LaunchNess Monster

So you’ve had a temporary sign-up page out there for a couple months and you’ve been testing the site proper on a secret, password-protected subdomain. Now you’re ready to make sure everything works in situ before opening it up to the world. Use this handy mod_rewrite rule to redirect everyone but you to a temporary directory until everything is perfect.

The Switch

First things first, move or copy your sign-up form and all support files into the new temporary directory. I use /ingsoon/ which uses the TLD to spell out “Coming Soon.” Make sure to update any non-relative paths that may have changed including paths to stylesheets, images and JavaScript.

Next add the following to an .htaccess file in /ingsoon/ and any other directory that you want to remain accessible to others (eg. your Mint installation):

<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
    RewriteEngine   off
</IfModule>

Then add the following to your root .htaccess file, changing the IP address to your own (don’t forget to escape the dots with a backslash):

<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
    RewriteEngine   on

    # Coming Soon redirect
    RewriteCond     %{REMOTE_ADDR}      !^(192\.168\.1\.101)$
    RewriteRule     .* /ingsoon/ [R,L]
</IfModule>

Lastly, update your Campaign Monitor settings to reflect the new path. Go to “Manage Subscribers,” then click on the list associated with your sign-up form. In the sidebar under “Capturing and Processing” you need to update the path in both “Customize subscribe process” and “Unsubscribe settings.”

Now get back to work, you’re so close!