redirecting - best way to do it

[scorpion]

If you want to start using a new URL for a site which is the best way to bring this to google's attention?

1. "Redirect permanent sitea siteb" in .htaccess
2. "Rewrite sitea [siteb.com...] [R=301,L]" in .htaccess
3. "header("Location: [siteb.com");"...] in index.php of the old site
4. internal rewrite so both url's point to the same place but each URL continues to function. Would google see this as duplicate content?

[DrDoc]

If the redirect is permanent, alternative #1 is definitely the way to go.

[jdMorgan]

scorpion,

Yes, option 1 or 2.
Option 3 gives you a 302-Moved Temporarily, which essentially does nothing for you in this case.

If you use an internal rewrite, as in option 4, you'll have dup content.

Jim