K2 Canonical Links
Learn how to install the extension, enable permanent redirection, choose menu for tags, or override default canonical link.
Installation
1. To install extension, go from administrator backend of Joomla to Extensions -> Extension Manager.
2. Click Choose, select k2canonicalXX.zip, and hit Upload & Install button.
3. That's it! Plugin will be automatically enabled after the installation, and canonical links set.
Important
1) If you have sh404sef installed, go the the sh404sef settings -> SEO -> Remove other canonicals -> set it to No.
2) If you have Canonical by StyleWare installed, you must disable it.
3) If you have an advanced caching mechanism enabled, please check what you need to know.
Advanced settings
1. Overriding default canonical: If for some reason you want to override the canonical link which has been automatically generated, you can do so by opening an item or a category in K2 backend. On the bottom, bellow the editor will be shown extra field "K2canonical" in which you can enter the canonical link you want to be set for that item. Please enter the full link, with the protocol, like http://example.com or http://www.example.com. Do not use this field unless you know what you are doing.
2. Permanent redirection: If you want, you can always force users to land on the canonical version of link. This means if you changed your alias for example and someone tries to access the old one, they'll automatically land on the new page.
3. Ignore query: Applicable only if permanent redirection is enabled. If enabled, links with query in url (everything after the question mark in the link, if it exists) will not be redirected to the canonical page. Useful if you have a dedicated print page (so at the end of url you have something like ?print=1) etc.
4. Remove trailing slash: Choose whether to remove trailing slash from canonical links, www.example.com/ vs www.example.com. Defaults to "Yes".
5. Unset canonical tags on canonical pages: If you are viewing a link which is equal to the canonical version, unset the canonical tag. Defaults to "No".
6. Set default menu for K2 tags: If you have tags assigned to articles which belong to different categories and can be reached via different menus, any tag (no matter if it's assigned to any article from a particular category or not) can be reached via any K2 menu. If no option is selected here, plugin will use the first matched K2 category list menu for tag canonicals, unless a specific menu item is selected in the options.
If you use an advanced caching mechanism
To output canonical plugin, the extension must run at least once before the page is cached. It means that if you install the plugin, then open a page you haven't accessed before, it will be cached with the canonical link set, so in the future if the page is opened only from cache, canonical link will be set. If you have currently cached pages, depending on the type of caching you use, the extension might never run, so clearing the cache once may be required.
If you plan to use permanent redirection feature of the plugin, then javascript redirection must be added for client side redirection, as extension wouldn't be runnng after initial caching, so server side redirection could not be performed. Currently client side redirection is not supported, but can be if needed, please contact us if you need this feature.
Disabling the plugin
1. To disable the plugin, go from administrator backend of Joomla to Extensions -> Plug-in Manager.
2. Under Select Type choose K2.
3. Change status to unpublished where the plugin name is Canonical Links for K2
Uninstalling extension
1. To uninstall extension, go from administrator backend of Joomla to Extensions -> Extension Manager -> Manage.
2. Find K2 Canonical Links and click uninstall button.