Bug Google Webmaster Tools: 30k pages with old URL structure reported as 404

[Marv]

Hi there,

before we´ve installed DBSEO this month, we only had 2 or 3 URL´s reported from the Webmaster Tools as 404s. Since the installation we´ve changed the URL structure from

- TLD.com/[threadID]-[thread-title].html

to

- TLD.com/[forums-title]/[threadID]-[thread-title].html

and in the Tools we now have over 30.000 pages reported back as errors (404´s). We´ve already marked those errors as solved and submitted the new sitemap twice. Unfortunal, those error reports are still coming in. I´m unsure what this means for us.

1. Does it mean, that the 301´s from the new url structure doesn´t work and we´ll loose PR and ranking on all our old indexed URL´s instead of them beeing transferred to the new URL´s - or

2. Does it mean, that Google is using old (and deleted) sitemaps and tries to index them? Since there should be a 301 to the new URLs, that shouldn´t result in any errors, or?

3. or does it mean, Google only tries to update already indexed pages an a regular basis? Since there should be a 301 to the new URLs, that shouldn´t result in any errors, or?

Any ideas, Fillip?


P.S.: Of course, Google is indexing the new URLs (actual 12.000 of 330k) and keeps going. So that seems to work proper.

 

[Fillip H.]

If you enter the old URLs in your browser, do they redirect for you?

 

[Marv]

Yep, that´s what we´d changed as you remember. They still work fine, are redirected to the new URLs and so I don´t know why Google is comin up with 404s ^^

 

[Fillip H.]

In that case, it's probably just them detecting the 404s from the time it was broken. If you keep marking them as fixed, eventually they should go away. We had the same issue, but eventually Google realised the URLs actually did work

I recommend that you keep checking back in GWT and keep marking them as fixed, and if in ~2 weeks time it hasn't improved, post another support ticket and we'll have another look

Meanwhile, I'll close this ticket. If you have any further questions or issues, please feel free to start a new support ticket. Thanks!