Hello I am an junior SEO. We've recommended one of our clients switching to HTTPS their custom-made websites. Then I want to understand better a migration process. I don't get it at all. Client wants to use staging for it, at some random URL. I definitely can't understand it. For my understanding: 1. the client will mirror entire website and use it in staging environment. Then he will have to adjust all the internal links, canonicals, etc; to point staging URLs (somexamplesubdomain.staging.com/someexampleurl). Then we (SEOs) and the website owner have to make sure everything is ok, if all the internal links work, etc. 2. once we make sure the staging works well, the client will (again!) has to change all internal links to point not the staging, but the HTTPS version of website. Hmm, right? What's the point of it? Why not using the HTTPS version as staging development? Disallow Google robots while the website is not done and allow once the website is ok. Server: Apache Website: Custom-made Number of websites to migrate: 20+
Why the fuck does it matter? You do the HTTPS. That's it. You won't lose link-quality, as LONG AS YOU REDIRECT HTTP TO HTTPS with a proper permanent redirect. I have no idea what either the client, or you failing to explain this to the client, are doing.