How do I redirect a URL that isn't found without sending a 404 header?

Question

My website needs a .htaccess file that will redirect a user to index.php when a page is not found. However, I do not want Apache to send a 404 head

Answer 1

Add this to your .htaccess file:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -s [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -l [OR]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} -d
RewriteRule ^.*$ - [NC,L]
RewriteRule ^.*$ index.php [NC,L]

1. enable rewrite
2. check if requested file exists as a regualar file with size (not empty)
3. check if requested file is link
4. check if requested file is a directory
5. if one of the previous 3 statements is true show that file
6. otherwise go to index.php

If the redirect to index.php happens u can get the requested uri by using $_SERVER["REQUEST_URI"] inside index.php

• '-d' (is directory) Treats the TestString as a pathname and tests if it exists and is a directory.
• '-f' (is regular file) Treats the TestString as a pathname and tests if it exists and is a regular file.
• '-s' (is regular file with size) Treats the TestString as a pathname and tests if it exists and is a regular file with size greater than zero.
• '-l' (is symbolic link) Treats the TestString as a pathname and tests if it exists and is a symbolic link.
• '-F' (is existing file via subrequest) Checks if TestString is a valid file and accessible via all the server's currently-configured access controls for that path. This uses an internal subrequest to determine the check, so use it with care because it decreases your servers performance!
• '-U' (is existing URL via subrequest) Checks if TestString is a valid URL and accessible via all the server's currently-configured access controls for that path. This uses an internal subrequest to determine the check, so use it with care because it decreases your server's performance!

More information: http://httpd.apache.org/docs/current/mod/mod_rewrite.html