Documentation Center

Component and multimedia link fields

A link field allows you to link to other Components in Content Manager or to multimedia content, which can be either a Multimedia Component or an external content item that is stored and managed in an external system rather than in Content Manager. The type of content allowed in the field depends on the type of Schema you select for the Component and the field's definition in the Schema.

About this task

The following illustrates what a link fields look like when available for a Component:

Link fields may have the following characteristics, depending on how they are defined in the Component Schema:

  • The field may accept more than one value—this is indicated with an Insert (plus) button.
  • The field may be mandatory—this is indicated with a *.
  • The field may restrict the target of the link to only a particular type of content, such as only to other Components or only to Multimedia Components.
  • Some link fields are designed specifically for multimedia content. These types of link fields display a thumbnail image along with the name of the linked item. If the link field allows links to Components, there is no thumbnail image even if the link target is a multimedia item.

The Component you want to link to must exist before you can create a link to it, and it must be located in the same Publication as the Component that you are creating.

Procedure

  1. In the Component you are creating or editing, click the Browse icon next to the link field (or the Insert icon if the field allows adding multiple values).
  2. In the window that appears, you can select content in Content Manager as the target for the link. You can use any of the following ways:
    • In your Favorites in the tree area, navigate to a Folder or Category and select it. If you selected a Category, select a Keyword in the tree or content area. The List View displays Components that have been classified with this Keyword, or a child Keyword, and filtered based on the allowed Schema (or Schemas) configured for this field.
    • In your Building Blocks Folder structure in the tree area, navigate to the location of the Component or Multimedia Component for which you want to create a link. The List View displays Components filtered based on the allowed Schema (or Schemas) configured for this field.
    • In your Categories and Keywords in the tree area, select a Keyword. The List View displays Components that have been classified with this Keyword, or a child Keyword, and filtered based on the allowed Schema (or Schemas) configured for this field.
    • In the folder structure for an external content library (also called a mount point), select an ECL item. External content libraries are available only if your organization has set up the External Content Library (ECL) feature and configured one or more ECL mount points. For more information on this feature, refer to the related topic on external content.
  3. Select am item and click Insert.
    • When inserting a single item, the dialog closes with the selected item added to the Component.
    • When using the option to add multiple items, continue inserting more items, as needed. When finished, click Close.

Results

The Content Manager creates a Component link or a multimedia link.