Changing the gtm.js file name in GTM server-side tracking can be a crucial step for many online businesses. This alteration is typically done to evade ad-blockers that might hinder the functionality and data collection of GTM. By doing so, businesses ensure smoother user tracking, ultimately gaining better insights into user behavior. However, t7his change comes with its set of risks, such as potential misconfigurations.

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#1  Go to tagmanager.google.com and select your "server container"

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#2 Navigate to "Templates"

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#3 Click on the "New" button to create a new template

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#4 Click on Menu to open up the menu

#5 once you import the template successfully click on the "Save" button to save the changes.

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#6 Click on the "Import" option to import a template

Once done, then navigate to https://raw.githubusercontent.com/gtm-templates-simo-ahava/gtm-loader/main/template.tpl .Download this code and save it as "template.tpl" and select this file while importing.

Note: Say thanks to Simo Ahava for creating this template file. You can find more information in one of his blogs on “Custom GTM Loader for Server Side Tagging”

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#7 Close the template after saving it

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#8 Navigate to "Clients"

#9 Click on the "New" button to create a new client

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#10 Click on Client configuration to select client type

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#11 Select the "GTM Loader" option, which is the template that we just have imported

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#12 By default the name of your gtm file will be "gtm.js"

#13 You can change the default name "gtm.js" to anything you want to in the format of "your_name.js"

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#14 You can check the checkbox that mentions Override Container ID to override GTM container ID coming from the query

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#15 You can enter your GTM container ID, and it will replace any other GTM container IDs used on your server with yours automatically

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#16 You can enter your domain list comma-separated to ignore all the requests coming from any other domain

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#17 Enter the name of client

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#18 And save the client by clicking on "save"

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Now you can use this client to load your gtm.js file from your own server and the name of your file will be also changed.

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Wrap Up

When changing the gtm.js file name, it's essential to be cautious of the catches involved. Ensure the new name doesn’t conflict with existing resources, and remember to update references in your code to reflect this change. Additionally, optimizing the GTM server-side instance by following best practices, such as minimizing the amount of tracked data to only what's necessary, can lead to better performance and more reliable results.

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Our experts made this simple for you but there’s a lot more to GTM and that’s why we made Tagmate. It automates all major workflows that would have required an analytics consultant and a few developers. The best part? It doesn’t break your bank!

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