Managing Webs
Adding, renaming and deleting webs are all web-based operations.
Overview
A
TWikiSite is divided into webs; each one represents one workspace, one area of collaboration. Each web is a container for topics. Each topic is a container for page content and attachments. Administrators can add/rename/delete webs.
Namespace and URL
The name of the web and topic is represented in the page URL. For example,
http://twiki.example.com/do/view/Sandbox/WebNotify
tells us that we
view topic
WebNotify located in the
Sandbox web.
Tip: The URL of a web's homepage ends in
/WebHome
by default. The name of the homepage topic can safely be omitted to make for shorter and more legible links. For example,
http://twiki.example.com/do/view/Sandbox
links to the homepage of the Sandbox web.
Choose Web Template
New webs are based on a web you specify. There are two types of webs you can use to create a new web:
- Use a specially designed TemplateWeb. This is an invisible web that begins with an underscore "_" character (for example
_default
).
- Use an existing web as a template web. This may be useful if you already have a web that you would like to use as a starting point.
In either case all topics in the template web will be copied into the new web. Make sure to verify that your new web has all the custom modifications that you desire. Any settings defined in the form below will automatically be set in the WebPreferences of the new web.
Adding a New Web
Notes:
- You must have
ROOTCHANGE
access to create a top-level web (one with no parent)
- Only the person who created it has permission to change the WebPreferences in the new web
Hierarchical Webs
You can only create hierarchical webs (webs within webs) if the
{EnableHierarchicalWebs}
setting in
configure is enabled. Hierarchical webs are currently enabled.
Note: You might not need hierarchical webs. TWiki topics already have a parent/child relationship within a web, which is shown in the breadcrumb. Try to keep the number of webs to a minimum in order to keep search and cross-referencing simple. TWiki runs faster if hierarchical webs are disabled.
You can create hierarchical webs via the
Adding a New Web form above, by using a slash- or dot-separated path name which is based on an existing web name in the
Name of new web: field.
Example:
To create a sub-web named
Bar
inside a web named
Foo
, use
Foo/Bar
or
Foo.Bar
as the new web name in the form above.
Sub-web Preferences are Inherited
The preferences of a sub-web are inherited from the parent web and overridden locally. Preferences are ultimately inherited from the
TWiki.TWikiPreferences topic.
Example Preference Inheritance for Sandbox/TestWeb/SubWeb.SubWebTopic
topic:
-
TWiki.TWikiPreferences
site-wide preferences
-
Sandbox.WebPreferences
inherits from and overrides settings in TWiki.TWikiPreferences
-
Sandbox/TestWeb.WebPreferences
inherits from and overrides settings in Sandbox.WebPreferences
-
Sandbox/TestWeb/SubWeb.WebPreferences
inherits from and overrides settings in Sandbox/TestWeb.WebPreferences
-
Sandbox/TestWeb/SubWeb.SubWebTopic
inherits from and overrides settings in Sandbox/TestWeb/SubWeb.WebPreferences
Navigation
The
PatternSkin indicates sub-webs by indenting them in the sidebar relative to their level in the hierarchy. The
SiteMap shows a list of webs; sub-webs are separated by dots, such as
Web.SubWeb.SubSubWeb
.
Renaming or Deleting a Web
Rename a web via the Tools section in each web's
WebPreferences topic. You may delete a web by moving it into a Trash web.
Permissions
You may only rename a web if you have the following permissions
- You must be allowed to rename and changes topics in the web you want to rename
- You must be allowed to rename topics in the parent web of the web you want to rename
- If the web is a root web (i.e. it has no parent web) then you must have permission to both create and rename root webs. These permissions are controlled by the ALLOWROOTCHANGE preference, which can be set in Main.TWikiPreferences.
- If you move the web to another parent web you must be allowed to create and change topics in the new parent web.
When you rename a web TWiki will try and update all links that refer to the old web. You should note that links only get updated in topics that you are allowed to edit. If you use access rights in the TWiki installation it is generally best to let an administrator rename webs to avoid too many broken links.
Edit Conflicts
If anyone is editing a topic which requires updating, or which lives in the web being renamed, a second confirmation screen will come up which will indicate which topics are still locked for edit. You may continue to hit the refresh button until an edit lease is obtained for each topic which requires updating (the "Refresh" button will change to "Submit"), or hit "Cancel", which will cancel your edit lease on all affected topics.
Renaming the TWiki or Main webs
Although technically possible, it is strongly advised
not to rename the TWiki and Main webs. It complicates upgrades, and some extensions may make assumptions on the names of those system webs. For this reason, the rename web link is disabled in the WebPreferences topic in those webs.
Suggestion: Create a web that is the entry point for your TWiki, and change the link of the upper left site logo to that web. Do that with a WIKILOGOURL setting in
Main.TWikiPreferences.
If you want to rename the TWiki or Main webs anyway:
- Physically move the webs below
twiki/data
and twiki/pub
on the shell level.
- Change the
{SystemWebName}
, {UsersWebName}
and/or {LocalSitePreferences}
settings in the configuration using the configure interface.
Related Topics: AdminDocumentationCategory,
AdminToolsCategory
--
Contributors: TWiki:Main/MikeMannix,
TWiki:Main/PeterThoeny,
TWiki:Main/GrantBow