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PDF & File Management Guidelines

Additional Web Accessibility Information

Please note: This web page is dedicated to making PDFs on websites accessible to meet the Department of Justice digital accessibility mandate. There are other web accessibility basics and requirements, such as use of proper headings, alt tags and link text. Access general web accessibility requirements.

The U.S. Department of Justice has issued new accessibility mandates requiring all public university digital content to meet compliance standards by April 24, 2026. This includes web pages, PDFs, other digital files and any content to which we link on third-party websites.

While we're here to help you meet this deadline, our broader goal is to make ÂÜÀòÉç State's web content more accessible, user-friendly and discoverable for everyone.

 

Manage and Remediate Your Files

Once you've identified which files to keep, delete or remediate, you'll need to follow the proper processes to ensure everything is handled correctly. The sections below cover the essential procedures for file management and accessibility compliance.

Why Web Pages Are Usually Better Than PDFs

Before uploading a PDF, ask yourself: could this content work as a web page instead?

Here's why we recommend web pages whenever possible:

  • Accessibility: Web pages work better with screen readers and other assistive technologies. They're also easier to navigate for users with disabilities.
  • Mobile experience: PDFs require pinching, zooming and awkward scrolling on phones and tablets. Web pages adapt automatically.
  • Search visibility: Search engines rank web pages higher than PDFs, which means your content is more likely to be found.
  • Maintenance: Updating a web page is straightforward. With PDFs, you have to upload a new file, update links and hope no one bookmarked the old version.
  • Analytics: You can track how people use web pages through Google Analytics. PDFs only show downloads, so you can't evaluate how users actually engage with the content within.

If your content is text-heavy, gets updated regularly or is under a few pages long, it should almost always be a web page rather than a PDF.

How to Find, Audit and Evaluate Your Files - Decision Tree

Now is the time to audit the files on your site. Determine who in your department will lead this effort and who will contribute.

How to Get Started

  1. Request a content export by .
  2. Evaluate all PDFs and other files on your site.
  3. For each file, ask: Do I need this?

Decision Tree

Decision File use caseWhat to DoNotes
No →&²Ô²ú²õ±è;No longer needed
  1. Review . If it qualifies, work with their team to transfer.
  2. Delete the file from the website and remove all links leading to it.
Follow proper deletion steps (below).
Yes → Determine which category:Historical internal documentMove to your department's shared drive or server.Do not host internal files on public websites.
Public historical document
  1. Flag it for the upcoming website PDF/Document Archive; and/or 
  2. Consider if you could instead .
    1. If so, thereafter, delete from the website and eliminate links leading to it.
  3. Convert using the convert tool and flip to Resolved in your tracking grid.

The web archive process will open January 2026. Files created after April 2026 will not qualify as historical. . The rule includes specific exceptions for certain types of content, including archived web content. 

You may choose to convert your pdf to an archived pdf if it meets the following criteria:

  1. The content was created before April 24, 2026, AND
  2. The content is kept only for reference, research or recordkeeping, AND
  3. The individual uses the pdf archive content type function made available by UCM and IT.
Active, current documentMake it accessible now using Word or Adobe remediation tools—or better yet, convert it to a true web page.All new documents after April 2026 must meet full accessibility standards.

About archive options 

  1. The DOJ rule includes exceptions for archived web PDF content, meaning older documents that are no longer actively used can be preserved for historical reference without full remediation if they meet all four exceptions. This allows us to focus accessibility efforts on current content while maintaining access to historical records through the upcoming website PDF/Document Archive.
  2. Alternatively, webmasters can review . If the file(s) qualify, work with their team to transfer and then delete the file from your website, as well as any links leading to that file that is removed.
Drupal PDF Accessibility Audit Tutorial

Drupal PDF Accessibility Audit Tutorial

  1. Navigate to your group's homepage and click the Open Utilities button.

    A blue 'Open Utilities' button.

     

  2. From the utilities pop-up menu, select Accessibility.

    Vertical menu showing utility options including View, Edit, Unpublish, Delete, Log, Revisions, Clone, Group, Convert Bundle, OG Menu, Accessibility (indicated in red), and Clear Node Cache. A 'Close Utilities' button appears at the top.

