Thread

I have heard some really good things about EE, then I watched the videos and started reading the documentation and it got me even more excited. So far I love the functionality of it. As a designer, I love that I can build my whole template in xhtml/css in my own software, then just copy and paste EE tags to make it work. I installed the core version on a godaddy shared host and got a basic template running very quickly. I’m trying to find a cms that is easy to use and powerful enough that I can use it for client websites without worry. Right now I juggle between a few cms’s and it sucks.

The first problem I had was when I tried to make a new page after making a successful home page. When previewing that page, it showed all the content from my home page. After a forum search, I found some posts about my exact problem. Seems GoDaddy shared hosting has some problems sometimes. I actually got it to work setting the “Force Query Strings” on, but I want clean urls, so I tried all the fixes I found…Workaround for Forced Query Strings, but had no luck.

I also tried this thread, but that didn’t work either.

I also noticed the index.php file that is placed in the url. I think it’s kind of weird having that in there so I searched for info on removing it. I found a long page with different methods of removing it. I tried the .htaccess GeneratorLG .htaccess Generator, but the .htaccess file created made the site not load at all. i assume its a godaddy hosting compatibility problem.

- First, any ideas on how I can get this to work with godaddy? Unfortunately a LOT of clients use them, so it would be nice to have that as an option.

- Why is the removing of the index.php from the url not built into the cms? I can see how it would help with server compatibility, but almost all other cms’s out there have clean urls, wordpress, textpattern, etc.

- If godaddy turns out to be a bust, what other hosts are out there that will work with “Force Query Strings” turned off, and the index.php in the url hidden? These would be must-haves for me.

I hope i can work these issues out, will probably purchase many EE licenses in the future if EE turns out to be as good as it seems so far. Thanks!

Hi, Mike,

Welcome to the forums!

You can check out this wiki article on Removing index.php from URLs.  This is a server-side modification that you’ll make; some of those methods should work on GoDaddy.  ExpressionEngine, really all dynamic CMS’, require that there be a gateway file so that the system knows it is being invoked.  That is why there is index.php.  This isn’t specific to ExpressionEngine, though other packages ship with a default .htaccess which may or may not work.  We choose to let you make that decision.

We recommend our sister hosting company EngineHosting.

Post back if you have any other questions!

Mike, welcome to EE. Enjoy your stay.

As a designer, I love that I can build my whole template in xhtml/css in my own software, then just copy and paste EE tags to make it work.

That’s one of the truly elegant features of EE. Build your templates, embed templates, all based on your basic design, using XHTML and CSS. Then drop in EE’s tags for content.

Of course, you have to “think different” because there is a lot of flexibility and capability in EE, so you’ll learn site organizing tricks you never knew before.

I actually got it to work setting the “Force Query Strings” on, but I want clean urls, so I tried all the fixes I found…Workaround for Forced Query Strings, but had no luck.

That’s a problem with some hosts. Cheaper is not always better. Hosts that do not allow for such commonplace configurations should be avoided. You may have some success simply asking GoDaddy for assistance. It’s not an EE issue; it’s the host’s server configuration.

I also noticed the index.php file that is placed in the url. I think it’s kind of weird having that in there so I searched for info on removing it. I found a long page with different methods of removing it.

The index.php is pretty much standard among CMS apps that use PHP and MySQL. Go down the list. WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and friends. It has to do with how the web server (mostly Apache) looks for files to deliver.

However, good hosts configure Apache appropriately, and the index.php can be removed, safely, though, again, the right host is important.

i assume its a godaddy hosting compatibility problem.

Yep.

First, any ideas on how I can get this to work with godaddy? Unfortunately a LOT of clients use them, so it would be nice to have that as an option.

I used them for a couple of clients years ago and ran into the same problems. GoDaddy wasn’t very receptive to requests to change their configurations, so I moved on to EngineHosting, Pair, and others that manage for quality rather than bulk.

Why is the removing of the index.php from the url not built into the cms? I can see how it would help with server compatibility, but almost all other cms’s out there have clean urls, wordpress, textpattern, etc.

Actually, they don’t have it built in, per se. Each of those CMSs simply write a .htaccess file that usually works (check their support forums for the gazillions of users who use hosts where it doesn’t work). It’s the exact same method you’d use for EE. EE is simply honest and implies it may not work, and often it’s more trouble than it’s worth.

what other hosts are out there that will work with “Force Query Strings” turned off, and the index.php in the url hidden? These would be must-haves for me.

Plenty. Choose wisely. I’ve used EngineHosting, Pair, PairLite, even Site5 (lots of bells and whistles, not as dependable), and others. There are many good ones available.

Hi Mike,

I made the switch to EngineHosting about 7 months ago and couldn’t be happier. When you read posts that say that the folks at EH rock the house, it’s not a lie. I actually ran into an self-made issue using Levi’s htaccess generator and my whole site went down (I was up waaay to late manually configuring things I shouldn’t have been for as tired as I was) so I shot a quick email to EH. When I woke up in the morning, I had 4 emails from EH support. They had done all of the work in isolating the issue and my site was back up (and yes, the 505 error was my fault).

:lol:

I was blown away.

I know that sorting things out at GoDaddy is also important to you, but I at least wanted to let you know a bit about my experience with EH so far.

Thanks everyone for your replies! I will probably mess with getting it to work in GoDaddy more, but I’ll probably end up recommending other hosting options to clients. I’d rather spend more time on the site and design than getting it to work on the server.

I already have a possible use of EE, and I was told the host was a windows host. I was like “Oh great…”, but it looks like EE supports windows servers. After a search it looks like there are ways to hide the index.php on windows servers as well. Anyone have any advice using a windows server? Thanks!

Yes, EE works on Windows servers as well. As to removing index.php, I suggest a search on the forum, or perhaps a new thread on Howto. It’s not officially supported, regardless of the server platform.

After a search it looks like there are ways to hide the index.php on windows servers as well. Anyone have any advice using a windows server? Thanks!

Other than don’t?

😉

Having been on EE’s forums for awhile there are some things I’ve noticed about a few topics which are always ongoing. Removing index.php is one. Another is host and server platform. The two are related.

Removing the index.php is a cosmetic item only, and has little to do with performance (may slow down a server a bit) or search engine optimization. EE doesn’t support it because it’s a server side issue. If the server is configured to handle it, it works. That’s exactly the same as with WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, et al. EE’s own site has the index.php removed, but, then, EngineHosting is one of those hosts which can handle the configurations properly. Successfully removing index.php creates cleaner looking URLs, but provides no additional functionality. Search engines will index whatever URL string EE spits out. Moving from a host server which configures their server to handle removing index.php to a host that does not may cause broken links.

In short, if you do remove the index.php, make sure you and your host know what you’re doing (and choose the host wisely).