Frequently Asked Questions about the Transforming Oxford's Digital Communications
Transforming Oxford's Digital Communications
How are the needs of divisions, departments and colleges being fed into the programme?
A Project Board with representation from all divisions, colleges, GLAM and the UAS is providing oversight for the programme, and its members are responsible for ensuring it meets the needs of all parts of the University. We will also be feeding feedback and insights into our work - both through the pilots, and wider engagement activities.
Who is making decisions about the programme?
The Project Board, chaired by Social Sciences Divisional Registrar David White, reports to the Engagement and Dissemination Portfolio, Chaired by GLAM Director Richard Ovenden, which has overall responsibility for this area of work.
How will decisions be made about whether content should be on an intranet or a website?
Our content strategy informs these decisions. Guidance is available on the migration webpages for both for the migration of existing content, as well as the creation of new content.
What relationship if any is there between the new intranet and the external facing main University website?
The University website on Oxweb will be for external content only. Where more detailed content is available for staff and students, links will be provided through to OxIntranet. There will also be small staff and student gateways on Oxweb that link through to further information on OxIntranet.
Are there accessibility tools built into the new platforms?
Yes, accessibility is a core commitment of the Programme, and all platforms will be built to the highest accessibility standards to support our users and meet compliance needs. Fresco will benefit from Sally AI checker, while OxIntranet will leverage SharePoint’s built-in accessibility checker. Oxweb, like all our platforms, already follows these highest standards, ensuring accessibility remains central to our approach.
What will be happening with OxTalks and its replacement?
Oxford Events will be launching in the coming months as the replacement of OxTalks. Powered by the University’s new CRM platform, the updated events listing site, with curated calendars and streamlined event submission form, will be based on the latest and best practice technology. As well as the enhanced user experience, Oxford Events provides a new opportunity for users who had opted out of OxTalks to re-engage with the resource. Find out more at https://staff.admin.ox.ac.uk/oxford-events.
OxIntranet questions
Why do we need a new intranet when we already have SharePoint?
OxIntranet will be an area of the University’s existing SharePoint platform. SharePoint has a wide range of uses - from workflow management to document storage to communications and collaboration. OxIntranet will bring the intranet parts of the platform together, making it easier for staff and students to find internal information all in one place, and improving digital experience for users. There won’t be any changes to the non-intranet parts of SharePoint, so the University will continue to benefit from its functionality as well as having a compelling intranet on the platform.
Why are we focusing on intranets? Should we not be exploring AI tools instead?
AI and other tools such as enterprise social networks are very important for our internal communications. However, before we can make use of these tools, we need to get the basics right, which is why we are focusing on data, intranets and email in the first instance. We plan to explore additional tools once the intranet is rolled out.
How do programmes that sit outside of "Departments and Colleges" fit within OxIntranet?
This is something the project team is currently exploring. If you have an example of a cross-departmental project that you would like included on OxIntranet, please contact us to discuss it.
Currently people find my pages on google, how will users find content when we move to a locked down intranet?
At present, there is a wide range of internal content that is available on the open web. This is bad practice from an information security perspective, and makes it difficult for internal and external users to find the specific information they need. Moving all internal content to a single intranet will make it easier for internal and external users to find content that is relevant to them.
We are working to enhance SharePoint search to make searching a positive experience on the intranet, and this will be greatly helped by having all internal content in a well-managed and governed intranet. We are planning on having small staff and student gateways on the main University website, to direct staff and students to the content they need on OxIntranet. However, staff and students will not be able to use Google as a starting point as they have previously.
We aware that this is a change for many people, but we are working to ensure the transition is as smooth as possible, and that it makes content easier to find rather than more difficult.
Can any content on OxIntranet be made available to external audiences?
OxIntranet is only for staff and students with Single Sign-On credentials, and information will need to be published on the web if it is for external audiences.
If individuals need to access internal content, they will need to apply for a Virtual University Card, which will give them access to the intranet.
Will there be rules about who can request an OxIntranet site, and training to set up and maintain it?
There will be a new site approvals process for requesting OxIntranet sites, which will be reviewed by a new Websites and Intranets Steering Group. In terms of training, there will be self-help resources available for departments and colleges looking to build their sites once approved.
I am about to undertake a new intranet project. What should I do?
We expect OxIntranet to be available from Michaelmas term 2025, at which point we hope to be able to invite different parts of the University to use it.
If you feel you can wait until Michaelmas term to build your intranet, please get in touch with your Divisional Communications Lead who can facilitate a conversation with the OxIntranet team about when you may be able to gain access. If you cannot wait until Michaelmas term 2025, we recommend building your intranet on SharePoint Online on a single site (not a Hub), and minimising bespoke workflows and functionality. This will make it simpler to migrate to OxIntranet in the future. Due to budgetary constraints, the level of support for local (rather than University-wide) content will be limited to self-help guides and resources during the 2025/26 academic year.
