Manage Presentation Hyperlinks in JavaScript

Introduction

A hyperlink connects presentation content to a website or a location within the presentation. In PowerPoint, hyperlinks commonly serve two purposes:

  • Open a website from text, a shape, or a media frame.
  • Navigate to another slide, for example, from a table of contents.

Aspose.Slides for Node.js via Java lets you add these links, control their appearance and sound, update their properties, and remove them. The examples below show how to work with hyperlinks on individual elements and how to access hyperlinks at the presentation, slide, or text-frame level.

You can assign a website URL to text, a shape, or a media frame. The element to which you assign the hyperlink determines the clickable area: a text portion links the selected text, while a shape or frame links the slide object.

Add URL Hyperlinks to Text

To link text to a website, pass a Hyperlink to the text portion’s setHyperlinkClick method, as shown below. Only that portion of text becomes clickable.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation();
try {
    const textShape = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 100, 100, 600, 50, false);
    textShape.addTextFrame("Aspose: File Format APIs");
    const portionFormat = textShape.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().get_Item(0).getPortions().get_Item(0).getPortionFormat();
    portionFormat.setHyperlinkClick(new aspose.slides.Hyperlink("https://www.aspose.com/"));
    portionFormat.getHyperlinkClick().setTooltip("Explore Aspose file format APIs");
    portionFormat.setFontHeight(32);

    presentation.save("presentation-out.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

To make a shape or frame clickable, call its setHyperlinkClick method. The hyperlink belongs to the object itself rather than to a text portion inside it.

The same approach applies to picture, audio, and video frames: assign the hyperlink to the frame and call setTooltip if needed.

The following example makes a rectangle clickable:

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation();
try {
    const shape = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 100, 100, 600, 50);

    shape.setHyperlinkClick(new aspose.slides.Hyperlink("https://www.aspose.com/"));
    shape.getHyperlinkClick().setTooltip("Explore Aspose file format APIs");

    presentation.save("presentation-out.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

Internal hyperlinks let readers jump from a table of contents to a specific slide. The following example uses setInternalHyperlinkClick to link the “Page 2” text on the first slide to the second slide.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };
const java = require("java");

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation();
try {
    const firstSlide = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0);
    const secondSlide = presentation.getSlides().addEmptySlide(firstSlide.getLayoutSlide());

    const tableOfContents = firstSlide.getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 40, 40, 300, 100);
    tableOfContents.getFillFormat().setFillType(java.newByte(aspose.slides.FillType.NoFill));
    tableOfContents.getLineFormat().getFillFormat().setFillType(java.newByte(aspose.slides.FillType.NoFill));
    tableOfContents.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().clear();

    const paragraph = new aspose.slides.Paragraph();
    paragraph.getParagraphFormat().getDefaultPortionFormat().getFillFormat().setFillType(java.newByte(aspose.slides.FillType.Solid));
    paragraph.getParagraphFormat().getDefaultPortionFormat().getFillFormat().getSolidFillColor().setColor(java.getStaticFieldValue("java.awt.Color", "BLACK"));
    paragraph.setText("Title of slide 2 .......... ");

    const linkPortion = new aspose.slides.Portion();
    linkPortion.setText("Page 2");
    linkPortion.getPortionFormat().getHyperlinkManager().setInternalHyperlinkClick(secondSlide);

    paragraph.getPortions().add(linkPortion);
    tableOfContents.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().add(paragraph);

    presentation.save("link_to_slide.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

Color

The setColorSource method of Hyperlink determines whether a hyperlink uses the presentation’s hyperlink color or the text portion’s formatting. To apply a custom text color, select HyperlinkColorSource.PortionFormat and set the portion’s fill color. This feature was introduced in PowerPoint 2019; older versions do not apply this setting.

The following example adds two text hyperlinks to the same slide. The first uses a red text fill, while the second retains the default hyperlink color.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };
const java = require("java");

