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Testing & Maintaining Links

As your web page changes over time, your links may require updating. If you link to other web pages, their location may change or become unavailable. The following instructions help you to maintain the links in your site to compensate for these types of changes.

NOTE: If your page contains relative links to pages on the UW-Eau Claire server, you will want to establish an HTTP address to the live area for link detection when defining a site. For more information see Defining a Site or Defining Local & Remote Sites.

return to topTesting Links with Link Checker

Dreamweaver's Link Checker is a powerful tool that you can use in maintaining your website. Using Link Checker, you can check links in a single web page, selected web pages within your site, or throughout the entire site. From the resulting report, you can correct broken links from the Results pane or from the Properties pane.

It is recommended that you test the links before and after the pages are live on the web server. If possible, have someone else test them that does not have the same drive mappings as you do.

HINT: An easy way to test your links is to preview your page in an Internet browser. For information on additional preview options, see Previewing Pages in Netscape and Internet Explorer.

NOTE: Web users may or may not be viewing your web page with a browser that supports the ability to open a blank preaddressed email message when they click a Mailto link. For more information about email programs and browser compatibility, see the Mailto Bulletin in the WebDev collection.

Accessing the Link Checker

The Link Checker is part of the Results pane. Having it accessible while you are working with links in your site makes checking those links easy and convenient.

  1. From the Window menu, select Results » Link Checker
    OR
    Press [Ctrl] + [Shift] + [F9]
    T he Results pane appears with the Link Checker tab selected.

Checking Links in the Current Web Page

  1. Access Link Checker

  2. Click CHECK LINKS Check Links » select Check Links In Current Document

Checking links in Selected Web Pages

  1. Access Link Checker

  2. In the Files pane, Site tab, from the Current Site pull-down list, select the site that contains the files

  3. From the View pull-down list, select Local View

  4. In the scroll box, select the files and/or folders you want to check

  5. Click CHECK LINKS Check Links » select Check Links For Selected Files/Folders in Site
    The report appears in the Link Checker pane.

Check Links Throughout Your Web Site

  1. Access Link Checker

  2. In the Files pane, Site tab, from the Current Site pull-down list, select the site you want to check

  3. Click CHECK LINKS Check Links » select Check Links For Entire Site
    The report appears in the Results pane.

Stopping the Link Checker

If the site or web pages you are checking are extensive and have a lot of links, you may want to stop Link Checker either in the interest of time or you may have obtained the results you were looking for prior to its finishing.

  1. While Link Checker is running, in the Results pane, on the Link Checker tab, click STOPStop Link Checker
    The Link Checker stops checking and the results to that point appear in the Results pane.

Saving the Link Checker Results

Once you have the results of the Link Checker, you may want to save them. The results are saved as a .txt file.

  1. Once Link Checker has completed its check, in the Results pane, on the Link Checker tab, click SAVE REPORTSave Link Check report
    The Save As dialog box appears.

  2. Using the Save in pull-down list, select a location for the file

  3. In the File name text box, type a name for the file

  4. Click SAVE

return to topFixing Broken Links

Once Link Checker has identified broken links, they can be fixed from either the Results pane or from the Properties pane.

Fixing Broken Links: Link Checker

  1. Using Link Checker, check for broken links
    The report appears in the Results pane.
    Results of a Link Check

  2. In the Broken Links column of the results, click the broken link
    The destination of the broken link is highlighted and the BROWSE FOR FILE icon Select Folder iconappears next to the broken link.
    broken link with folder icon

  3. Type the correct path and file name
    OR
    To browse to and select the destination file, click BROWSE FOR FILESelect Folder icon
    The link is updated.

Fixing Broken Links: Properties Pane

  1. Using Link Checker, check for broken links
    The report appears in the Results pane.
    Results of a Link Check

  2. In the Files column, double click the file
    The link is highlighted in the Design view and the link information appears in the Link text box of the Properties pane.

  3. In the Link text box, type the correct link information
    OR
    To browse for and select the file, click BROWSE FOR FILESelect Folder icon
    OR
    To point to the file, click POINT TO FILEPoint to File iconand drag to the correct file in the Files pane
    The link is updated.

return to topEditing Links

You may change the text of a link or change its destination (i.e., where the viewer is taken after clicking the link).

Changing the Text of a Link

  1. Select the linked text you wish to edit

  2. Make the desired changes to the text

Changing the Destination of a Link to a Different Page

  1. Click within the existing link

  2. In the Properties pane, in the Link text box, type the correct link information
    OR
    To browse for and select the file, click BROWSE FOR FILESelect Folder icon
    OR
    To point to the file, click POINT TO FILEPoint to File iconand drag to the correct file in the Files pane
    The link is updated.

Changing the Destination of a Link to a Different Anchor

  1. Click within the existing link

  2. To point to an anchor within the current webpage, click POINT TO FILEPoint to File iconand drag to the correct anchor
    OR
    In the Properties pane, in the Link text box, type #anchor_name
    EXAMPLE: #searching
    NOTES:
    For anchors in another webpage, type the path and filename followed by #anchor_name.
    Anchor names are case sensitive.
    The link is updated.

Changing the Destination of a Link Sitewide

It may be that most or all of your documents have a link to the same destination (e.g., a national organization). If that link needs to be updated, you can do so without updating the individual web pages in your site.

  1. In the Files pane, Site tab, from the Site menu, select Change Link Sitewide...
    The Change Link Sitewide dialog box appears.
    Change Link Sitewide dialog box

  2. In the Change All Links To text box, type the current destination of the link
    OR
    To select the current destination of the link, click BROWSE FOR FILEBrowse for File butotn

  3. In the Into Links To text box, type the new destination of the link
    OR
    To select the new destination of the link, click BROWSE FOR FILEBrowse for File butotn

  4. Click OK

return to topRemoving Links

There are some situations when you may want to remove a link you have created.

Removing Links: Modify Menu

  1. From the Modify menu, select Remove Link
    OR
    Press [Ctrl] + [Shift] + [L]

Removing Links: Properties Pane

  1. Click within the existing link

  2. In the Properties pane, in the Link text box, select the text

  3. Press [Backspace] or [Delete]

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