I have just carried out a migration to a new intranet, what shall I do?
We realise that new intranets are created on a rolling basis, and expect this includes those that have been very recently launched. We expect it to be relatively straightforward to move existing SharePoint intranets to OxIntranet, and we would be happy to talk to you about how and when this might take place.
If you have an intranet on a third-party platform, there is no action required at this stage. There is not a requirement to move at the current time - although over time there will be an expectation that intranets are built on OxIntranet.
My content is moving to the Intranet, can I redirect users to the correct page on the new Intranet?
We will be making use of a redirect tool called Akemai to redirect users from old Mosaic sites to OxIntranet. It may be possible to give redirects to specific pages, depending on how the current Mosaic site is set up.
When will we have a trial version of the new intranet so that we can understand the possible page layouts, image support and maximum levels of pages?
OxIntranet is expected to begin roll-out in early Michaelmas term, at which point it will be possible to see it live. There will be opportunities ahead of launch to find out more too. Details will follow closer to the time.
Do we plan to address issues with mailing lists and e-newsletter distribution?
Yes. We expect that our work enhancing staff data will help address shortfalls in this area. We will also be looking at e-newsletter functionality as part of our longer-term roadmap.
I would like to know more about how the News pages are going to work on OxIntranet.
There will be a dedicated 'News and events' area of OxIntranet, which will display News which is relevant to all staff and students. In addition,
- Each unit that has been onboarded onto OxIntranet will have their own local news site, for news relevant to their own staff and students.
- It will be possible to tag local news to appear on a 'News from across the University' area of the news
- Staff and students will be able to 'subscribe' to news which they interested in
It will be possible to add news links to existing news stories on other parts of OxIntranet This should reduce the need to re-key internal news in multiple places.
Will it be possible to integrate any OxIntranet data (e.g. relating to profiles) into Fresco sites?
At launch, profile information on Fresco will be published on the platform, while OxIntranet data will be derived from internal systems. As such there will not be a connection between the two. However, we are exploring integrations such as via Sympletic and other University systems, so this may change in the longer term. More details will follow as this work progresses.
How will people data work to identify and target audiences?
As units are onboarded onto OxIntranet, we will work with the University's new Identity Service to integrate people data with the platform via a service called Entra ID. This means that SharePoint will have a record of a user's status, and which part of the University they are in. This will allow content to be targeted as appropriate.
Users will also be able to 'subscribe' to news that is of interest to them.
Please bear in mind that not all functionality will be available at launch, but it is something we will develop over time.
Is there a site size limit?
25 TB is the limit for a site collection. Document uoload size max is 250GB.
Fresco web CMS questions
I hear Mosaic is going out of support in 2026. What does this mean and is my current website secure to use until then?
End of life support means the software or system will no longer receive updates, including security patches, from the third party supplier. In the mean time, your Mosaic site will continue to be operational and secure.
Will all Oxford websites need to move to Fresco, the new Content Management System (CMS)?
The strategic ambition is for Fresco to be the web platform used across the collegiate University, so as to achieve a coherent user experience and drive down costs of web expenditure. As a result, the aim is, over time, for all parts of the University to move to Fresco, the new CMS. The initial focus (during 25/26) is on the sites that are currently on Mosaic (due to the end-of-life deadline to move off Mosaic) but all parts of the University will be encouraged to join over time - from 26/27 onwards - including for new sites (see the question in relation to the timelines for the availability of new sites).
I manage a website on a platform besides Mosaic (eg. Haiku) - should I move to Fresco?
Once Fresco is available, University units that are using other CMSs will be able to request Fresco sites. The strategic ambition is for Fresco to be the web platform used across the collegiate University so as to achieve a coherent user experience and drive down costs of web expenditure. As a result, the aim is that over time, all parts of the University to move to Fresco, the new CMS. However, the initial focus (during 25/26) is on the sites that are currently on Mosaic, due to the end-of-life deadline to move off Mosaic, and so sites on other platforms are not mandated to migrate at this stage. Once this initial goal has been achieved, we hope to be able to support the migration of sites from other platforms.
Will departments and colleges all be required to move to Fresco in the long term? Or is it optional?
Migrating sites from Mosaic is the current priority. If a unit is seeking a new CMS (for example, because their current platform is reaching end of life), Fresco will be the recommended option and requests for new sites on Mosaic will be required to demonstrate that Fresco cannot meet their needs. However, we recognise Fresco may not yet meet every requirement within the timescales some units need, so it will not be mandatory at this stage.
