User’s Guide — LinkFixer Advanced

Chapter 10 — What would you like LinkFixer Advanced to do?

This chapter is about the LinkFixer Advanced “home page”. This is the place from which you launch all of LinkFixer Advanced’s primary processes.

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The primary LinkFixer Advanced processes are:

  • Scan Only
  • Reports
  • Inoculate
  • Cure
  • Move/Rename
  • Modify Links

That leaves one secondary process, which is located on the menu:

  • Clean Files

The Scan Only Process

This is usually the process you should run first.

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Select Folders

Network resources that you’ve selected will be scanned, and their file and link status details will be added to the LinkFixer Advanced database.

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Select Files

In this section, you can filter the types of parent files that you want to include or exclude in the scan, such as Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, and so on. There are three options to filter the parent files as listed below.

Process all Files in Selected Folders

Select this option if you want LinkFixer Advanced to scan all files, regardless of their file extensions, in the selected folders.

All files will be opened and their internal structure tested to determine their file type. This filtering option is very thorough and will take longer than the other two filtering options. Select this option if any of your files may have been given non-standard file extensions.

Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

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Filter links using a file exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip files matching paths in the specified list” box.

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This will allow the user to skip any files during the process by providing the exact file path in an Excel spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Process Files Matching Specific File Extensions or Wildcards

Select this option if you want to filter files by file extension and wildcards.

This option is usually faster than processing all files but will skip any supported files that have been given non-standard file extensions. You may add any known non-standard file extensions to the list below and they will be included in the filter selection.

Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process Files Matching Filters that are Different for Each Folder

Select this option if you want to define specific file-type filters for each selected folder to be scanned. In the “File Filter” column, click in the space corresponding to the desired folder and then you can select the file types you want to filter for specific to this folder.

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Filter Files Using Expert Filtering Rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude files matching specific criteria.

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Preview Files

This next screen will show you a limited preview of the parent files that will be included for the scan, based upon the selected folders and any defined parent file filters. By default, the preview will show up to 50 parent files. However, by selecting the drop-down menu next to the “Number of files to preview” option, you can select up to 1,000 parent files to be shown in the preview.

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Process Files

Click the {Run} button to start the scan of the selected files, as shown below.

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View Results

Status

Shows the progress of the process until it has completed the scan.

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Results Summary

The “Files” portion of the pane shows the number of files that were either processed, filtered, skipped, or had a warning, and any remaining files are still being processed. An overall total number of files processed is displayed.

The “Links” portion of the pane shows the number of links that were either processed, filtered, skipped, or had a warning. An overall total number of links processed is displayed. There are additional pie charts that show the Inoculation Status and the last pie chart show details on the types of links that were processed.

All counts are dynamically updated during the process.

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Drive and Database Usage

There is a pie chart that shows the usage of the installation drive for LinkFixer Advanced, and a second pie chart shows the database type and usage.

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Reports

Select the summary button if you would like a PDF report summary that contains details about processed files and links, in addition to summary information and error details.

The Detail section has three different reports which include “Scanned”, “Scanned With Warnings” and “Skipped” reports which all output as .CSV files. These reports may also be accessed from the matching hyperlinks in the pie charts.

Alerts

The “Alerts” pane will display any errors that may occur while a process is running along within information about the time that the error occurred, the type of error that occurred, and recommendations for what needs to be done to resolve the error.

Examples would include:

Files excluded due to defined rename rules, Password protected files, Locked (in-use) files, File types not supported, File types not licensed in software

The Reports Process

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The Reports process allows you to generate three different types of reports on the files and links that are contained in the LinkFixer Advanced database. The following sections explain the details of the Reports process.

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Choose Report

Select the type of report you wish to produce from the choices shown below.

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Regular Report

The “Regular Report” option is selected by default. This option generates a report that lists parent files followed by a list of all the child files that are pointed to by links contained within the parent files.

Cross Reference Report

Select “Cross Reference Report” option to generate a report that lists all child files with a list of all the parent files that have links pointing to the child files.

Broken Links Report

Select “Broken Links Report” option to generate a report that lists parent files that contain broken links pointing to child files that are missing.

