# How to disable .format routes?

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-disable-format-routes/154778>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [December 3, 2008, 9:23pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-disable-format-routes/154778 "2008-12-03T21:23:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![oldbug](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/o/c0e974/32.png) [@oldbug](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/oldbug)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 9:23pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-disable-format-routes/154778/1 "2008-12-03T21:23:33Z")

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Is there any way with RESTful routing to disable the .format routes?  
(“Why would you want to do that?”, I hear the purists cry…)

I would like to do it in order to simplify the routing table for a  
newbie  
first learning RoR.

–wpd

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![oldbug](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/o/c0e974/32.png) [@oldbug](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/oldbug)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2008, 10:44pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-disable-format-routes/154778/2 "2008-12-03T22:44:06Z")

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Hi Patrick,

Patrick D. wrote:

> Is there any way with RESTful routing to disable the  
> .format routes?  
> (“Why would you want to do that?”, I hear the purists cry…)
> 
> I would like to do it in order to simplify the routing table for a  
> newbie first learning RoR.

Starting with someone just learning RoR, I’d rip _all_ the routing out .  
Then, stopping to show what new things we can do as a result of each,  
put  
back the empty route to root, then the default routes, then start  
talking  
about REST, then start looking at 2.x routing as the way Rails  
defines/approaches REST. Rails 2.x works just fine with the routing, in  
case you didn’t know. The :controller =\> x, :action =\> y model of  
operation  
still works.

HTH,  
Bill