So 404 not found how to fix it. Mistakes we 'love'
Surely many of you have come across a situation where the browser refuses to load a certain page on the Internet, instead displaying a message about a certain "Error 404". The reaction of users to such a message can be characterized in different ways: they treat it negatively or indifferently, they are afraid of it or simply ignore it. Meanwhile, not everyone knows that in honor of this mistake, entire Internet projects and resource catalogs are created, contests and competitions are held, and finally, they even confess their love to her!
However, first things first.
prose of life
First of all, let's figure out what a "404 Error" is and in what cases it occurs. From a technical point of view, "Error 404" (or Error 404) is a HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) status code header, which is known to be something of an interaction framework. remote computers worldwide network. When the browser accesses the web server, the latter sends the code status of the requested document. If this request is processed correctly, the status is identical to the "200 OK" code. However, the user cannot see such a message due to the content of the requested website being displayed in his browser. If the browser's request for a document is processed with errors, the user sees a message with a status of "404: Not Found".
What do these mysterious numbers mean - 404? The first digit 4 indicates an error in the client program, i.e. browser. In this case, it is assumed that the site's URL was typed incorrectly in the browser's address bar or no longer physically exists on the requested server. The number 0 means common mistake protocol syntax. Finally, the last four belong to a separate category of 40x errors, which also includes such common statuses as "400: Bad Request" and "401: Unauthorized".
The myth of the 404 error
Some foreign sources interpret the decoding of the combination of numbers 404 in a slightly different way. In particular, it is argued that the main database of the CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) scientific center, which took an active part in the development of the World Wide Web, was located on the 4th floor in room No. 404. And when the amount of data being processed exceeded certain norms, which no longer allow several scientists to access the same file at the same time, the developers allegedly decided to issue an error message like "Room 404: file not found".
However, this statement is refuted by one of the scientists who are part of the CERN development team. According to him, "Room No. 404 did not exist at all in the CERN laboratory due to a completely different office numbering system, according to which the first digit (author's note: "4") meant the serial number of the building body, and the combination of the second - the room number. At the same time it would be strange to talk about room number 04, given the fact that the numbering at CERN began with the number 410.
Causes and consequences
As mentioned above, according to the HTTP protocol specification, "Error 404" can be caused either by an incorrect indication of the address (URL) of the requested site, or by the absence of a document on the web server. The spread in Russia of connecting to the Internet using a telephone line (dial-up) adds another probable cause of the "Error 404", namely, poor communication with the provider's modem pool.
Surfer's Reminder in Situation 404
Go up one level in the URL structure and from there try to find the document you are looking for, for example: http://www.site.ru/docs/users/masha.html
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How is the user likely to react to the appearance of a 404 error message? In most cases, any attempts to download the required document are subsequently rejected in principle: people are used to valuing their time on the Internet and prefer to look for a similar resource that meets their requirements. At the same time, not everyone knows about the third reason for the likely "Error 404" - a bad connection - therefore, they will not bother themselves with repeated attempts to load the desired page.
"Error 404" may occur due to the fault of a Web user who inattentively wrote down the address of an interesting site from the words of a friend, or typed a URL in the address bar of a browser with grammatical errors. Also, a webmaster is able to "make a mistake", who, when reorganizing the site structure or "cleaning" the server's contents, can delete this or that document as unnecessary (as it seems to him). If the latter is indexed by search engines, then it is quite possible that a non-existent document will be displayed in the resulting list by search query user. Or a specific Internet resource was once added to the "bookmarks" of the browser in order to refer to it as needed in the future. There are a lot of such cases, and all of them lead to the occurrence of "Error 404".
Expanse for the webmaster
The standard "Error 404" message is very ascetic and strict. But the most important thing is that in most cases it not only upsets the user, but also confuses him: he does not know what to do and eventually, as a rule, leaves the server, which gives him an incomprehensible error. This is a big mistake of a webmaster who thus loses his potential buyers, customers, customers, etc.
However, when accessing certain web server settings, any webmaster (or System Administrator) can issue appearance standard message "404: Not Found". It is hard to imagine the scope for imagination and eloquence that opens up in this case to the developers of this or that Internet resource. Now you can direct the lost visitor in the right direction, tell him the address he is looking for, and finally, just sympathize and redirect to home page your site. In other words, the dialogue between the service provider (which is almost any web resource to some extent) and the user is not broken even if an error occurs.
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Hobbies are different...
Some collect postage stamps, others are fond of collecting buttons, others are in the eternal pursuit of rare coins. And there are people who collect a wide variety of variants of "Error 404"! And there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for this: the rapid development of the Internet in general and the visual arts in particular, led to the emergence of various examples of visual interpretation of the status of protocol 404: funny and sad, for children and adults, instructive and aggressive, etc.