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation();
try {
    const coloredShape = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 100, 100, 450, 50, false);
    coloredShape.addTextFrame("This hyperlink uses a custom color.");
    const coloredPortionFormat = coloredShape.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().get_Item(0).getPortions().get_Item(0).getPortionFormat();
    coloredPortionFormat.setHyperlinkClick(new aspose.slides.Hyperlink("https://www.aspose.com/"));
    coloredPortionFormat.getHyperlinkClick().setColorSource(aspose.slides.HyperlinkColorSource.PortionFormat);
    coloredPortionFormat.getFillFormat().setFillType(java.newByte(aspose.slides.FillType.Solid));
    coloredPortionFormat.getFillFormat().getSolidFillColor().setColor(java.getStaticFieldValue("java.awt.Color", "RED"));

    const defaultShape = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 100, 200, 450, 50, false);
    defaultShape.addTextFrame("This hyperlink uses the default color.");
    defaultShape.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().get_Item(0).getPortions().get_Item(0).getPortionFormat().setHyperlinkClick(new aspose.slides.Hyperlink("https://www.aspose.com/"));

    presentation.save("presentation-out-hyperlink.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

Sound

A hyperlink can play a sound when activated or stop a sound that is already playing. Use the following methods to configure these behaviors:

The following example loads sampleaudio.wav and associates it with a button on the first slide. Clicking the button plays the sound and navigates to the next slide. A second shape on that slide stops the previous sound when clicked, without performing a navigation action.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };
const java = require("java");

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation();
try {
    const audioStream = java.newInstanceSync("java.io.FileInputStream", "sampleaudio.wav");
    let hyperlinkSound;
    try {
        hyperlinkSound = presentation.getAudios().addAudio(audioStream);
    } finally {
        audioStream.close();
    }

    const firstSlide = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0);

    const playButton = firstSlide.getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.SoundButton, 100, 100, 100, 50);
    playButton.setHyperlinkClick(aspose.slides.Hyperlink.getNextSlide());

    if (!playButton.getHyperlinkClick().getStopSoundOnClick() && playButton.getHyperlinkClick().getSound() == null)
    {
        playButton.getHyperlinkClick().setSound(hyperlinkSound);
    }

    const secondSlide = presentation.getSlides().addEmptySlide(firstSlide.getLayoutSlide());

    const stopButton = secondSlide.getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 100, 100, 100, 50);
    stopButton.setHyperlinkClick(aspose.slides.Hyperlink.getNoAction());

    stopButton.getHyperlinkClick().setStopSoundOnClick(true);

    presentation.save("hyperlink-sound.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

The following example opens the presentation created above and reads the first shape’s hyperlink audio into memory through getSound and getBinaryData.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation("hyperlink-sound.pptx");
try {
    if (presentation.getSlides().size() > 0 && presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getShapes().size() > 0) {
        const hyperlink = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getShapes().get_Item(0).getHyperlinkClick();
        const sound = hyperlink == null ? null : hyperlink.getSound();
        if (sound != null) {
            const audioData = sound.getBinaryData();
            console.log("Extracted " + audioData.length + " bytes of hyperlink audio.");
        } else {
            console.log("The first shape has no hyperlink sound.");
        }
    } else {
        console.log("The presentation has no first slide or shape to inspect.");
    }
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

Tooltip and Interaction Settings

You can call the following Hyperlink methods after assigning a hyperlink to text or a shape:

  • setTooltip sets the text that a viewer can display as a hint for the link.
  • setTargetFrame specifies the target frame within a parent HTML frameset, when applicable.
  • setHistory controls whether activating the link adds its destination to the list of viewed hyperlinks.
  • setHighlightClick controls whether the hyperlink is highlighted when clicked.

Use getAnyHyperlinks to collect hyperlink containers, including text-portion links, before changing them. The following example removes both activation types from the first slide. To remove only one type, call only removeHyperlinkClick or removeHyperlinkMouseOver; removing a click action does not remove its mouse-over counterpart.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation("pres.pptx");
try {
    if (presentation.getSlides().size() > 0) {
        const found = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0).getHyperlinkQueries().getAnyHyperlinks();
        const containers = [];
        for (let index = 0; index < found.size(); index++) {
            containers.push(found.get_Item(index));
        }
        for (const container of containers) {
            container.getHyperlinkManager().removeHyperlinkClick();
            container.getHyperlinkManager().removeHyperlinkMouseOver();
        }
        presentation.save("pres-removed-hyperlinks.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
    } else {
        console.log("The presentation has no slides to process.");
    }
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

For unconditional removal, removeAllHyperlinks removes both activation types in the selected scope in one call. For selective cleanup and coverage of masters, layouts, and notes, see Report, Sanitize, and Verify Hyperlinks.

Before distributing a presentation, inventory its interactive actions as well as its web links. getAnyHyperlinks returns hyperlink containers, not a flat list of URL strings. Inspect both getHyperlinkClick and getHyperlinkMouseOver on each container. They are independent: the same container can expose both actions, so a complete report needs up to two rows per container.

