What is the effect of the “set cs vserver vserver-CS-1 –redirectURL http://www.newdomain.com/mysite/” command?

The -redirectURL parameter configured on a Content Switching (CS) virtual server acts as a failover mechanism. When the Citrix ADC determines that the CS virtual server is unavailable to process requests, its operational state changes to DOWN. In this state, instead of dropping the connection, the ADC will issue an HTTP redirect (302 Found) to any incoming client request, sending the client to the URL specified in the -redirectURL parameter. This ensures service continuity by directing users to an alternative or maintenance page.

A. Path-based redirection is configured using content switching policies and actions, not the vserver's primary redirectURL parameter, which is a global failover setting for the vserver itself.
B. This redirection is conditional. It only occurs when the virtual server is DOWN. If the vserver is UP and operational, it will process traffic according to its bound policies and services.
C. Redirection based on high connection rates is handled by features like Surge Protection or Priority Queuing, which are configured separately and are not the function of the -redirectURL parameter.

1. Citrix ADC 13.1 Documentation, Command Reference, set cs vserver:

Parameter: redirectURL

Description: "URL to which traffic is redirected if the virtual server becomes unavailable." This directly links the redirection to the vserver's availability status (i.e., DOWN).

Source: Citrix Product Documentation, "set cs vserver," (https://docs.citrix.com/en-us/citrix-adc/current-release/command-reference-guide/cs/set-cs-vserver.html)

2. Citrix ADC 13.1 Documentation, Content Switching, "Configuring a Content Switching Virtual Server":

Section: "Configure a Redirect URL for a Content Switching Virtual Server"

Content: "You can configure a backup virtual server or a redirect URL for a content switching virtual server. The backup virtual server is invoked or the requests are redirected to the specified URL only if the content switching virtual server is marked DOWN." This explicitly states the condition for redirection is the vserver being marked DOWN.

Source: Citrix Product Documentation, "Content switching," (https://docs.citrix.com/en-us/citrix-adc/current-release/content-switching/how-to-articles/configuring-content-switching-vserver.html)