For example, the links directory of one of the most authoritative resources dedicated to Error 404 - "404 Research Lab" has over 20 different thematic categories containing many options for displaying "Error 404": "Funny", "Friendly", "Adult ", "Useful", "Philosophical", "Shocking", "Unexpected", etc. In another directory - 404Lounge.Net there is one of the largest galleries of "Error 404", which includes more than 700 different variations of the output of the message "404: Not Found" .
I loved you, what more? ...
Opening "404 errors" directories and thematic headings, news feeds of events in the "404: Not Found" world and creative delights of webmasters of numerous servers in formatting an error message - this can still be somehow understood and logically explained. And how do you look at writing laudatory odes and love dedications in honor of "Error 404"? Surprised? Don't believe? Absolutely in vain, as proof of which is given below a fragment of a prose masterpiece called "404: Purgatory: A Love Tribute to 404 Not Found" ("404 Purgatory: A Loving Tribute to 404 Not Found"):
"It's done! You have known the secret power of 404. You've been roaming the back alleys of the Internet all night long, you've bought yourself new modem and fashionable ergonomic mouse. They will come in handy. You are juggling with seven browser windows at the same time and suddenly - 404. You can't believe your eyes, because this site opened last week. You press Refresh, expecting a miracle with bated breath. Oh no! How could those dishonest browser bookmarks betray you?..."
“Why are we leaving 404 so quickly? We don’t understand that 404 is an oasis of the Internet. It is like a respite in a long and exhausting journey of a web surfer, like a breath of life-giving moisture in the middle of a parched desert… Error 404 is full of mystery and intrigue. What do we expect from browser? What joy will we have to know? Will we be able to return here again and again? 404 silently keeps this secret, and this makes people come back here again, in order to learn something new and unusual each time ... "
"Where there was darkness, now a 404 error. And the world is all right."
Of course, this interpretation of the essence of "Error 404" should not be taken seriously: this is just a joke, a kind irony in relation to an ordinary life phenomenon. And the next time you see "404: Not Found" on your screen, don't be upset and don't slander the slow webmaster: just smile, remembering the lines of this "love dedication".
The 404 error is the most recognizable and common hypertext document error. It reports that the page does not exist at the given address. In fact, we are talking about the absence of an html file for the specified document, so the site returns an error.
To deal with the issue in more detail, as well as with a number of service files that each resource has, you need to study the moment associated with the hypertext presentation of pages using HTML language(HyperText Markup Language - “Hypertext Markup Language”), and the HTTP protocol through which access is made. Despite the fact that you have to understand the programming language, the form of its presentation is so simple that anyone can understand it.
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Hypertext pages and their features
The Internet was born at the moment when the English engineer Timothy John Berners-Lee came up with a hypertext form of representing text pages on the web and described the principle of accessing them via the HTTP application protocol. According to the general idea, the user from his device, namely from the browser, makes a network request for a specific resource. At this point, a session is opened on the server being accessed. An HTML page is returned as a response.
Of course, in our time, more complex algorithms for accessing and “swapping” large pages are used, but general principle remains the same. To access a resource, you need Domain name and IP address. Only if these criteria are met and the resource is in a working state will an "error 404" be returned. not found» to the missing document.
What the default 404 page looks like
A site may or may not have a decorated "http 404 not found" access error page. A user with little experience is usually quite nervous when receiving it and believes that this is his fault. In fact, everything is much simpler, the answer follows from the above.
The 404 error code in the form of a separate page designed in the site design is returned only if the site has a 404.html file. It is usually located in the root directory. AT otherwise This error message will be displayed by the browser along with a message about the lack of access. And it usually looks like White list with an error message.
When developing websites, as a rule, content management systems are used. They contain a 404 page indicating in function files way to her. Typically, such a page contains a message about a non-existent address and a link to the main page of the site. The template for the 404 page can be changed to your liking, as this is a page on your site that you can use however you wish.
In order to remake the template, you will need knowledge of HTML to mark up the file. Please note that in some cases the page file may have a different name - err404. html, 404.php. The difference from the standard is most often associated with wider functionality, as well as system features. For example, in WordPress, the document can be found in the 404.php directory. In the address bar "error 404 page not found" will be displayed something like this: domain.ru/404/.
Adapting a Standard 404 Page to Your Purposes
To improve the usability (acceptability for users) of the site, of course, it is necessary to make a page that will attract the visitor to your site and help them continue browsing. Things to keep in mind when writing code:
- A significant part of visitors who encounter non-existent pages go to the site from search engines or via links on forums, websites and in social networks, that is, from where old links to long-defunct pages can be located.