If I manage a standalone website, will I be required to migrate, and where to?
If departments have sites on Mosaic currently, unless there is a reason why the sites should not be stand-alone, we expect to migrate those sites to Fresco on a site-for-site basis. These sites will adopt the departmental design provided in Fresco, including colour options and recommended information architecture so that there is a coherent user experience for end users of the University's websites. Please note that in the UAS, we are looking to integrate content to OxIntranet and Oxweb, with a smaller number of standalone sites.
Which version of the Drupal is Fresco going to run on?
Fresco is currently built on Drupal 10 with a plan to upgrade to Drupal 11 in 2026.
Is it possible to know what functionality will NOT be available on Fresco? We have researchers continuing to make new pages, but if image carousels (for example) won’t be supported on Fresco, we’d like to know now.
The Fresco roadmap is constantly evolving and new components are being added all the time. There are a few components not being migrated to Fresco - some are being consolidated into another component in Fresco or have a suggested alternative, others will have no alternative in Fresco. Guidance will be provided on the migration team webpage once published.
We are concerned about the changing web address and the associated issue of having to re-design and re-print physical material. This will create further workload and will have a financial impact on our outreach event. Can the re-direct be in place longer? Or is there a way to keep our web address?
There will be some scope for exceptions to the redirect policy. Details are yet in discussion, but these exceptions could possibly be permanent for a limited number of sites. This will apply to those sites with printed materials or widely publicised addresses that have existed in publications for many years. Please note that departments, divisions and GLAM sites have a custom domain name so are unaffected by the redirect policy).
Will there be training and support for setting up Fresco when it is ready ?
Yes. The migration team have a toolkit website in development and the Fresco team have support documentation and how-to videos. Online training sessions will also be available to support content owners migrating, and a new Teams community channel will be created for content editors on Fresco.
If you are a new content editor, we are developing the training to guide you through the end to end process.
When will Fresco be available for new sites?
If you need to build a new site, the recommendation is that colleagues wait until Fresco is available where possible. The platform isn’t open to new site requests yet, but there will be communications about this in the coming weeks. It is anticipated that new sites (not including those being migrated from Mosaic) will be able to make use of Fresco from MT25 onwards, and we will share a specific date once confirmed.
What advice can you give to teams wanting a new website - build in Mosaic now, or wait for Fresco?
Where possible, we encourage you to wait for Fresco rather than starting in Mosaic, because all Mosaic sites will eventually need to migrate to Fresco anyway. Waiting to build directly in Fresco will help avoid duplicating effort or learning two different platforms. However, this approach may not suit everyone. If your project is time-sensitive, with content needing to go live soon, Mosaic may still be the more practical choice in the short term. Additionally, since Fresco’s functionality will be continually evolving (in line with the roadmap), the availability of certain features could also influence your launch timeline.
Would there be training for the staff who are expected to make changes or set up new sites on Fresco?
Yes - details of the plans for content editor training will be published in due course. There will be a mix of documentation, classroom sessions and short topic based videos.
Will there be support specifically provided to help design new sites, from an agency or internally? Where sites do need to have a more customised design/layout, we will need support to align this all with our brand guidelines.
Although the current priority for the programme is migrating existing sites, please do contact our Web Experience Manager if you'd like to discuss how best to approach design on your new site.
Migration questions
When do I need to migrate my site?
The University's current web platform, Mosaic, will be end-of-life in October 2026 meaning that all content needs to be migrated off Mosaic before that deadline. Micro site owners are being contacted now to begin the process of tranche allocation, followed soon by small sites with simple functionality. Planning for larger sites is underway, with their migration slots to be shared later in Michaelmas term 2025.
What do I need to do before my migration window?
Before your site is migrated, you should prepare your website for migration by following the Pre-Migration Checklist published by the Migration Project. This guide includes essential and recommended actions to help make your migration run as smoothly as possible.
What is the auto-migration tool?
Migration will use an automation tool that will copy content (text, images, attachment files etc) across from Mosaic sites to new Fresco sites. The tool will significantly speed up the time required to migrate sites from Mosaic to Fresco and will remove the need for time-consuming manual migration.
The tool will rebuild the website into a format that is as close to possible as the Mosaic site in alignment with the feature set of Fresco (which is not identical to that of Mosaic).
The auto-migration process will be managed by the programme before sites are handed over to site owners for reviewing, editing, and finalising prior to go live. Note that Fresco sites will be expected to use the Fresco design system in relation to choice colour, recommended information architecture etc. so that there is a coherent user experience for end users of the University's websites. Advice and guidance will be provided to support you with moving to this new design system after the auto-migration process has taken place.
