mod rewrite is installed and enabled by default on all servers supported by Hands-on Web Hosting, and all servers that run cPanel and cannot be disabled. The reason it cannot be disabled as it will adversely affect cPanel functionality that relies upon it to function properly.
If you are questioning if Mod_Rewrite is enabled on the machine, there are several ways to check if its working, I will try to show you the simplest method, Create a .htaccess file (a text file named .htaccess) with the following code in it
Options +FollowSymLinks
RewriteEngine On
Save the file to a subdirectory of your main site something like this
/rewrite-testfolder/.htaccessNow attempt to browse to the subdirectory (http://www.yourdomain.com/rewrite-testfolder/). One of two things could happen
- No errors Congrats mod_rewrite engine is now enabled.
- 500, Internal Server Error If you get this message then mod_rewrite was not installed/enabled on your computer.