Using Google's URL Removal Tool

URL Removal

[jwc2349]

To my horror I just found an old development site named http://dev.example.com/ in Google's index. It is my belief that this duplicate site has penalized me approximately 30 positions in the serps for 7 months now. But that is another story.

I want to correctly delete this dev site using Google's URL removal tool but have been told to be very, very careful. And sadly, the removal is only good for 180 days supposedly. I want that dog gone forever!

Question #1: Is the URL removal tool the best way to delete this dev site?

Question #2: Is the best way to use the URL Removal tool in my case via the robots.txt option. Specifically, is this the proper way:

User-agent: Googlebot
Disallow: /dev.example.com

Question #3: Is there any other way to permanently delete this dev site?

Thanks!

[edited by: tedster at 10:40 pm (utc) on July 12, 2006]
[edit reason]
[1][edit reason] use example.com [/edit] [/edit][/1]

[Quadrille]

The best way is to remove the site itself - you do not say if you have done that?

Remove the whole site, and replace it with a 404 page. Or, if the content is related, a 301 to another site.

That way, even if the serps still show the occasional ghost, no harm will be done to Google listings, or to visitors.

[jwc2349]

The dev site has been gone since December 29. It was a development site only so when that site went live, the dev site disappeared. That is why, after more than 180 days, I can't believe it is still in G's index.

I am going to take your suggestion and put up a 301 page.

Do you think that dev site could be viewed as duplicate content and penalizing me even after all this time?

Thanks!

[g1smd]

I guess all the pages from the deleted site show as Supplemental. If so, then that is exactly what Google does: show deleted pages and expired domains for a year or more after the pages/site have gone.

I doubt that it is being seen as duplicate content, but get a 301 redirect in place to the real site to redirect anyone who does click on any of those old results. Don't lose the visitor.