DocumentationExperience Cloud KCS

AEM Sites: Resolving hidden pages and duplicate nodes after move operations

Last update: October 2, 2026

In Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) Sites, a page move operation can result in a hidden original page and a duplicate node, preventing further updates or renaming. This issue occurs when a pending deletion remains in the repository after the move operation and can be resolved by restoring the original page and completing the required content restructuring.

Description description

Environment

  • Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) Sites (all versions)
  • Applies to on-premise and Adobe Managed Services (AMS) deployments. See Notes for Adobe Experience Manager as a Cloud Service (AEMaaCS).

Issue/Symptoms

When performing a move operation on a page in AEM Sites Author, the original page may become hidden in the Sites console, and a duplicate node with a similar name (such as page1) may appear. The original page still exists in the JCR and can be accessed through a direct URL, but it is not visible in the Sites console. Attempts to rename the duplicate node back to the original name fail because the original node still occupies that name in the repository. This issue blocks content restructuring and prevents publishing the corrected page structure.

  • The original page is not visible in the Sites console but is accessible through a direct URL.
  • A duplicate node (for example, page1) is present in the parent folder.
  • Rename operations for the duplicate node to the original name fail.

Cause

AEM’s move operation is implemented as a copy followed by a delete. If the user performing the move lacks replication privileges, the delete step results in a soft delete (pending deletion), hiding the original node in the UI but not removing it from the repository. This prevents renaming or recreating a node with the same name until the pending deletion is resolved.

Resolution resolution

Follow the steps below to resolve the issue:

For on-premise or Adobe Managed Services (AMS) deployments:

  1. Identify the affected page path.
  2. Use CRXDE Lite or a similar JCR browser to navigate to the affected page path.
  3. Select the jcr:content node of the hidden page.
  4. Check for the deleted property.
  5. Check for the deletedBy property.
  6. Delete the deleted property from the jcr:content node.
  7. Delete the deletedBy property from the jcr:content node.
  8. Save the changes.
  9. Refresh the AEM Sites console.
  10. Verify that the original page is visible.
  11. Proceed with content restructuring by deleting or renaming nodes as needed.

For Adobe Experience Manager as a Cloud Service (AEMaaCS):

  • Direct JCR editing is not supported. If you encounter this issue, contact Adobe Support for assistance.

Managing pages in AEM

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