New dynamic site

how to switch

[smatsmax]

Hoping for some advice on how to switch from my static html site to my new database driven php site. It got tedious doing everything by hand so as the site got bigger i decided to get someone to write me a db driven site in php and sql.

Current homepage is front page in google for primary keys (after being droppped for quite a while) so really dont want to upset that, but want to maximise my SE exposure more with my dynamic site.

I have read alot about modrewrite and think i get it but just wondered how i could use it in my situation,
Should i keep my static pages to redirect to and just include the dynamic content on them or is there a better way?

[Birdman]

Typically, you would just have a template for each type of page.(product gallery, individual product info, etc...)

Then, you need to put 301 redirects on all the old pages that point to it's new page. You can do this with mod_rewrite. You may need to have a separate line for each old file, or if they are named logically you may be able to use RedirectMatch to keep the .htaccess file smaller.

Be very careful when you make the switch. Make sure the redirects are working correctly and that they are 301.(moved permanantly)

Birdman

[smatsmax]

Thanks birdman
My new pages are pretty much all search results with long urls so pages dont really correspond.
Its a real estate site and pages werent named logically, and theres hundreds of them....

Maybe i should just move 301 old pages to new domain and start afresh with the php site?

Can i do some fancy modrewrite ting to make the urls more friendly?, they have this sort of format www.mydomain.com/search_results.php?cboPlaceID=5&cboCategoryID=-1&cboBedrooms=2&txtMinPrice=&txtMaxPrice=