Link Options

Hide Files with No Matching Links

Select this option to filter out parent files that contain no links matching your selection criteria.

Hide Broken Links

Select this option if you do not want to include broken links in the report. This selection is useful if you wish to generate a report showing only good (non-broken) links.

Hide Web Links

Select this option if you do not want to include HTTP, HTTPS links in the report. Selecting this option is recommended because validating hyperlinks pointing to external URL addresses can dramatically slow LinkFixer Advanced, due to the delays involved in connecting to, and receiving responses from, servers on the Internet. Example: https://www.microsoft.com.

Hide Email Links

Select this option to filter out email links. Example: bill@microsoft.com.

Hide Folder Links

Select this option to filter out links pointing to folders (not pointing to files). Example:

\\server1\share\documents\.

Hide Unsupported Links

Select this option to filter out links that LinkFixer Advanced does not currently support such as FTP links. Example: ftp://ftp.microsoft.com.

Hide Unrecognized Links

Select this option to filter out links that LinkFixer Advanced was not able to recognize.

Hide Internal Links

Select this option to filter out links pointing to internal document locations within the same file, such as bookmarks. Example: #TableOfContents.

Chapter 6 What would you like LinkFixer Advanced to do? Page 81

Sort Report Using

Full File Specification

This option instructs LinkFixer Advanced to sort parent files in the report using the file’s full path, including folder name and file name. This is the default selection because it allows all files located in the same folder to be grouped in the report.

File Name

This option allows you to sort the report according to the basename of the file.

Filter Files

In this section, select the type of file that you want to cure, such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word. There are four options to filter the parent files, as shown below.

Process All Files in Selected Folders

Select this option if you want LinkFixer Advanced to scan all files.

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Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process Files Matching Specific File Extensions and Wildcards

Select this option if you want to cure specific types of files.

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Process files matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option if you want to define one or more specific file types for each selected folder. Click in the blank space in “File Filter” column. A window appears where you can select the desired file types, as shown below.

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Process files using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude certain types of files using exact filtering criteria.

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Process files using a file exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip files matching paths in the specified list” box.

This will allow the user to skip any files during the process by providing the exact file path in an Excel spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Filter Links

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In this section, you can filter the links that you want to inoculate. There are four options to filter the links, as listed below.

Process all links in selected files

Select this option if you want to inoculate all links in selected files.

Process links matching specific file extensions and wildcards

Select this option if you want to inoculate the links of specific file types. For example:

inoculate all links of Microsoft Excel file types.

Process links matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option to filter links for specific file types based on individually selected folders.

Filter links using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude links using very exact filtering criteria.

Filter links using a link exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip links matching paths in the specified list” box.

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This will allow the user to skip any links during the process by providing the exact file path in an Excel spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Preview Matching Links

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This section displays a list of links (that point to child files) that match the selected and filtered files and links. You will see a preview of all links for which the report will be created. The following information appears in this section.

Path of parent file and child file

Number of links in parent and child files

Status of links: There can be different statuses for different links. For example: If any link is broken, you will see the status as “Broken”. When a link is not broken, you will see the status as “Good”. If any links have inoculated, you will see the status as “Inoculated”.

Run Report

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Summary report for the Regular Report process

After the Regular Report process is complete, click the {View Process Summary} ribbon menu button. The “Regular Report” window opens, as shown below.

Cross-Reference and Broken Links reports

Follow the same steps discussed above to create these other two types of reports.

Cross-Reference Report

The Cross-Reference Report shows child files in the database, and lists under each child file the parent files containing links that point to that child file.

Broken Links Report

The Broken Links Report shows parent files in the database, and lists under each parent file the broken links contained in each parent file.

The Inoculate Process

The Inoculate process protects the working links in parent files and the child files pointed to by the links, so that if broken links occur in the future, due to files or folders being moved or renamed, they can be fixed automatically using the Cure process.

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Select Folders

Network resources that you’ve selected will be scanned, and their file and link status details will be added to the LinkFixer Advanced database.

home screen

Filter Files

In this section, you can filter the types of parent files that you want to include or exclude in the scan, such as Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, and so on. There are three options to filter the parent files as listed below.

