14 Case Studies to back up the assertion that moving from subdomain to subfolder increases search traffic.
I have a root domain with better authority. Can I switch Discourse to a subfolder? 
Is there any specific issue? Please show me right way.
AI-generated summary
The discussion revolves around moving a Discourse installation from a subdomain to a subfolder. Gulshan_Kumar initially considers this change, citing a Twitter post by Rand Fishkin with 14 case studies that suggest it may increase search traffic. However, itsbhanusharma and codinghorror advise against it, warning that it can make things complicated and difficult to manage, and that the supposed SEO benefits are likely “snake oil.” Mittineague highlights potential pitfalls, such as HTTP routing issues and dependency incompatibilities, if two apps are not separate. Gulshan_Kumar ultimately decides to reconsider the change, thanking codinghorror for the honest response.
On one Droplet, I want to keep like this …
https://example-wordpress-application.com/discourse/
Root Domain = WordPress
Subfolder = Discourse
Just as a warning,
We keep listening this again & again but there have never been a real advantage of having a subfolder install.
It makes things complicated and difficult to manage
I have a background in several scientific technologies so what I would consider to be significant data based on valid “case studies” may be much more demanding than all of the SEO “evidence” I have ever seen. I have yet to see any SEO evidence that convinced me that what Google representatives themselves have said is not correct.
Anyway, can an app be in a sub folder of another app? In many cases, sure. Potential pitfalls that come to mind are:
- HTTP routing issues
- filesystem path issues
- naming clashes
- dependency incompatibilities
When App1 and App2 are separate, if there is a problem with one the other will be unaffected. But when App1 and App2 are not separate, a problem in either can break both.
I am afraid now. Thinking to discontinue this thought.
Do not believe the SEO snake oil salesmen. 
If you want traffic, generate interesting, useful content for a long period of time. Literally nothing else matters.
Thanks for the honest response. 
Thanks everyone.