     

  3. You'll be directed to the Drupal Accessibility Hub for your group. Click on the "PDFs uploaded using the 'file' content type" link.

    Drupal Accessibility Hub welcome page displaying information about PDF compliance evaluation. The page includes sections for 'Important Notes,' 'Understanding the PDF Dashboards,' with a blue hyperlink labeled 'PDFs Uploaded Using the File Content Type' (indicated in red), followed by sections for 'PDFs Linked Directly or Embedded in Content' and 'Resources

     

  4. You'll see a table listing all PDF files created using the "file" content type. Each row displays the node ID (links to the edit page), filename, and an Audit PDF link. Once a PDF is audited, results appear in the Summary column.

    Same PDFs table as Step 4, now showing populated Summary columns with scan results. Results display statistics like '12 passed, 18 failed, 2 need manual review' as blue hyperlinks. The first file 'Creating-a-Simple-Application-Tab-for-Facebook.pdf' shows detailed results, while other files show either similar statistics or just 'Audit PDF' links for files not yet scanned.

     

  5. Select a PDF and click Audit PDF.

    An 'Audit PDF' link

     

  6. On the Audit PDF page, if no accessibility report exists yet, you'll see a message indicating this.

    Audit PDF page showing 'Accessibility Reports and Resources' section with heading 'Generate an Accessibility Report.' Text explains no report has been generated yet. A large gray 'Scan PDF' button appears below the explanatory text.

     

  7. Click the Scan PDF button to generate a new report. Report generation typically takes several seconds depending on file size.

    A gray 'Scan PDF' button.

     

  8. After scanning, results display in a table showing only issues that need attention. Failed tests and manual checks required are flagged for your review. Passed tests are not displayed in the table.

    Accessibility Report Overview page showing a detailed report table. The table contains columns for Status, Category, and Action Needed. Entries include items marked as 'Needs manual check,' 'Failed,' with categories like 'Color contrast,' 'Figures alternate text,' 'Figures Reading Order,' 'Tab order,' 'Tagged content,' and 'Title.' Each row provides specific remediation guidance. A timestamp at bottom shows 'This audit was performed on: 01-21-2026 01:49:51.'

     

  9. When you return to the PDF files table, scan results appear in the Summary column. Click any summary link to view the full report.

    Column header labeled "SUMMARY" with audit results displayed as a blue hyperlink reading "12 passed, 18 failed, 2 need manual review"

     

  10. To update a PDF: Click the node ID link in the first column to access the edit page, upload the corrected PDF file, and return to the PDF files table. You'll see a notification that the audit is out of date. Click Audit PDF again to generate a new scan with the updated file.

    Column header labeled "NODE" with a blue hyperlink below showing "/node/273316"
How to Delete Files Properly

Follow these steps to ensure files are completely removed from your site and won't still appear in search engine results:

  1. Unpublish or edit any web page that links to the file.
  2. Remove the file from your page content.
  3. Delete the file node in Drupal.
  4. Confirm that no other pages link to the file.
  5. Contact us by submitting a ticket if you need help or if the file appears across multiple sites.
How to Make PDFs Accessible

Sometimes a PDF is the right choice - for example, forms that need to be printed and filled out or official documents that require specific formatting.

When that's the case, make sure your PDF is accessible:

Before Converting to PDF

  • Be sure your document has a relevant title
  • Run accessibility checker in your source application
  • Use proper heading structure (H1, H2, H3)
  • Add alt text to all images
  • Ensure text is searchable (avoid image-only scanned PDFs)

Content Requirements

  • Use readable fonts and maintain good color contrast
  • Write descriptive link text instead of "click here" or bare URLs
  • Save with meaningful filenames that describe content
  • Create tagged PDFs when exporting

Accessibility Resources

Software-Specific Guides

Standards & Testing

More Questions?

Register for ÂÜÀòÉç State trainings using the buttons at the bottom of this page.
 

Convert a File to File Archive

Convert a File to File Archive

From your content export or your group's accessibility dashboard, find a link to a specific File content type that needs archived and follow these steps.