Process all Files in Selected Folders

Select this option if you want LinkFixer Advanced to scan all files, regardless of their file extensions, in the selected folders.

home screen

All files will be opened and their internal structure tested to determine their file type. This filtering option is very thorough and will take longer than the other two filtering options. Select this option if any of your files may have been given non-standard file extensions.

Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process Files Matching Specific File Extensions or Wildcards

Select this option if you want to filter files by file extension and wildcards.

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This option is usually faster than processing all files but will skip any supported files that have been given non-standard file extensions. You may add any known non-standard file extensions to the list below and they will be included in the filter selection.

Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process Files Matching Filters that are Different for Each Folder

Select this option if you want to define specific file-type filters for each selected folder to be scanned. In the “File Filter” column, click in the space corresponding to the desired folder and then you can select the file types you want to filter for specific to this folder.

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Filter Files Using Expert Filtering Rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude files matching specific criteria.

Process files using a file exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip files matching paths in the specified list” box.

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This will allow the user to skip any files during the process by providing the exact file path in an xlsx spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Filter Links

In this section, you can filter the links that you want to inoculate. There are four options to filter the links, as listed below.

Process all Links in Selected Files

Select this option if you want to inoculate all links in selected files.

Process Links Matching Specific File Extensions and Wildcards

Select this option if you want to inoculate the links of specific file types. For example:

inoculate all links of Microsoft Excel file types.

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Process Links Matching Filters that are Different for Each Folder

Select this option to filter links for specific file types based on individually selected folders.

Filter Links Using Expert Filtering Rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude links using very exact filtering criteria.

Preview Links to be Inoculated

This section displays a list of the links that have been selected based upon your selected file and link filters. You will see the preview of links that are to be inoculated.

The path of parent file and child file

Number of links available in parent file and child file

Status of links that will be either unprotected, inoculated, working, or broken.

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Process Files

Click the {Run} button to start the scan of the selected files, as shown below.

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View Results

Status

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Results Summary

The “Files” portion of the pane shows the number of files that were either processed, filtered, skipped, or had a warning, and any remaining files are still being processed. An overall total number of files processed is displayed.

The “Links” portion of the pane shows the number of links that were either processed, filtered, skipped, or had a warning. An overall total number of links processed is displayed. There are additional pie charts that show the Inoculation Status and the last pie chart show details on the types of links that were processed.

All counts are dynamically updated during the process.

Drive and Database Usage

There is a pie chart that shows the usage of the installation drive for LinkFixer Advanced, and a second pie chart shows the database type and usage.

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Reports

Select the summary button if you would like a PDF report summary that contains details about processed files and links, in addition to summary information and error details.

The Detail section has three different reports which include “Scanned”, “Scanned With Warnings” and “Skipped” reports which all output as .CSV files. These reports may also be accessed from the matching hyperlinks in the pie charts.

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Alerts

The “Alerts” pane will display any errors that may occur while a process is running along within information about the time that the error occurred, the type of error that occurred, and recommendations for what needs to be done to resolve the error.

Examples of files excluded due to defined rename rules are password protected files, locked (in-use) files, file types not supported and file types not licensed in software.

The Cure Process

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The Cure process is used to automatically fix broken links in parent files that have previously been inoculated. In other words, if some time after your parent and child files were originally inoculated, some files were moved or renamed causing broken links, then by simply running the Cure process, all of those broken links would be fixed automatically!

Important: Run the Cure process as soon as possible after the Inoculate process. If Inoculated files get over-written, modified by users, or restored from a backup, it is possible for important Inoculation ID data to be lost, making Cure more difficult or impossible. LinkFixer Advanced will warn you if it finds that Inoculation IDs have gotten corrupted, and will recommend re-running the Inoculate process.

Tip: Even if parent files and child files have not been inoculated, it may be possible for the Cure process to repair broken links that point to child files which have been moved, but not renamed. This would be done by using “Include child files with matching file names” command

Notice: LinkFixer Advanced can write links in Microsoft Office file using “relative”, “absolute” or UNC format. However, when these files are opened and subsequently saved by one of the Office applications, links in “absolute” or UNC format may be automatically re-written by the Office application in a “relative” format. This will not cause the link to break but could be confusing if you are not aware that it may happen. This is a feature that is built into the Office applications and is beyond the control of LinkFixer Advanced.

