Member Avatar for remcov

Hello

I noticed the following behaviour in google.
After a url structure change about 2-3 months ago my whole testsite went supplemental. I used 404 on the old pages, no room for 301.

I thought o heck :p. Anyway about a week ago i decided to use the google automated url removal tool
The thing i noticed was: those pages I removed seemed to return from the supplemental index. Not all but most, and already after a few days.

My idea why this happened is: google still remembers the page behind the 404 and see's the new page as a duplicate. Does anybody have any thoughts on this subject?

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by Candy_ME

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observed exactly the behavior you’d expect when 404s, a URL‑removal request, and a structural change all happen together. The removal tool only hides results temporarily; it doesn’t rebuild canonical relationships or transfer link signals. Google will still hold records of the old URLs and will re-evaluate any new pages it finds — if the new pages look like duplicates or don’t have clear canonical/redirect signals, they can end up in the lower‑visibility index state that was called “supplemental.”

Longer explanation and practical fixes (short checklist):

  • For a permanent move, implement 1:1 301 redirects from every old URL to its new counterpart. That consolidates signals and is the cleanest fix (as suggested).
  • If pages are gone and should stay gone, serve a 410 Gone rather than a 404; 410 signals permanent deletion and is usually processed faster.
  • Avoid relying on the Remove URLs tool for permanence — it’s a temporary hide (months), not a replacement for correct HTTP status, noindex, or redirects.
  • Don’t block the old URLs via robots.txt if you want Google to process a 301/410/noindex — robots.txt prevents Google from seeing the actual response.
  • Update internal links and sitemaps, then use Search Console’s URL inspection / sitemap submission to ask for recrawls. Monitor the Coverage and URL Inspection reports and server logs to confirm Googlebot’s status codes and fetch times.

Simple .htaccess examples (one of the simplest ways to implement 301s):

RedirectMatch 301 ^/old-path/(.*)$ https://www.example.com/new-path/$1

or

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule ^old-path/(.*)$ /new-path/$1 [R=301,L]

On ’s 180‑day question: removal-tool hides are temporary (months). After that Google will re-crawl and reindex if pages exist and are reachable; whether ranking returns to previous levels depends on the site’s signals (links, content quality, internal linking), not on any guaranteed “sandbox” reset. Monitor Search Console and server logs to confirm when Google re-crawls and adjusts indexing.

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Member Avatar for stymiee

Is there any reason why you just didn't do a 301 redirect with .htaccess? That would easily solve this problem.

Member Avatar for remcov

Is there any reason why you just didn't do a 301 redirect with .htaccess? That would easily solve this problem.

I was lazy :eek: Its just a test site and I try to make mistakes like not using the 301 to later on learn something. Just thought this thing interesting at least.

Member Avatar for Candy_ME

1:46 pm on Aug. 17, 2005 (utc 0)
I removed a domain in Feb, it will be 180 days in 2 days from now, but as of today it says "complete" in the removal section.
So, after the 180 days is up, how long until the site gets indexed again. Also, do you know if it is then subject to the sandbox again or if things have been "ticking in the background" and it should come back with full strength?

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