Will there be a time period where the new website can be modified to ensure it is suitable for use prior to the Mosaic site becoming obsolete?
Once the auto-migration of your website content from Mosaic to Fresco has completed, you will need to review and update your new Fresco website before making it public in place of your Mosaic site. We will encourage you to complete the review as quickly as you can to avoid having to maintain two websites in parallel and ensure your migration is complete well before the Mosaic platform becomes unavailable. Once the new site is published on Fresco, the old Mosaic site will be removed from public view.
What support is available for migration?
The programme is taking an auto-migration approach so that the lion's share of the migration work is completed automatically. Site owners will then be expected to review, update, and finalise context. In addition, the programme will provide a migration toolkit containing advice and guidance for the migration. Plus, there will be some limited support available from a migration support team where needed. A different approach is being taken within the UAS, where content is migrating to OxIntranet and Oxweb. Specific support arrangements will be communicated to UAS teams.
Is direct support from the migration team only offered to sites currently on Mosaic?
Due to Mosaic reaching end-of-life, the migration team are currently only supporting sites migrating off Mosaic over to Fresco. The Fresco team will be able to support new sites being built on Fresco.
Will there be training and support for setting up Fresco when it is ready ?
Yes. The migration team have a toolkit website in development and the Fresco team have support documentation and how-to videos. Online training sessions will also be available to support content owners migrating, and a new Teams community channel will be created for content editors on Fresco.
If you are a new content editor, we are developing the training to guide you through the end to end process.
We have physical items (banners, signs, posters) that includes the web address. Is it possible to increase the time the web address will redirect to the new fresco site? We will need to redesign and reprint items.
There will be some scope for exceptions to the redirect policy - details are currently in discussion, but these could possibly permanent for a limited number of sites. This will apply to those sites with printed materials or widely publicised addresses that have existed in publications for many years. Please note that note that departments, divisions and GLAM sites have a custom domain name so are unaffected by the redirect policy.
If my current website is data heavy and outdated, is it possible to build a new one straight into Fresco without a transition from Mosaic (even if this takes longer)?
We still need to migrate your existing website to Fresco. Once migrated you can chose to republish the original migrated content or to build up a new site on Fresco.
Will my website address stay the same?
This depends on whether you are using the default Mosaic platform address structure, e.g. <sitename>.web.ox.ac.uk or whether you have requested a custom domain e.g. <sitename>.ox.ac.uk or <sitename>.org.uk.
If you have a Mosaic website that is only using the default Mosaic platform supplied address structure then your website will be given a new address on Fresco of <sitename>.site.ox.ac.uk. After you publish your new website on Fresco there will be a temporary redirect from your <sitename>.web.ox.ac.uk to your new <sitename>.site.ox.ac.uk address. After this period, users navigating to your old Mosaic address will see a page not found error. We will ensure that search engines are notified that a site has been moved so users are able to find the website through search engines.
If your website uses a custom domain, this will be maintained when the website is migrated to Fresco. The custom domain name will need to be added to the site settings of the migrated website and the Fresco team will update the routing to point to the new site when it is ready to go-live.
I cannot remember how to scan our website for total pages. Could you remind me how to do it please?
You can view website statistics via the link on Site Details page. Follow this link to find out how to do that.
If my website is not being migrated onto Fresco, is there anything I need to do to decommission the website. How long will I have?
The Migration Project has a record of sites which Site Owners have told us do not need to be migrated. We will be reaching out to contacts for those sites to confirm that decision. If you are not sure if you have told us, please feel free to contact mosaicmigrationsupport@it.ox.ac.uk. Unless you request otherwise, the website will remain live until the Mosaic platform is decommissioned around October 2026. If you would like your website to be unpublished before then, please complete this form to request site deactivation: https://oxfordmosaic.web.ox.ac.uk/contact#tab-2640091
How can I reduce the storage size of my website to make it more environmentally sustainable?
Reduce the resolution of images which are likely too big. People profile pictures can be in the range of 30-100KB, aim for 50-60KB and still appear high resolution. Images of around 2MB, are up to 10-40 times larger than they need to be, ideally they should be around 50-100KB for large full width images. As an example: the main image on this page https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/may/28/v-and-a-east-storeh... is only 53KB. You can see that it is still a high quality image but is in the AVIF format not older formats like JPG or PNG.
Convert images to newer web friendly formats like webp and AVIF that reduce file size and keep resolution. A 2.1MB PNG file can be converted to an AVIF file as an 86KB file of the same dimensions. There are online image file format conversion websites.
Delete images uploaded to the site that are no longer needed, they count towards your storage even if not being used
Delete draft pages if no longer needed
Delete published pages if no longer needed