Select Folders

This section allows you to select the parent folders and files to be cured. Click the {Next} arrow button or, in “the navigation pane, click on “Select Files”.

Important: In this “Select Folders” step of the Cure process, you must select all drives and folders where any parent or child files have been relocated. LinkFixer Advanced needs to be able to find and process all parent and child files in their new (moved) locations, to repair the links between those files.

Note: When using LinkFixer Advanced to cure the links in your parent files, it is possible that you may not know exactly where the needed child files are located. In such cases, you may need to select a higher-level folder, or an entire drive, to ensure that required child files are available for processing.

Select Folders

All of the network resources that are currently online and authenticated by the user logged in will be available to be selected for the scan.

home screen

Filter Files

In this section, select the type of file that you want to cure, such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word. There are four options to filter the parent files, as shown below.

Process All Files in Selected Folders

Select this option if you want LinkFixer Advanced to scan all files.

Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process Files Matching Specific File Extensions and Wildcards

Select this option if you want to cure specific types of files.

home screen

Process files matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option if you want to define one or more specific file types for each selected folder. Click in the blank space in “File Filter” column. A window appears where you can select the desired file types, as shown below.

Process files using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude certain types of files using exact filtering criteria.

home screen

Process files using a file exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip files matching paths in the specified list” box.

home screen

This will allow the user to skip any files during the process by providing the exact file path in an xlsx spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Filter links

In this section, you can filter the links that you want to inoculate. There are four options to filter the links, as listed below.

Process all links in selected files

Select this option if you want to inoculate all links in selected files.

Process links matching specific file extensions and wildcards

Select this option if you want to inoculate the links of specific file types. For example:

inoculate all links of Microsoft Excel file types.

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Process links matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option to filter links for specific file types based on individually selected folders.

Filter links using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude links using very exact filtering criteria.

home screen

Filter links using a link exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip links matching paths in the specified list” box.

This will allow the user to skip any links during the process by providing the exact file path in an xlsx spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

  • Preview links to be cured

This section displays a list of the links that have been selected based upon your selected file and link filters. You will see the preview of links that are to be cured.

The path of parent file and child file

Number of links available in parent file and child file

Status of links that will be either working, inoculated, or broken.

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Process Files

Click the {Run} button to start the scan of the selected files, as shown below.

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View Results

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Status

Shows the progress of the process until it has completed the scan.

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Results Summary

The “Files” portion of the pane shows the number of files that were either processed, filtered, skipped, or had a warning, and any remaining files are still being processed. An overall total number of files processed is displayed.

The “Links” portion of the pane shows the number of links that were either processed, filtered, skipped, or had a warning. An overall total number of links processed is displayed. There are an additional pie chart that shows the Inoculation Status and the last pie chart show details on the types of links that were processed.

All counts are dynamically updated during the process.

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Drive and Database Usage

There is a pie chart that shows the usage of the installation drive for LinkFixer Advanced, and a second pie chart shows the database type and usage.

home screen

Reports

Select the summary button if you would like a PDF report summary that contains details about processed files and links, in addition to summary information and error details.

The Detail section has three different reports which include “Scanned”, “Scanned With Warnings” and “Skipped” reports which all output as .CSV files. These reports may also be accessed from the matching hyperlinks in the pie charts.

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Alerts

The “Alerts” pane will display any errors that may occur while a process is running along within information about the time that the error occurred, the type of error that occurred and recommendations for what needs to be done to resolve the error.

Examples of files excluded due to defined rename rules are password protected files, locked (in-use) files, file types not supported, file types not licensed in software.

Summary Report for the Cure Process

When processing is finished, a “Summary” window displays within the “Cure Process Dashboard” view, providing you with a summary of how many files and links were processed and how long the process took to perform.

After the Cure process is complete, click the {View Process Summary} ribbon menu button. The “Cure Report” window opens, as shown below.

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The Move/Rename Process

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With the Move/Rename process, you can easily rename or move files in batch, without breaking links, using custom and advanced rename rules. This process enables you to change any part of a path or a file name by using a variety of methods including wildcard substitutions and even advanced regular expression substitutions.

