Links
Link settings
The Settings and Routing tabs of a link control its short URL, how it redirects, which query parameters it passes on, routing rules and an optional password.
Short link
Change the domain or path, or pause the link.
- Domain: any active domain. Domains are added by platform admins and shared by all workspaces (Global).
- Short path: lowercase letters, numbers and dashes, 1 to 64 characters, unique on its domain.
- Active / Disabled: a disabled link answers Link not found or not published and keeps its analytics.
A destination can't point back to the same short link; Hootmix refuses it so the link never loops.
Redirect type
Under Advanced options:
| Redirect type | Use it when |
|---|---|
| 301 - Permanent | The destination will never change and you want search engines to pass ranking to it |
| 302 - Temporary | The destination may change; browsers and search engines don't cache it |
| 307 - Temporary, keeps method | The default: like 302, and a POST stays a POST |
| 308 - Permanent, keeps method | Like 301, but a POST stays a POST |
Parameter forwarding
Pass query parameters from the short link, such as UTM tags, on to the destination.
- Forward parameters: on or off.
- Which parameters: All parameters, or Only listed parameters with Parameter names such as
utm_source, ref. - Replace parameters already in the destination: when the destination already has
utm_source, the one on the short link wins.
So short.example/sale?utm_source=newsletter lands on shop.example/sale?utm_source=newsletter.
Routing rules
Send some visitors to a different destination. You can add up to 10 rules. The first rule that matches wins, and everyone else follows the link's normal destination.
Add rule, then build the sentence: If a property is one of, is not, at least or at most your values, Send to a URL. Separate several values with commas, like ID, MY.
- Country, Region, City and Language describe the visitor. Country codes have two letters.
- Device, Operating system and Browser describe their phone or computer.
- Hour, Weekday, Day of month and Month use Asia/Jakarta time. Weekdays are written
mon,tueand so on.
Add condition adds another line to a rule, and Match all switches to Match any. Move up and Move down change the order. A visitor without a value skips the rule, even with is not, so an unknown location never counts as "not Indonesia".
Rules by country are part of plans with Geo redirects; the other rules need Routing rules beyond country. Rules only apply while the plan includes them.
Password protection
Visitors see a page asking for the password, with no sign of where the link goes. Set password turns it on, Change password replaces it and Remove password turns it off. A correct password opens that link for an hour on that browser. Wrong guesses are slowed down, and link preview crawlers never see the destination.
Options
The Settings tab, the edit panel and Create link share these options:
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| UTM | Writes utm_ parameters into the destination. Save a set as a template, and applying one only changes the fields it sets. |
| Tags | Labels the link. New visits carry its tags, so Tags reports include them, and changing a link's tags later doesn't rewrite old visits. |
| Expiry | Ends the link on a date, after a number of clicks, or both. Bots and prefetches don't use up clicks. Send expired visitors to is optional; otherwise they see Link expired. |
| Schedule | Keeps the link closed until a date, sending visitors to Until then, send visitors to or a not live yet page. |
| Note | Only your workspace sees it, and link search includes it. |
Expiry and scheduling need a paid plan.
FAQ
Will changing the short path break links I already shared?
Yes. The old path stops working. Change the destination instead when you only need to point the link somewhere else.
Which redirect type should I use?
Keep the default 307 - Temporary, keeps method unless you know the destination is permanent. It keeps every visit going through Hootmix, so your analytics stay complete.