Scanning only shape-level hyperlinks can miss links attached to text portions. Query the appropriate scope instead, and retain the returned containers so that you can later update or remove their actions.

Query Presentation, Slide, and Text-Frame Scopes

The HyperlinkQueries class is available through Presentation.getHyperlinkQueries, BaseSlide.getHyperlinkQueries, and TextFrame.getHyperlinkQueries. Each scope supports the same queries:

The following example creates hyperlink-audit-input.pptx with an external click link, a file mouse-over link, internal slide navigation, a text mouse-over link, and a macro action. It does not execute any of these actions. The same three queries work at every scope; the counts describe containers, not action totals. The text-frame scope excludes the enclosing shape’s own links.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };

function printQueryCounts(scope, queries) {
const clickCount = queries.getHyperlinkClicks().size();
const mouseOverCount = queries.getHyperlinkMouseOvers().size();
const anyCount = queries.getAnyHyperlinks().size();
console.log(scope + ": click=" + clickCount + ", mouse-over=" + mouseOverCount + ", any=" + anyCount);
}

const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation();
try {
    const slide = presentation.getSlides().get_Item(0);
    const destination = presentation.getSlides().addEmptySlide(slide.getLayoutSlide());
    const shape = slide.getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 20, 20, 400, 60);
    shape.getTextFrame().setText("Click the text to go to slide 2");
    shape.getHyperlinkManager().setExternalHyperlinkClick("https://example.com/");
    shape.getHyperlinkClick().setTooltip("Public website");
    shape.getHyperlinkManager().setExternalHyperlinkMouseOver("file:///C:/private/report.xlsx");

    const portionFormat = shape.getTextFrame().getParagraphs().get_Item(0).getPortions().get_Item(0).getPortionFormat();
    portionFormat.getHyperlinkManager().setInternalHyperlinkClick(destination);
    portionFormat.getHyperlinkManager().setExternalHyperlinkMouseOver("https://example.com/help");
    const macroButton = slide.getShapes().addAutoShape(aspose.slides.ShapeType.Rectangle, 20, 120, 200, 60);
    macroButton.getHyperlinkManager().setMacroHyperlinkClick("ReviewPresentation");

    printQueryCounts("Presentation", presentation.getHyperlinkQueries());
    printQueryCounts("Slide 1", slide.getHyperlinkQueries());
    printQueryCounts("Text frame", shape.getTextFrame().getHyperlinkQueries());
    presentation.save("hyperlink-audit-input.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

For this example, presentation and slide queries each report three click containers, two mouse-over containers, and three containers with either action. The text-frame query reports one container in each category.

Classify Actions and Destinations

Use Hyperlink.getActionType to interpret an action before interpreting its destination. The HyperlinkActionType values cover more than web navigation:

Values Meaning for an audit
Hyperlink External hyperlink; inspect the URL and its scheme.
JumpSpecificSlide Internal navigation to a particular slide.
JumpFirstSlide, JumpPreviousSlide, JumpNextSlide, JumpLastSlide, JumpLastViewedSlide Built-in slideshow navigation, resolved in slideshow context.
JumpEndShow, StartCustomSlideShow End the current show or start a custom show.
StartMacro Execute a macro.
StartProgram Launch a program.
OpenFile, OpenPresentation Open a file or another presentation; review separately from web URLs.
StartStopMedia Start or stop media playback.
NoAction, Unknown No navigation action, or an unrecognized action requiring review.

Read external destinations from getExternalUrl and specific internal destinations from getTargetSlide. Internal actions and built-in commands may have no external URL; an empty URL does not mean that the container has no action. Preserve the value returned by getExternalUrlOriginal when it differs from the normalized URL, and include the tooltip returned by getTooltip when available.

The following JavaScript example reads an existing presentation (use the file created above), writes hyperlink-audit.json, applies a policy, saves hyperlink-sanitized.pptx, and reopens it to check both activation types again. It collects containers before changing them and uses reference equality to avoid processing the same container twice. Presentation queries cover ordinary slides; for a package-wide inventory, it also explicitly queries masters, layouts, notes, and the notes and handout masters when present.

The report records a one-based slide index and getSlideId where available. getSlide supplies the owning slide for supported containers. Masters, layouts, and notes have no ordinary slide index and are identified by their scope. Shape containers and text-portion formatting containers are labeled separately; other container types retain their runtime type name. Each container gets a report-local ID so its two actions can be correlated. The report stores action types as the integer constants defined by the HyperlinkActionType enumeration.

