Removing content

Removing takes an item, and everything below it, off the site and out of the tree. By default it goes to the trash first, so a mistake can be undone. If you only want an item off the site for a while, hide it instead: see Hiding and revealing content.

Who can do this

Editors whose role has content/remove for the item and for everything below it. Restoring from the trash needs content/restore.

Remove an item

1. Open the item and press Remove. Or choose Remove in its menu in the tree. For several items, tick them in the Sub items list and choose More actions > Remove selected. The page Confirm location removal opens.
2. Read What this touches: how many locations and objects go, which classes they have, and how many objects have other locations that stay.
3. Read the warning Other objects use the items, if it appears. It lists the items that link to, embed or relate to what you remove, including Layouts blocks that show it.
4. Check the list of items with their type and number of sub items. The sub items are removed as well.
5. Leave Move to trash ticked, unless you are sure the items must be deleted for good.
6. Under How to run it, keep the preselected choice: Run now for small removals, Run in the background from 50 items on. In the background the removal works in batches and you can leave the page.
7. Press OK, or Cancel to leave everything as it was.

What can go wrong

• Without Move to trash the removal cannot be undone. The items, their versions and their files are deleted at once.
• Red lines and a disabled OK button. You may not remove some of the items in the list, or (on sites that block it) other items still use them. Cancel and remove only what you may, or fix the references first.
• Other pages now show broken links or missing images. The items that used the removed one still point at it. Edit them, or restore the item.
• Only one location disappeared. The item has other locations; it stays in those places. It goes to the trash only when its last location is removed.
• User accounts are not trashed. Objects with a user account field are deleted for good. Disable the account instead: see Managing users.

Read more

• How do I remove an item?, in the help center.
• The trash: restoring content