Content Blocks Removal Project FAQ
What are Content Blocks?
Content Blocks are the page building solution we adopted with the 2015 website redesign, and allowed for more complex page layouts that were mobile-friendly. This software is out of date and must be removed before we begin redesigning common website elements such as the global header and footer on websites. More information about Content Blocks is available in our user guide.
I still see “Blocks” available even in the updated editor. Can I use those?
Yes! It is confusing that our old page building editor is called “Content Blocks” and the newer Gutenberg editor also uses “Blocks.” Here is a screenshot of the newer editor when you create a new page:
In some rare cases, your website may still be using the Content Blocks editor for new pages. If you see this editor when creating new pages, please contact us to adjust your settings:
Will any unpublished material be deleted?
Yes— by July 12, any unpublished pages using content blocks will be deleted if the page has not been modified in the last 12 months. Pages that do not use content blocks will not be deleted, regardless of their age— but we strongly recommend reviewing your oldest website content (whether published or not) to remove outdated material that may be showing up in website searches.
What is happening? What do we need to do?
We plan to remove the Content Blocks software by June 30, 2025 (in 13 months). Before we do this, every page using content blocks will need to be reviewed and a replacement page created using our newer editing tools. To focus on this task, we removed the ability to create new pages using Content Blocks effective June 17, 2024. We will be updating a report on a monthly basis beginning in July to aid our users in finding pages that should be addressed— the current such reports can be found here:
I’m not ready to re-create a page but I have to update my content. Can I still make updates to pages that use of Content Blocks?
Yes— continued functionality will be kept so that content managers can work through content over the next 13 months to revise content and replace pages using Content Blocks. The true end to Content Blocks will come when we no longer have pages using that option, we are shooting for June 30 2025. While you can no longer create new pages using content blocks, existing content blocks pages can still be updated. When new pages are created the Gutenberg editor should be used.
I just don’t have the bandwidth to go through the process for every single page using Content Blocks. Can you do it for me?
This is the big issue we are tackling with this project. By July 12 we will delete unpublished pages that use content blocks if the page has not been worked on in 12 months. Our assumption here is that these draft pages are abandoned works-in-progress and/or old pages that were set to draft because the content owner was hesitant to delete the page altogether.
We are hoping to hire one or more student workers to help us with the effort to replace content blocks pages, as well.
For content owners feeling overwhelmed, we advise taking time to review the Pages dashboard for content that can be deleted altogether. It is better to have a small site of two dozen pages that are kept up to date than a site that has 60+ pages with content that has not been updated in a decade. Sorting the pages dashboard by “last modified” date can be eye opening, there are sites with pages that have not been edited in 15 years.
Also, it’s important to understand the scope of this effort is focused on pages— the only content type that made use of Content Blocks. Sites that have effectively used Posts for news/updates can rest assured that the posts do not need to be edited or addressed. In July posts will use the Gutenberg editor, offering more layout options, but no work needs be done with published posts as part of this effort.