This deliberately restrictive application policy allows only absolute HTTPS URLs and valid internal slide targets. It rejects macros, programs, file actions, other slideshow actions, unknown actions, and other URL schemes. These rejections are policy decisions, not an Aspose.Slides safety verdict. HTTPS alone does not establish trust: add host allowlists and other checks for your application. Both original and normalized external URLs are checked. The example audits metadata without following links or running actions.

For remediation, the container’s getHyperlinkManager supports setExternalHyperlinkClick, removeHyperlinkClick, and removeHyperlinkMouseOver. Here, prohibited external click links are replaced with a fixed HTTPS landing page; other prohibited clicks and prohibited mouse-over actions are removed independently. Set replaceExternalClicks to false to remove all policy violations instead. Choose an application-owned replacement page before deployment.

The report’s export flag uses a conservative PDF review policy: flag mouse-over actions and anything other than an external link or specific slide jump as potentially unsupported. It is a review hint, not a capability test or a guarantee that unflagged links will survive export. Supported PDF and HTML exports may preserve hyperlinks, depending on the action, export options, and viewer. Raster images and video cannot preserve interactive hyperlinks; flag every action when auditing for those outputs.

const aspose = { slides: require("aspose.slides.via.java") };
const java = require("java");
const fs = require("fs");

function slideIndex(presentation, slide) {
    if (slide == null) return null;
    for (let index = 0; index < presentation.getSlides().size(); index++) {
        if (presentation.getSlides().get_Item(index).equals(slide)) return index + 1;
    }
    return null;
}

function isHttps(value) {
    if (value == null || value.length === 0) return false;
    try {
        const uri = java.newInstanceSync("java.net.URI", value);
        const scheme = uri.getScheme();
        return uri.isAbsolute() && scheme != null && scheme.toLowerCase() === "https" && uri.getHost() != null;
    } catch (exception) {
        return false;
    }
}

function policyViolation(link) {
    if (link == null) return null;
    if (link.getActionType() === aspose.slides.HyperlinkActionType.JumpSpecificSlide) {
        return link.getTargetSlide() == null ? "Missing target slide" : null;
    }
    if (link.getActionType() !== aspose.slides.HyperlinkActionType.Hyperlink) return "Action is not allowed";
    if (!isHttps(link.getExternalUrl())) return "Normalized URL is not absolute HTTPS";
    const original = link.getExternalUrlOriginal();
    if (original != null && original.length > 0 && !isHttps(original)) return "Original URL is not absolute HTTPS";
    return null;
}

function collectContainers(presentation) {
    const found = [];
    function addQueries(queries) {
        const containers = queries.getAnyHyperlinks();
        for (let index = 0; index < containers.size(); index++) {
            found.push(containers.get_Item(index));
        }
    }
    function addScope(slide) {
        if (slide != null) addQueries(slide.getHyperlinkQueries());
    }
    addQueries(presentation.getHyperlinkQueries());
    for (let index = 0; index < presentation.getMasters().size(); index++) {
        addScope(presentation.getMasters().get_Item(index));
    }
    for (let index = 0; index < presentation.getLayoutSlides().size(); index++) {
        addScope(presentation.getLayoutSlides().get_Item(index));
    }
    for (let index = 0; index < presentation.getSlides().size(); index++) {
        addScope(presentation.getSlides().get_Item(index).getNotesSlideManager().getNotesSlide());
    }
    addScope(presentation.getMasterNotesSlideManager().getMasterNotesSlide());
    addScope(presentation.getMasterHandoutSlideManager().getMasterHandoutSlide());
    const seen = java.newInstanceSync("java.util.IdentityHashMap");
    const unique = [];
    for (const container of found) {
        if (!seen.containsKey(container)) {
            seen.put(container, true);
            unique.push(container);
        }
    }
    return unique;
}