Note: When you move/rename child files, LinkFixer Advanced automatically renames links as well. That way, any time a change is made to a child file, the same change will be made to any links that point to it. Thus the links will be automatically updated to point to the moved/renamed child file.

Notice: LinkFixer Advanced can write links in Microsoft Office file using “relative”, “absolute” or UNC format. However, when these files are opened and subsequently saved by one of the Office applications, links in “absolute” or UNC format may be automatically re-written by the Office application in a “relative” format. This will not cause the link to break but could be confusing if you are not aware that it may happen. This is a feature that is built into the Office applications and is beyond the control of LinkFixer Advanced.

This section allows you to select the parent folders and files to be cured. Click the {Next} arrow button or, in “the navigation pane, click on “Select Files”.

Important: In this “Select Folders” step of the Cure process, you must select all drives and folders where any parent or child files have been relocated. LinkFixer Advanced needs to be able to find and process all parent and child files in their new (moved) locations, to repair the links between those files.

Note: When using LinkFixer Advanced to cure the links in your parent files, it is possible that you may not know exactly where the needed child files are located. In such cases, you may need to select a higher-level folder, or an entire drive, to ensure that required child files are available for processing.

Select Folders

All of the network resources that are currently online and authenticated by the user logged in will be available to be selected for a scan.

home screen

Filter Files

In this section, select the type of file that you want to cure, such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word. There are four options to filter the parent files, as shown below.

Process all files in selected folders

Select this option if you want LinkFixer Advanced to scan all files.

home screen

Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process files matching specific file extensions and wildcards

Select this option if you want to cure specific types of files.

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Process files matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option if you want to define one or more specific file types for each selected folder. Click in the blank space in “File Filter” column. A window appears where you can select the desired file types, as shown below.

Process files using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude certain types of files using exact filtering criteria.

Filter links using a file exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip links matching paths in the specified list” box.

home screen

This will allow the user to skip any links during the process by providing the exact file path in an xlsx spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Filter links

In this section, you can filter the links that you want to inoculate. There are four options to filter the links, as listed below.

Process all links in selected files

Select this option if you want to inoculate all links in selected files.

Process links matching specific file extensions and wildcards

Select this option if you want to inoculate the links of specific file types. For example:

inoculate all links of Microsoft Excel file types.

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Process links matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option to filter links for specific file types based on individually selected folders.

Filter links using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude links using very exact filtering criteria.

Filter links using a link exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip links matching paths in the specified list” box.

home screen

This will allow the user to skip any links during the process by providing the exact file path in an xlsx spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped

Move and Rename Rules

The “Move and Rename Rules” section enables you to add rules to carry out the move and rename process for selected files.

Create or edit one or more rename rules by specifying the rename method, the component to modify, the character string to search for and the replacement character string to use when modifying links.

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Click {OK}.

The defined rules are listed on the “Move and Rename Rules” screen, as shown below.

Note: These rename rules will be applied, in the order they appear on the screen, to all links, in all files, in all selected directories.

Show Rename Rules on Reports

Select this checkbox option if you would like for the active rename rules to be shown in the top section of the “Move/Rename Report”. This option is checked (“on”) by default.

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Manage Move/Rename Rules

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{Add}

Click to add a new rename rule.

{Edit}

Select the desired rename rule in the list and then click the {Edit} button. The “Define Rename Rule” box appears with details of the selected rule. Make any needed changes and click the {OK} button to save the changes to the rule.

{Copy}

Select the rename rule in the list which you want to copy and click the {Copy} button.

{Remove}

Select the rename rule in the list and click the {Remove} button to delete the rule.

{Remove All}

Click the {Remove All} button to remove all rules in the rename rules list.

{Import}

The {Import} button allows you to import a comma-separated values (CSV) file containing a list of pre-defined rename rules created outside of LinkFixer Advanced using Microsoft Excel or some other text editor. Clicking this button causes LinkFixer Advanced to open a file selection box, as shown below.

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Navigate to the predefined rename rules file you wish to import and click the {Open} button to import the rename rules.

Note: A rename rule import template file, containing examples of the correct formatting for rename rules, is provided. The default location of this template file is the “LinkFixer Advanced\Settings” folder on your desktop.

