Designating a Section as an Error Handler

There are several circumstances in which a visitor or contributor to the site may encounter an error message generated by the content server. Examples of when users usually encounter error messages include situations when a secondary page is missing in the section where a file is being requested, or when a file (contributor data file or native document) has been removed from the site but still has a hyperlink pointing to it. To prevent users from encountering these types of errors, the designer of the site can create a custom error page. The manager (or the designer) can designate a section of the site to serve as an error handler and then assign the error page to that section.

To designate a section as an error handler, perform these steps:

1. Launch the Site Manager Application (see Launching Site Manager).

2. Select the section in the site hierarchy to designate as an error handler, and do either of the following:

   • With the mouse cursor on the selected section in the site hierarchy, right-click and select the Set section as error handler check box.

   • On the Section tab, click the error handler link.

3. After a short delay, the section icon in the site hierarchy is updated to reflect its status as the error handler (Figure).

   Error Handler Icon

   
   

4. Make sure that the designated error-handler section is selected in the site hierarchy, and open the Page Template tab.

5. Beside Preview page template, select the page template for the custom error page, and click Apply.

When you designate a section as an error handler, do not include that section in your site navigation (see Showing or Hiding a Section on the Web Site).

Caution: It is possible in Manager to set the home page as the error handler page. This is not possible in Designer, and cannot be undone through Designer.