Managing content blocks in articles

After you create or insert a content block, you can edit, unlink, or remove the content block as needed. You can manage a content block from within an article or from the content blocks list, which is the central repository of content blocks that can be shared between articles.

This article covers the following topics:

• Viewing your content blocks list
• Editing a content block
• Unlinking a content block
• Removing a content block
• Deleting a content block

Viewing your content blocks list

If you are using content blocks in your articles, you can manage them from the content blocks list. You can see all of the content blocks that have been created in the account, when they were last edited, and in how many articles they are being used. You can click any content block in the list to open the content block editor, where Guide admins and agents with permission can update the content block. From the list you can also edit or delete content blocks. Only Guide admins can delete content blocks.

To view your content blocks list

1. In Guide, click Guide admin at the top of the page, then click the Manage articles icon () in the sidebar.
2. Under the Tasks tab in the left menu, click Content blocks.

   The content blocks list appears. You can click a content block to open the content block editor, where if you have the appropriate permissions, you can edit or delete the content block. See Editing a content block and Deleting a content block below.

Editing a content block

You can access the content block editor from the content block list or from any article that is using a content block. If you are a Guide admin or an agent with permissions to update content blocks, you can use the editor to make changes to the content block and update all articles in which the content block appears. You can edit the name of the block or any text in the content block. You can also insert videos or images in the content block. If you want to reformat the content (such as adding bold or inserting a link), use the content block editor toolbar. See Help center editor toolbar reference.

When you edit and update a content block, all articles that contain that content block will be automatically updated in your help center to include the new content without impacting the articles' publication status.

Both agents and admins can make changes to content blocks.

To edit a content block from the content block list

1. In Guide, click Guide admin at the top of the page, then click the Manage articles icon () in the sidebar.
2. Under the Tasks tab in the left menu, click Content blocks.
3. Click a content block to open the content block editor.
4. Use the content block editor to make any necessary changes.
5. Click Update. Your updates are saved and visible in all articles that use the content block. You do not need to republish the articles for the changes to appear.
   Note: When you edit content blocks from the content blocks list, you are editing the master version of a content block that doesn’t have any context of the articles in which it is used. Therefore, you cannot link a content block to the heading of an article that contains the content block. However, you can link a content block to other articles in your help center.

To edit a content block from within an article that is using it

1. Open the article that contains the content block you want to edit in Edit mode.
2. Hover over the content block you want to edit, click the Options menu icon (), then click Edit.
   Note: When you are editing a content block from within an article, the article remains open in the background. To return to the article without saving the content block, click the breadcrumb in the upper left corner of the window.

   
3. Make any necessary changes in the content block editor.
4. Click Update all articles.

   Your updates are saved and visible in all articles that use the content block. You do not need to republish the articles for the changes to appear.

Unlinking a content block

To include the text from a content block in an article and modify it without affecting any other articles, you must unlink the content block. Once you unlink a content block, the text from the content block is inserted into the article as regular text and can be modified without impacting any other articles.

To unlink a content block

1. Open the article that contains the content block you want to unlink in edit mode.
2. Hover over the content block, click the Options menu icon () then click Unlink.

   The content block becomes regular text and is no longer a content block.

If you unlink a content block, it is represented in the source code as an alphanumeric ID and not as regular HTML. In the following example the highlighted content block will be unlinked.

After unlinking the content block, the section of text is represented in HTML as an alphanumeric ID.

Removing a content block

If you want to remove a content block from the article completely, use the remove option.

To remove a content block

1. Open the article that contains the content block you want to remove in edit mode.
2. Hover over the content block, click the Options menu icon () then click Remove.

   The content block disappears from the article. The content block remains in any other articles where it is being used and is still available for reuse.

Deleting a content block

If you are a Guide admin, you can delete a content block that you no longer want to appear in your help center articles. The Delete option only appears if the content block is not used in any articles. If the content block is used in one or more articles, you must remove the block from the affected articles before you can delete it.

When you delete a content block, it's permanently removed from your account. You cannot restore it afterwards.

To delete a content block

1. In Guide, click Guide admin at the top of the page, then click the Manage articles icon () in the sidebar.
2. Under the Tasks tab in the left menu, click Content blocks.
3. From the content block list, click the title that you want to delete.

   The content block opens in the content block editor. Refer to the side panel for information about where the content block appears. If the content block is being used in one or more articles, you must remove it from the affected articles before you can delete it.

   

4. Click the arrow next to the Update button, then select Delete.

   Note: If the content block is being used in an article, the Delete option will not appear. Instead, the Update button will only allow you to update the existing content block.

   

5. Click Delete content block.