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Version: main (5.1)

Shortlinks

Shortlinks are concise URLs that route to a fully-qualified URL in Moodle. Comprising of a smaller set of characters, their use is suitable for SMS, convenience, or where a longer URL would not be suitable.

Requirements​

Shortlinks require Moodle's routing system to be enabled and fully functioning as they have been fully integrated into the existing routing subsystem. Ensure routing is configured by following this routing guide.

URL structure​

A shortlink URL will be comprised of the following:

  • Base domain
  • Route group of s or p
  • Shortcode (e.g. X8fG56aa)

A complete shortlink will look something like this: http://yourmoodle.com/s/X8fG56aa.

Short codes​

Short codes are unique identifiers at the end of a shortlink. The characters available for building short codes is limited to the extended alpha-numeric set (ALPHANUMEXT) with the the omission of ambiguous characters (i.e. upper case 'i' and lower case 'L').

Before a shortlink can be used, a shortlink will need to be generated. Shortlink generation is random and length can be specified when calling the relevant method.

There are two types of shortlinks:

  • Public shortlinks
  • Private shortlinks

Public​

Public shortlinks can be accessed by anyone. Their use will be designated with a /p/ in the URL.

$public = \core\di::get(\core\shortlink::class)->create_shortlink(
    component: $component,
    linktype: $linktype,
    identifier: $identifier,
    userid: 0,
    minlength: 4,
    maxlength: 4,
);

Private​

Private shortlinks are tied to a specific user or set of users. Their use will be designated with a /s/ in the URL.

$private = \core\di::get(\core\shortlink::class)->create_shortlink_for_users(
    component: $component,
    linktype: $linktype,
    identifier: $identifier,
    userids: $userids,
    minlength: 4,
    maxlength: 4,
);

Each component using shortlinks will need to have a shortlink_handler class. There are two methods that the implemented interface requires:

  • get_valid_linktypes()
  • process_shortlink()
class shortlink_handler implements shortlink_handler_interface {
    #[\Override]
    public function get_valid_linktypes(): array {
        return [
            'view',
        ];
    }

    #[\Override]
    public function process_shortlink(
        string $type,
        string $identifier,
    ): ?\core\url {
        return match ($type) {
            'view' => new \core\url('/mod/assign/view.php', [
                'id' => $identifier,
            ]),
            default => null,
        };
    }
}

Assuming the shortlink has been generated, the above example would allow a shortlink URL of http://yourmoodle.com/s/SHORTCODE to map to http://yourmoodle.com/mod/assign/view.php?id=IDENTIFIER

See also​