function addRow(rows, presentation, link, activation, container, containerId) {
    if (link == null) return;
    const ownerSlide = java.instanceOf(container, "com.aspose.slides.ISlideComponent") ? container.getSlide() : null;
    const targetSlide = link.getTargetSlide();
    const violation = policyViolation(link);
    const ownerType = java.instanceOf(container, "com.aspose.slides.IShape") ? "Shape" : java.instanceOf(container, "com.aspose.slides.IPortionFormat") ? "Text portion" : container.getClass().getSimpleName();
    const ordinaryAction = link.getActionType() === aspose.slides.HyperlinkActionType.Hyperlink || link.getActionType() === aspose.slides.HyperlinkActionType.JumpSpecificSlide;
    rows.push({
        ContainerId: containerId,
        SlideIndex: slideIndex(presentation, ownerSlide),
        SlideId: ownerSlide == null ? null : ownerSlide.getSlideId(),
        Scope: ownerSlide == null ? null : ownerSlide.getClass().getSimpleName(),
        OwnerType: ownerType,
        Activation: activation,
        ActionType: link.getActionType(),
        ExternalUrl: link.getExternalUrl(),
        TargetSlideIndex: slideIndex(presentation, targetSlide),
        TargetSlideId: targetSlide == null ? null : targetSlide.getSlideId(),
        Tooltip: link.getTooltip(),
        OriginalExternalUrl: link.getExternalUrlOriginal() === link.getExternalUrl() ? null : link.getExternalUrlOriginal(),
        PotentiallyUnsafe: violation != null,
        PolicyViolation: violation,
        TargetExport: "PDF",
        PotentiallyUnsupportedByExport: activation === "mouse-over" || !ordinaryAction
    });
}

const replaceExternalClicks = true;
const replacementUrl = "https://example.com/blocked-link";
const presentation = new aspose.slides.Presentation("hyperlink-audit-input.pptx");
try {
    const containers = collectContainers(presentation);
    const rows = [];
    for (let index = 0; index < containers.length; index++) {
        const container = containers[index];
        addRow(rows, presentation, container.getHyperlinkClick(), "click", container, index + 1);
        addRow(rows, presentation, container.getHyperlinkMouseOver(), "mouse-over", container, index + 1);
    }
    const json = JSON.stringify(rows, null, 2);
    fs.writeFileSync("hyperlink-audit.json", json, "utf8");

    for (const container of containers) {
        const click = container.getHyperlinkClick();
        if (policyViolation(click) != null) {
            if (replaceExternalClicks && click.getActionType() === aspose.slides.HyperlinkActionType.Hyperlink) {
                container.getHyperlinkManager().setExternalHyperlinkClick(replacementUrl);
            } else {
                container.getHyperlinkManager().removeHyperlinkClick();
            }
        }
        if (policyViolation(container.getHyperlinkMouseOver()) != null) {
            container.getHyperlinkManager().removeHyperlinkMouseOver();
        }
    }
    presentation.save("hyperlink-sanitized.pptx", aspose.slides.SaveFormat.Pptx);

    const reopened = new aspose.slides.Presentation("hyperlink-sanitized.pptx");
    try {
        const remainingContainers = collectContainers(reopened);
        let violations = 0;
        for (const container of remainingContainers) {
            if (policyViolation(container.getHyperlinkClick()) != null) violations++;
            if (policyViolation(container.getHyperlinkMouseOver()) != null) violations++;
        }
        console.log("Audit rows: " + rows.length + "; prohibited actions after reopening: " + violations);
        if (violations !== 0) {
            console.log("Verification failed: do not distribute the saved presentation.");
        }
    } finally {
        reopened.dispose();
    }
} finally {
    presentation.dispose();
}

With the input created above, the report contains five action rows. The file mouse-over link and macro click are removed, while the HTTPS links and internal slide navigation remain. The verification prints zero prohibited actions. An input containing a prohibited external click URL also exercises the replacement branch. A container with an allowed click and a prohibited mouse-over keeps its click action.

This selective cleanup differs from removeAllHyperlinks, which removes both activation types throughout the selected scope regardless of policy. Verification here checks hyperlink actions only; it does not remove embedded VBA projects, OLE objects, or other active content, and it does not validate an exported PDF or HTML file.

FAQ

How can I link to a section or its first slide?

Sections in PowerPoint group slides, but an internal hyperlink targets an individual slide. To create navigation to a section, link to the first slide in that section.

Can I attach a hyperlink to master slide elements so it works on all slides?

Yes. Master slide and layout elements support hyperlinks. Links on these elements are available during the slide show on slides that use the corresponding master or layout.

Will hyperlinks be preserved when exporting to PDF, HTML, images, or video?

Supported PDF and HTML exports may preserve hyperlinks; raster images and video cannot. See the export considerations in Report, Sanitize, and Verify Hyperlinks.

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