Renaming & Redirects

Renaming a document’s alias no longer breaks the links pointing at it. The old name stays alive as a redirect, so every [[wiki-link]], bookmark, and synced file that still uses it keeps resolving.

An alias is a document’s stable address — it appears in links, URLs, and Configuration. Before redirects, renaming one meant delayed damage: links kept working for a while, then broke one by one. Now a rename keeps the promise the old name made.

Rename a document’s alias

Prerequisites: You need write access to the project.

1. Open the document.
2. In the properties panel, select the edit icon next to Alias.
3. Enter the new alias and save.

The old alias becomes a redirect. Anyone following an old link still lands on the document under its new name. That holds everywhere: the web app, public pages, search, AI assistants, and CLI sync. Renaming a project’s alias behaves the same way, from Project Settings.

Spot the links that need attention

The document’s connections panel labels links that use a former name:

• old name — the link works through a redirect. Updating it is optional.
• will break — the link uses a name nothing resolves any more (its redirect was given away or never existed). It breaks the next time that document is edited. Fix these first.

A working stale link and a Troubleshooting are different things: stale still resolves, broken doesn’t.

Clean up old names

The Stale aliases tab on the project Overview collects every former name that links still use. It orders them by how recently each was used, so the redirects people actually depend on rise to the top.

Each row shows the former name and where it now leads. Names that no longer resolve come first, with a warning. The ones still redirecting sit below — updating those is optional housekeeping.

To rewrite old links in repository-synced documents, use meldoc migrate — see Command Reference.

Hand an old name to another document

You can give a retired alias to a different document. If links still use that name, Meldoc shows you how many before letting it change hands. Those links would start pointing at the new document, and any that can’t follow break outright. Reassign a name only when you’re sure nothing important still leans on it.

Keep in mind: Deleting a document by its former name is refused. The name points somewhere else now, and Meldoc won’t guess which document you meant — use the current alias.

What’s next?

Archiving Documents — Retire whole documents, not just names.

Magic Links (Wiki Links) — How [[wiki-links]] and cross-project links work.