Click {Open template file} to open a file containing examples of the various combinations of rename rule options. This template can help you create a CSV file containing valid rename rules that you can import into LinkFixer Advanced. This can save you a lot of time if you will be using a large number of rename rules.

{Export}

The {Export} button allows you to export a comma-separated values (CSV) file containing a list of the rename rules you created using the “Rename Rules” screen. This can be useful if you wish to use the same set of rename rules on multiple instances of LinkFixer Advanced. Clicking this button causes LinkFixer Advanced to open a file selection box that will allow you to choose the name and location in which to save the file.

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Move Up and Move Down Arrows

The Move/Rename feature processes rename rules starting with the top-most rule in the list and then moving down the list, applying each rename rule to every file and link selected. Because the sequence of the rename rules may affect the results, you may want to move a particular rule up or down in the list. Use the arrows at the right side of the rename rules screen to move a selected rename rule up or down in the list.

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The buttons shown above will move the selected rename rule 1) to the top of the list, 2) up one place on the list, 3) down one place on the list and 4) to the bottom of the list.

Preview Files to be Moved/Renamed

The “Preview Files to be Moved/Renamed” screen shows you a preview of files that will undergo this Move/Rename process, as shown below.

In the “Before” rows, you will see the selected files and their links as they currently exist.

In the “After” rows, you will see the changes that will be made to the files and links as defined by the rename rules. The components that will be modified are highlighted in yellow text.

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Perform Move/Rename

Click the {Run} button to begin the move/rename process on the selected files.

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When processing is finished, a “Summary” window displays within the “Move/Rename Process Dashboard” view, providing you with a summary of how many files and links were processed and how long the process took to perform.

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Summary Report for the Move/Rename Process

After the Move/Rename process is complete, click the {Process Summary} ribbon menu button. The “Move/Rename Report” window opens, as shown below.

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The Modify Links Process

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With the Modify Links process, you can modify and repair broken links using sophisticated rename rules. This process will help you fix links that are already broken as the result of data migration or folder restructuring.

Notice: LinkFixer Advanced can write links in Microsoft Office file using “relative”, “absolute” or UNC format. However, when these files are opened and subsequently saved by one of the Office applications, links in “absolute” or UNC format may be automatically re-written by the Office application in a “relative” format. This will not cause the link to break but could be confusing if you are not aware that it may happen. This is a feature that is built into the Office applications and is beyond the control of LinkFixer Advanced.

Modify Links Options

Modify Links in a Specific Selection of Files and Links

Select this option if you want to modify links in a specific selection of files. In the navigation pane, you will see the next steps used to select and then filter a specific set of parent files to process.

Note: You can modify links in files that have not previously been scanned by selecting this “Modify links in a specific selection of files and links” option and pointing to the folders you want to process on the “Select Folders” screen that follows. LinkFixer Advanced will perform the Scan and modify links steps together, at the same time.

Select Folders

This section allows you to select the parent folders and files to be cured. Click the {Next} arrow button or, in “the navigation pane, click on “Select Files”.

Important: In this “Select Folders” step of the Move/Rename process, you must select all drives and folders where any parent or child files have been relocated. LinkFixer Advanced needs to be able to find and process all parent and child files in their new (moved) locations, to repair the links between those files.

Select Folders

All of the network resources that are currently online and authenticated by the user logged in will be available to be selected for a scan.

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Filter Files

In this section, select the type of file that you want to cure, such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word. There are four options to filter the parent files, as shown below.

Process All Files in Selected Folders

Select this option if you want LinkFixer Advanced to scan all files.

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Note: Hidden files and folders will be excluded by default. To process hidden files and folders, enable the setting “Show and process hidden files” in the “Files” category of the options screen.

Process Files Matching Specific File Extensions and Wildcards

Select this option if you want to cure specific types of files.

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Process files matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option if you want to define one or more specific file types for each selected folder. Click in the blank space in “File Filter” column. A window appears where you can select the desired file types, as shown below.

Process files using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude certain types of files using exact filtering criteria.

Filter links using a file exclusion list

Select this option by checking the “Skip links matching paths in the specified list” box.

