PageBuilder Editor Content Linking and Fragments
While we are considering long-term improvements to linking and fragments, we are incorporating limitations to the number of pages a single parent/ global fragments page can be linked to in order to support your users' needs and help Arc XP customers develop linking practices that are sustainable with PageBuilder Editor’s current architecture.
What will be the maximum number of links allowed to a single page?
We will be implementing a maximum of 500 pages that can be linked to a single parent/ global fragments page. This is to ensure that organizations that heavily use linking can effectively update pages and avoid any disruptions in service.
Note
This update will include templates as well. However, while a template may render many different URLs, it is still only one template—so each article that is rendered using that template does not count toward the page maximum. However, if your organization has a high volume of templates then updates may be required.
How should my organization prepare for this implementation?
This update will be enforced on both new and existing pages. The impact on your workflows will vary depending on the number of links on your existing pages. To help minimize the impact, we recommend that all clients review their current linking practices and workflows. Based on your current linking practices and the number of links to a single page, how your organization can best prepare varies.
If your number of pages linked to a single page is growing, but not yet 500:
Now is a great time to think through your current practices and ensure your organization incorporates effective linking strategies and best practices. See the Linking Best Practices And Strategies section for recommendations on effectively using linking and other platform capabilities.
If your organization already has a parent/ global fragments page that is linked to over 500 child pages:
Contact Arc XP to discuss this upcoming update and how to best prepare for your site so that we can ensure a smooth transition and minimal impact on your pages. Additionally, review the Linking Best Practices And Strategies section and start using these strategies so that you’re prepared when the linking limitations go into effect.
Contact Arc XP Customer Support with any questions or concerns no matter your current linking practices.
How will this impact my PageBuilder Editor experience?
To help editors develop sustainable linking practices, there will be updates within PageBuilder Editor that will provide messaging and indicate when a parent/ global fragments page is approaching and has reached the maximum number of pages that can be linked to it. Additional information outlining the experience will follow as this functionality is released.
When will this update be implemented?
This update will occur in a PageBuilder Editor release in early 2022. We will continue to communicate this update in PageBuilder Editor release notes.
Linking best practices and strategies
Manage linkable blocks based on site or block similarities
If your organization heavily relies on linking and currently only uses one Global Fragment page, we recommend splitting up your links across multiple global fragment pages. One way to do this may be to break down your fragments page based on sites or block/feature similarities to manage it effectively. Another option is to create a single page for each linkable fragment. Both of these options then ensure that when the Global Fragments page is published, it only republishes the minimum number of linked pages, versus potentially republishing the entire website.
Improve feature bundle through the creation of new React component
For some organizations, you may have a block that is nearly identical but renders differently based on the website it displays on. Rather than depending on linking to power these changes across sites, we recommend that you create a React component in your feature bundle with a variable that can then be rendered through Site Properties. Through this method, your feature will be dynamically replaced within the site-specific value during rendering, and you can utilize other platform capabilities that may be better suited to your needs.
Minimize the use of raw HTML blocks
Instead of using raw HTML to implement custom functionality, you may want to create a React component in your feature bundle that implements the required HTML/JS/CSS, especially if you embed images directly into the raw HTML block. There is a hard limitation for the layout configuration of a rendered page, so when an image is directly embedded into the raw HTML block as a data URL, the limit is greatly exceeded, and the update is unable to go into effect. By creating a component, this will ensure that the linked page is updated on the live site.
Updated documentation: