External Links Overview

The “External Links Overview” plugin scans your WordPress posts and pages to find all outgoing external links. It provides a detailed table view of these links, including source page, anchor text, target URL, target domain, rel attribute, a new Target attribute column, and link status (OK or potentially broken). The plugin features domain analysis, status checking for external links, the ability to manually mark links as OK, a CSV export function (including rel and target attributes), and provides a dashboard widget summarizing link status. This plugin uses the unique prefix seokelo_ for functions, options, and database tables to avoid conflicts.

For more information and documentation, please visit the official plugin page on seo-kreativ.de. Support is available in the WordPress.org support forum.

Key Features

• Collects and analyzes external links from posts and pages.
• Detailed table view with search, filter, and sort options, including rel attribute and a new Target attribute column.
• Checks the status of external links (optional, via button click).
• Identifies potentially broken external links.
• Allows manually marking links as “OK” if the check was inaccurate.
• Provides domain analysis: See which external domains you link to most often.
• Offers a CSV export function for external link data (including rel and target attributes).
• Collects, displays, and exports link rel attribute information.
• Collects, displays (in a dedicated column), and exports link target attribute information (e.g., _blank, _self).
• Tab-based user interface for easy navigation between the link table and domain analysis.
• Detects post updates to allow targeted rescanning.
• Dashboard widget showing a summary of broken links.
• Uses unique prefixes (seokelo_ / SEOKELO_) for functions, classes, options, and database table to prevent conflicts.

Usage

After activating the plugin, navigate to the “External Links” menu in your WordPress admin area.

1. Click “Collect All External Links” to initiate the first scan (or rescan) of your content. This will populate the wp_seokelo_external_links table, including rel and target attributes.
2. The plugin will process your posts and pages in batches. Progress will be displayed.
3. Once finished, the “Link Table” tab will show all found external links, including the new “Target” column which displays values like _blank, _self, etc.
   • Use the search bar to find specific links.
   • Sort the table by clicking on column headers (including “Target”).
   • Use the “Show only broken links” checkbox.
4. Click “Check External Links Status” to verify link reachability.
5. For links marked as “Broken” that work, use the “Mark as OK” button.
6. Switch to the “Domain Analysis” tab for a domain summary.
7. Click “Export to CSV” to download link data, including rel and target attributes.
8. If you update posts, use “Update Links from Changed Posts” for efficient rescanning.

License

This plugin is licensed under the GPL v2 or later.