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This will allow the user to skip any links during the process by providing the exact file path in an xlsx spreadsheet and browsing to that file to add these paths to the filter.

There will be a message displayed in blue text revealing how many paths will be skipped.

Filter links

In this section, you can filter the links that you want to inoculate. There are four options to filter the links, as listed below.

Process all links in selected files

Select this option if you want to inoculate all links in selected files.

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Process links matching specific file extensions and wildcards

Select this option if you want to inoculate the links of specific file types. For example:

inoculate all links of Microsoft Excel file types.

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Process links matching filters that are different for each folder

Select this option to filter links for specific file types based on individually selected folders.

Filter links using expert filtering rules

You can add one or more rules to include or exclude links using very exact filtering criteria.

Preview Matching Links

The “Preview Matching Link” section appears where you can preview the results of the link filters you defined in the earlier steps, as shown below.

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Create Rules

You can create custom rename rules to modify links for selected files and folders from the screen shown below.

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Click the {Add} button to add the new rule. The “Define Rename Rule” window appears.

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Create or edit one or more rename rules by specifying the rename method, the component to modify, the character string to search for and the replacement character string to use when modifying links.

Note: These rename rules will be applied, in the order they appear on the screen, to all links in all files in all selected directories.

In the “Rename Rules” window, you will now see the rename rule that you just added.

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Modify Links Rules

{Add}

Click to add a new rename rule.

{Edit}

Select the desired rename rule in the list and then click the {Edit} button. The “Define Rename Rule” box appears with details of the selected rule. Make any needed changes and click the {OK} button to save the changes to the rule.

{Copy}

Select the rename rule in the list which you want to copy and click the {Copy} button.

{Remove}

Select the rename rule in the list and click the {Remove} button to delete the rule.

{Remove All}

Click the {Remove All} button to remove all rules in the rename rules list.

{Import}

The {Import} button allows you to import a comma-separated values (CSV) file containing a list of pre-defined rename rules created outside of LinkFixer Advanced using.

Microsoft Excel or some other text editor. Clicking this button causes LinkFixer Advanced to open a file selection box, as shown below.

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Navigate to the rename rules file you wish to import and click the {Open} button.

Note: A rename rule import template file, containing examples of the correct formatting for rename rules, is provided. The default location of this template file is the “LinkFixer Advanced\Settings” folder on your desktop.

Click {Open template file} to open a file containing examples of the various combinations of rename rule options. This template can help you create a CSV file containing valid rename rules that you can import into LinkFixer Advanced. This can save you a lot of time if you will be using a large number of rename rules.

{Export}

The {Export} button allows you to export a comma-separated values (CSV) file containing a list of the rename rules you created using the “Rename Rules” screen. This can be useful if you wish to use the same set of rename rules on multiple instances of LinkFixer Advanced. Clicking this button causes LinkFixer Advanced to open a file selection box that will allow you to choose the name and location in which to save the file.

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Move Up and Move Down Arrows

The Move/Rename feature processes rename rules starting with the top-most rule in the list and then moving down the list, applying each rename rule to every file and link selected. Because the sequence of the rename rules may affect the results, you may want to move a particular rule up or down in the list. Use the arrows at the right side of the rename rules screen to move a selected rename rule up or down in the list.

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The buttons shown above will move the selected rename rule 1) to the top of the list, 2) up one place on the list, 3) down one place on the list and 4) to the bottom of the list.

Preview Links to be Modified

The “Preview Links to be Modified” screen shows all links that will be modified in the current process. You will see “Before” rows showing the selected files and their links as they currently exist. In the “After” rows, you will see the changes that will be made to the files and links as defined by the rename rules. The parts that will be modified are highlighted in yellow text. This screen shows all of the changes that will be made when you actually run the rename process.

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Perform Modify Links

Click the {Run} button to perform the Modify Links process, as shown below.

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When processing is finished, a “Summary” window displays within the “Modify Links Process Dashboard” view, providing you with a summary of how many files and links were processed and how long the process took to perform.

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Summary Report for the Modify Links Process

After the Modify Links process is complete, click the {View Process Summary} ribbon menu button. The “Modify Links Report” window opens, as shown below.

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