The current documentation for vercel.json redirects uses the /:path* pattern in examples, but this pattern does not match the root path / due to how the wildcard matching works.

Technical Detail:

The /:path* pattern translates to a regex pattern where at least one character is required after the /. The * quantifier (0 or more) applies to the path variable itself, not what comes after the /. This means:

• / alone will not match
• /anything will match
• Empty path will match only if the entire pattern is optional

Current Behavior:

When users implement a redirect using /:path*, requests to the root path / are not redirected as expected. They receive a 200 response instead of being redirected to the destination.

Recommended Fix:

To match all paths including the root, use one of these approaches:

1. Split patterns (recommended):

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{
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  "redirects": [
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    {
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      "source": "/",
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      "destination": "https://www.example.com/"
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    },
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    {
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      "source": "/:path*",
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      "destination": "https://www.example.com/:path*"
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    }
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  ]
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}

2. Use regex /(.*)

Documentation Improvement:

Add a note clarifying that /:path* does not match the root path /, and provide examples showing how to handle root path redirects when necessary.