Cermify · Error Library · KDP

Navigation · E-LINK

Broken or malformed ebook link

A link inside your book points to a missing EPUB file or anchor, or an external URL is missing its protocol.

Severity
warning
Automatic repair
Supported
Submission impact
KDP: warning
Rule ID
E-LINK
Error: Broken or malformed ebook link
Category: Navigation
Severity: warning
Auto Repair: Supported
Rule ID: E-LINK
Affected: KDP=warning, Apple=warning, Google=warning, Kobo=warning
Check this automatically with Cermify

Why this happens

How platforms treat it

PlatformResult
KDPwarning
Apple Bookswarning
Google Playwarning
Kobowarning

How Cermify detects it

  1. Collect a[href] (and similar) from content documents.
  2. Classify internal vs external links.
  3. Resolve internal targets against package files and fragment ids.
  4. Flag external hrefs lacking a URI scheme (http/https/mailto).

Automatic repair

Cermify can prefix https:// on obvious www.* links and remove or retarget some internal links when a unique match exists. Marketing URLs should still be reviewed manually.

Manual fix

  1. From the report, open each broken href location.
  2. For internal links: fix path/fragment or remove the link.
  3. For external links: use a full URL with scheme, e.g. https://example.com.
  4. Test a sample of links in Kindle Previewer.

Examples

External links need a scheme; internal links must resolve.

Incorrect

<a href="www.example.com/buy">Buy</a>
<a href="chapters/gone.xhtml#x">See note</a>

Correct

<a href="https://www.example.com/buy">Buy</a>
<a href="chapters/notes.xhtml#note-1">See note</a>

FAQ

Will KDP reject the book for E-LINK?

Usually treated as a quality warning, not an automatic hard reject. Broken navigation still hurts readers—fix before publish.

Are footnote links included?

Yes. Any href that cannot be resolved is in scope, including notes and end-matter.

What about href="#" placeholders?

Empty or placeholder fragments are flagged. Point to a real id or remove the link.

Related errors

References