  1. To convert a File to a File Archive, click on the Open Utilities.

    Open Utilities Button

  2. Select Convert Bundle. 

    Convert Bundle Button Circled

  3. Confirm that the convert option says File Archive then click Next. 

    File Archive

  4. On the next screen, scroll past the field mapping section. All relevant fields should be mapped correctly by default. Click Next at the bottom of the page. 

    Field Mapping

  5. Do not check the box to create values where there were no values on the previous File. Click Next again. 

    Create Values for File Archive

  6. Confirm that you would like to start the conversion to the File Archive content type. Click Next a final time. 

    Confirmation

  7. Once the initialization screen appears. You may close the tab or navigate away from the page. 

    Initialization Screen

  8. After a few minutes, if you return to the node URL, you will see that the conversion has taken place and that the File Archive message is now on the page. 

    File Archive Message

Using Siteimprove to Find Where Files Are Linked

Step 1: Create a New Policy in Siteimprove

  1. Open Siteimprove.
  2. Navigate to the Policies section in the left-hand menu.
  3. Click the purple "Create Policy" button.

Step 2: Open the Content Policy Category

  1. Once you are on the Policy Categories page, locate the "Content" tab at the top.
  2. Select the tab labeled "Content."

Step 3: Add a Rule to Your Policy

  1. Click the purple box with a "+" in the center to add a new rule to your policy.
  2. From the drop-down menu that appears, select Link URL.

Step 4: Identify and Copy the URL Segment

  1. Locate the full URL you want your policy to search for.
  2. Copy only the part of the URL that comes immediately after kent.edu.
  3. In this example, the portion you would copy is: /s3fs-root/s3fs-public/file/Weigle_ALISE%202016%20Poster.pdf

Step 5: Add the URL to Your Policy Rule

  1. Paste the URL segment you copied into the Link URL field in your policy.
  2. Set the first condition to "contains."
  3. Set the second condition to "is exactly."
    • Using "contains" is usually sufficient, but I usually double-check accuracy by also adding the "is exactly" condition.

Step 6: Name and Create Your Policy

  1. Enter a name for your policy in the Policy Name field.
  2. Click the purple "Create Policy" button located in the bottom-right corner of your screen.

Step 7: Open Your Policy

  1. Once your policy has finished running, locate it in the Policies list.
  2. Click on the name of your policy to open it and view the results.

Step 8: Review Policy Results

  1. After opening your policy, review the results that appear.
  2. Click on any of the results to view more details.
    • In this example, there is only one result.

Step 9: Locate the Link in the Page HTML

  1. Sometimes Siteimprove won't show the exact location of a link if it's embedded in text.
    • This is the case in this example.
  2. To find the link on the page, click the "View HTML" button.
  3. The HTML view will show exactly where the link exists on the page.
    • The text that the link is attached to is usually displayed just above the actual URL in the HTML.

Step 10: Make Adjustments on the Page

  1. Navigate to the actual page where the policy result was found.
  2. Make any necessary adjustments, such as removing the linked text or updating the link.
How to Audit Non-www.kent.edu Websites

If your site isn't hosted on (e.g., custom applications or subdomains), it won't be included in our Siteimprove contract. However, there are free tools you can use to check for accessibility and SEO issues:


A free, built-in tool in Chrome DevTools that evaluates accessibility, performance and SEO. It provides scores and actionable recommendations for improvement.

  • How to use: Open your site in Chrome → Right-click → Inspect → Click "Lighthouse" tab → Run audit


A free browser plugin that scans for accessibility issues and highlights them directly on your page.

  • Note: This tool focuses on accessibility only and doesn't include the customized dashboards available in the full Siteimprove product.
File Upload Changes

What's changing: As of Dec. 1, you'll no longer be able to upload files directly using the "Insert Media" button in the WYSIWYG editor.

Standard process: Create a new "File" content item and upload your document there. This has always been the recommended method in Drupal - we're just removing the alternative option to promote consistency and support accessibility compliance.

Remember: All files uploaded to the website should meet accessibility standards.

Still Have Questions?

If you need help with content exports, file organization, PDF remediation or converting documents to web pages, please submit a ticket.

    Learn to Make PDFS Accessible

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