- Users are not looking for your site, but for information of interest keyword, that is, in the absence of the desired visitor leaves the site and rarely views it.
That is, you must understand that it will not be so easy to keep such visitors, but it is possible!
Take a standard template available on the Internet, or make your own, taking into account the above features:
- Briefly explain to the person what happened and why he does not see what he was looking for. Show him the options for further actions that will help him find what he is looking for.
- Display a search string on the 404 page so that the visitor can immediately find what they want.
- Be sure to display the menu of your site here, with the help of which, a person can understand where to go.
- Make sure that the page attracts the user, and he wants to find information on your resource. Use colorful and interesting text-visual solutions.
To make the 404 server error page attractive to the user, it is enough to cause him a smile or interest. Therefore, try to work on the originality of the idea for such a section of your resource.
Editing the 404 Page
You can edit the file from the content management system directly, for this you need to add the desired markup and images.
When creating it, be guided by the fact that information should open quickly and without delay. The page should be "light" (take up little space), useful, and offer alternatives to finding a non-existent document.
- transition to the main;
- list of rating pages of the site;
- transition to the resource map;
- a button to inform the administration about a "broken" link on a specific source.
Otherwise, fantasy, corporate standards and the designer's original idea will be the best assistant.
Conclusion
The 404 not found page is a service file that can be modified and supplemented to attract more visitors to the site. This file is required, because otherwise, the browser will display an error message, after which the chance to lure a person to you will be zero. Try to fill it with colorful images and even light humor.
This error means that the page the user is trying to view was not found or does not exist. In this case, the user himself will not be able to influence the solution of the issue. The only thing he can do is to find similar information on the same site. For example, an address with an error www.example.com/not-founded-page.html replaced by www.example.com
Why is this happening?
This is due to the fact that the user went to the site page through the wrong link. For example, the user entered in the browser (or followed the link) http://mysite.com/rbot.html, but it was necessary - http://mysite.com/ro bot.html. Moreover, this link could be located both on your site and on third-party sites. You can find these links with Google webmastertools. For this we go to page of this service, select your site, and then click: Status -> Scan errors and select "Not Found".
It also does this job well. free program XenuLinks, which you can download, and see the manual -.
How to fix 404 error?
In the traditional sense, it is impossible to correct this error, because the problem lies not in the operation of the server or the site engine, but in the fact that someone incorrectly indicated the link address. That's why the only way corrections can be called identifying erroneous links, and indicating the correct address. It is also worth checking if the current page exists on your site? If it was deleted, then make sure that it appears again. If it has been renamed, then you need to set up a 301 redirect from the old page address to the new one.
When a user visits the site and sees given error through the issuance of the server, then he does not see your site (menu, navigation, design, etc.). Accordingly, with 100% probability, it will close the page. This scheme works on all hosting by default. But you can program this page and show your site with her. And this means that the user, seeing the main links of your site in the menu, can click on them and stay on the site. Here are examples of incorrect and correct output, respectively:
There are many different ways implement a similar scheme, but the most versatile of them is to add the following entry to the .htaccess file:
ErrorDocument 404 /error404.html
Accordingly, you will need to create the "/error404.html" page itself first.
Many Internet users often face such a problem as "404 not found". This error appears if the requested site page (address) was deleted, moved, or never existed. The 404 error has several causes that are easy to understand.
The error message "404 not found" is a standard server response, meaning the lack of information (file or page) at the request of the user. In other words, this response shows that the requested page is in this moment not available.
Reasons for the 404 error
The 404 not found error occurs for many reasons. The most common among them are the following:
- Incorrect entry of the page address
- Changing the address of the page (moving the page to another address)
- Website or server failure
Additional reasons
This problem often occurs for other reasons. So, error 404 may appear when there is no connection (or unstable connection) of the device to the Internet. Therefore, the desired page is not loaded. Also, a 404 error message may appear when the page is blocked by an antivirus.
Solution
Working on the problem of the 404 error depends on the cause of its occurrence. Most often, in the event of this error, the following actions are recommended:
- Checking the spelling of an address
- Reloading the page (click on the "Refresh" button or F5)
- Contacting the support service of the site on the page of which the error occurred
- Checking your device's Internet connection
- Checking antivirus (or browser) settings
What does "404 not found" mean?
Thus, the “404 not found” error occurs when the site does not work correctly, the page is moved to a different address, and the address is entered incorrectly. In addition, this problem often indicates a weak (or absent) connection to the Internet.
Also, a 404 error may appear when the requested page is blocked by an antivirus or browser. This problem should be decided depending on the cause. If the desired page still shows a 404 error response, then the page does not exist.
