it back on. See the blog post on redirecting /default.aspx for more details To enable the /default.aspx redirect (if you are using wildcard extensions) then tick the option called 'Do 301 redirect for /default.aspx requests to the site root?'. This is found in the 'Friendly Url Settings' page.

Q: Can I redirect from an old url that wasn't a .aspx extension to a new DNN page? I'd like to redirect the old website /products.htm to the new page products.aspx?

A: Yes you can, but you need to map the old extension of 'htm' to be handled by the aspnet_isapi.dll in the IIS configuration for your site. In order to 'capture' and redirect the old Url of /products.htm, the .htm extension needs to be captured and read by asp.net, so it can be passed to the Url Master code for processing. In some cases, you won't be able to do this (for instance, most shared hosting companies won't allow you to change the IIS configuration for your site) and you will need another third party solution. If you can change the configuration, then you should just enter the 'old' Url as a 301 redirect value in the 'Page Urls' page.

Q: I use the Ventrian News Articles module, and I'd like my articles to be referenced without the 'articleType/articleView/articleId/103/' in the query string. Can the Url Master module do that?

A: No, in it's current release, it can't do this type of rewriting. The structure and format of the Url in third-party modules like the Ventrian News Articles and Ventrian Property Agent module are controlled by the module itself, not by the Friendly Url Provider. You will be able to make the Url more friendly, but you won't be able to totally remove the information from the Url.

Q: I use Snapsis PageBlaster on my website. Is the Url Master module compatible with it?

A: In general, yes, though it is possible to change settings on either the PageBlaster module or the Url Master module to cause the two to stop working together. It's recommended to determine the optimal setting for your site on a test site before making the changes to your production site.

Q: I use AspDoNet Storefront ML/DNN for my e-commerce site, can I use Url Master to create Friendly Urls ?

A: Yes, you can, but you will need extra assistance to configure and setup your site. The ML/DNN product uses it's own Url rewriting scheme, and 'out of the box' the Url Master won't work correctly. With some configuration changes and setup, though, you can run the two products side-by-side. There are several websites around that use these two products together, which results in very-SEO friendly Urls for an e-commerce solution.

Q: I use the Catalook Store on my website. Is the Url Master module compatible with it?

A: Yes, you can use the Url Master with Catalook without any problems. Individual sites may need tweaking and tuning through the configuration settings, but in general it can be achieved.

Q: I use 'module-x ' on my website. Is the Url Master compatible with it?

A: In general, any module that uses the DNN core framework API's to generate and rewrite Urls without any proprietary code will work successfully with the Url Master module. The Url Master module is a bolt-in replacement for the standard DNN Friendly Url Provider, and replicates almost all of it's functionality, as well as all the extra functionality. The best way to find out, though, is to download and install the product. It's free to try, and you'll soon know. If you are having trouble with a particular module, please use the support forums to seek assistance.

Q: Will this module run in a medium trust environment?

A: Yes and no. The module will run OK in medium trust, for the purposes of Url Rewriting and generating Friendly Urls. However, in a medium trust environment, the module will not have the ability to write the settings to the web.config file. This means that the 'Apply Changes' button will not work - it will fail with a security exception.

To run the module in medium trust, you will need to manually configure the web.config file. The instructions on doing this are in the Install Instructions.

General Usage Questions

Q: I've installed the module, but my terms and privacy links are different for every page. Shouldn't the Url Master module fix it so that there is only one Url for the terms page, and one for the privacy page?

A: You probably don't have a Home page selected in your portal site settings. Go to the Admin->Site Settings page and select a home page for your site. This will 'anchor' the Terms and Privacy links to the home page, resulting in a single Url throughout your website.

Q: What is this message I find in my site event log, which says 'Tab Dictionary built and cached: 159 items. Reason: Force Rebuild True;Bypass Cache False;Dict=null;' ?

