mod_rewrite .htaccess causing 500 server error if URl does not exist

Question

I\'ve just started using mod_rewrite, this is what I use for a quite basic structured website with multiple language support:

RewriteEngine on
ErrorDocument          


        

Answer 1

Helmut, try this (the last rule is the reason for the 500 internal error, and this also includes the suggestion of @DaveRandom to merge rule 2 and 3):

RewriteEngine on
ErrorDocument 404 /error404.php

RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule ^([a-zA-Z]{2})/([^/]+)$ $2.php?lang=$1 [L]

RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule ^([a-zA-Z]{2})/?$ index.php?lang=$1 [L]

RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule ^([a-zA-Z0-9]+)$ $1.php [L]