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Fail routes, fallbacks & forwarding rules

Where clicks go when they cannot reach an offer — the fallback chain, per-reason fail routes to other offers, smart links or URLs, forwarding rules, and every click status reason.

Last updated 4 min read

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When an affiliate or smart-link click cannot reach its offer, TrackCrown never shows an error to the visitor. It sends the click somewhere useful and records why. Three tools decide where:

ToolWhen it appliesConfigured on
Forwarding rulesBefore any check — matching clicks are redirected on purposeOffer → Advanced → Forwarding rules
Fail routesAfter a check fails — per failure reasonOffer → Advanced → Fail routes
Fallback URLsWhen no fail route took the clickOffer Fallback URL, smart-link Fallback URL, workspace Default fallback URL

None of them applies to transparent links (url=): those always redirect to their url=.

The fallback chain#

For a refused click the first available target wins:

  1. A matching fail route of the offer.
  2. The offer's Fallback URL (Tracking tab).
  3. For smart links: the smart link's Fallback URL.
  4. The workspace Default fallback URL (Settings → Workspace → Tracking).
  5. A neutral "link not available" page (HTTP 200, no redirect).

A click on an inactive workspace always gets the neutral page. Fallback URLs expand macros, so you can pass {click_id} and {sub1} to your own offer wall:

URL
https://offers.example.com/wall?cid={click_id}&s1={sub1}&geo={country}

Fail routes#

Create a fail route#

  1. Open the offer, tab Advanced, section Fail routes, click Add fail route.
  2. Choose the reasons (multi-select; empty = Any failure reason):
ReasonLabel
pausedOffer paused or outside its schedule
not_approvedPartner not approved / terms not accepted
targetingTargeting failed
capClick cap reached
traffic_controlBlocked by a traffic control
duplicateDuplicate click
bad_destinationInvalid destination
  1. Choose the target type and target: Another offer, A smart link or A URL (macros allowed, e.g. https://example.com/?c={click_id}).
  2. Set a Weight (default 1). When several routes match a reason, the click is split randomly by weight.
  3. Click Save settings.

How a fail route is followed#

  • Another offer: the click is re-evaluated for that offer (approval, targeting, caps…) and keeps its click ID. It is re-attributed to the target offer; Referred from offer in reports shows where it came from. If the partner is not approved for the target offer, the target's own fallback chain applies.
  • A smart link: its rules choose an offer, then as above. If the smart link has no eligible offer, the route is skipped and the normal fallback chain is used.
  • A URL: a 302 to the URL; the click is recorded with status redirect and reason fail_route.

At most two routing hops happen per click (A → B → C), so routes cannot loop.

Example: spill capped traffic#

Offer "Insurance US – Brand A" has a daily click cap of 5,000. Add a fail route: reason Click cap reached → Another offer "Insurance US – Brand B". After 5,000 clicks the rest go to Brand B instead of the fallback page.

Forwarding rules#

Forwarding rules redirect matching clicks before the offer is even checked — for example "send iOS clicks to the app offer" or "send weekend traffic to the weekend promo".

  1. Offer → Advanced → Forwarding rules → Add forwarding rule.
  2. Fill in:
FieldNotes
NameOptional, e.g. "iOS to the app offer".
PriorityHigher rules are tried first.
Forward toAnother offer, A smart link or A URL (macros expanded).
PartnersEmpty = every partner.
ConditionsCountries, Devices, Operating systems, Sub IDs / source (sub1–sub5, source_id), Day-parting (weekdays, hours, time zone).
Starts / EndsOptional window.
StatusActive or Paused.
  1. Save.

The first active matching rule (by priority) wins. Forwarding to an offer or smart link behaves like a fail route to it (full checks on the target, Referred from offer recorded). Forwarding to a URL records reason forwarded. Rules only run while the workspace is active.

Click statuses and reasons#

Every click has a status and, unless it went straight to the offer, a reason. Filter Reporting → Clicks by Click status, or open a click to see both.

StatusReasonMeaning
redirect(empty)Reached the offer or a landing page
redirectfail_route, forwardedSent to a URL by a fail route / forwarding rule
redirectpaused, not_approved, targeting, traffic_control, cap_over, workspace_inactiveTransparent click: redirected to url=; the label is informational
redirectunknown_linkTransparent click on a deleted/unknown link key that still redirected
fallbackpausedOffer not active or outside its schedule; smart link paused
fallbacknot_approvedPartner not approved, blocked, unknown, or offer terms not accepted
fallbacktargetingBasic or extended targeting failed
fallbacktraffic_controlBlocked by a traffic control
fallbackcapClick cap or hourly click cap reached
fallbackduplicateNon-unique click and the offer sends duplicates to the fallback
fallbackbad_destinationDestination not a safe URL after macro expansion
fallbackno_matchSmart link: no rule had an eligible offer
fallbackworkspace_inactiveWorkspace not active
blockedmissing_url, not_allowed, duplicate_url, unsafe_target, ip_host, …Transparent click refused with an error page

Reference for every code: Error codes. Tooltips in the click report explain each reason.

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