A: This is an informational message to inform you when, how often and what size the Page Index is for your DotNetNuke installation. The Page Index is the foundation of your DNN Urls, it's how the Url Master performs so quickly in resolving a friendly Url into the correct DNN page. You may be receiving page index rebuilds if your IIS server is frequently recycling the app pool, or flushing memory due to insufficient memory capacity. The size of the cache tells you how much memory the cache is taking. The rough rule of thumb is that it uses 30 bytes per entry, multiplied by the number of items. If you have too many portal aliases, too many deleted pages (empty your DNN recycle bin) the page index will get larger. However, the size of the index does not affect lookup performance, as it is done on a keyed, strongly typed Dictionary object. The 'Reason' tells you if the index was forced to be rebuilt by a change in page Urls (a new page, or a change in page name), and whether or not the cache was bypassed for an example. You can ignore these values - they are used to trouble shoot installations. The cache settings are independent from the DNN cache settings from version 1.10.04 onwards, and can be changed in the 'Friendly Url Settings' page.

Q: Why does my site redirect from /default.aspx to home.aspx, or from the site root to /home.aspx

A: This was a feature introduced to remove duplicate content. All DNN sites have a myriad of urls that the home page can be found under, including www.domain.com/, www.domain.com/home.aspx, www.domain.com/tabid/36/default.aspx, www.domain.com/home/tabid/36/default.aspx and default.aspx, plus default.aspx?TabId=36. While the automatic 301 redirect will take care of the majority of these entries, the site root and /default.aspx Urls served up the home page without redirecting. In version 1.10.0 this was changed to /home.aspx, but from feedback, customers preferred it to work the other way around - from /home.aspx to the site root, and from /default.aspx to the site root (note, see FAQ above). So, from version 1.10.04 onwards, the home page is actually the site root.

Q: After installing the Url Master module, some of my images and javascript links are broken. What's wrong?

A: What you are probably experiencing is the change in rewriting method used when installing the Url Master module. There are two options when performing Url Rewriting with ASP.NET. One is to 'rebase' all client urls, which means that any urls referenced from a relative path (ie ) will be converted as though they are relative from the virtual (or original path). If you choose not to rebase Client Urls, any links from the Html will be treated as though they are relative to the rewritten path, or, in the case of DNN, the site root (because all rewritten urls are to /default.aspx). From version 1.11.15 onwards, you have the choice of choosing whether to use client rebasing or not. This option is under 'Advanced Rewriting Options'. If you are writing code for your site, the best method is to use the call to 'ResolveUrl()', which will choose the correct (site root) base for the Url.

Q: I'm setting my site up using a temporary domain name, and I'll switch over to my permanent domain name when I'm finished. What will I have to change when this is finished?

A: You won't have to change anything in the Url Master software. All of the Urls work from the current 'Portal Alias' value, so when you switch over the Portal Alias, all of the Urls on the site will switch over as well. Just be sure to not hard-code any links into Html content in the site using the temporary Url.

Q: Why can't I see the Url Master module in the list of installed modules on the 'Module Definitions' page?

A: The Url Master module is installed as a 'host' module, which means it's only accessible to host and admin users. This is why you can't see it in the 'Modules' drop down in the DotNetNuke control panel, and why it doesn't show up in the list of installed modules. DotNetNuke doesn't have a category for Host Modules that also display on the installed third-party modules list.

If you want to see the Module Definition for your Url Master module (including the version) then you should click on the 'Edit Module Definition' link at the bottom of the 'Friendly Url Settings' screen.

Q: How do I uninstall the Url Master Module?

A: Because the Url Master module is a complex module, it requires a slightly unconventional uninstall process. You must follow these steps if you would like to uninstall the module. If you don't follow these steps, your DNN site will end up inoperable.

1) Click on 'Revert to Standard Provider' in the Friendly Url Settings screen

2) Click on 'Edit Module Definition' at the bottom of the Friendly Url Settings screen

3) Click on 'Uninstall' in the Module Definition screen.

Q: I didn't follow your instructions on uninstalling the module, and just went straight to the 'Uninstall' button. Now my site doesn't work. How do I fix it?

A: You need to manually edit the web.config file to restore the standard DNN friendly Url provider. To do that, you must add two entries into your web.config.

1) Locate the 'UrlRewrite' entry in the web.config. If you're running IIS5/6, it will be in the <system.web> section. If you're running IIS7, it will be in the <system.webserver> section.

Remove this entry:

and replace it with this entry:

2) Locate the 'DNNFriendlyUrl' section. This will be the same regardless of the IIS version.