Page Classification in Eulerian

Page Classification in Eulerian



Purpose of this document: Explain how Eulerian identifies, names, and classifies pages and URLs, and what the practical consequences are for your reports.


1. Fundamental principle: the path parameter

When an Eulerian tag is triggered on a page, the system must record an identifier for that page. This identifier is determined as follows:
path defined in the tag      →  uses the value of path
path NOT defined             →  uses the page URI (URL without the domain)

In summary: path is the page name as it will be recorded in Eulerian. If path is not provided, the URI takes on this role.


2. How to customize a page name

A page name can be defined in two places:
Method
Where?
Example
Eulerian collector tag
Directly in the tag code on the page
ea.path = "/my-custom-page"
Live Tagging
Eulerian interface, without changing code
On-the-fly configuration in the tool
Both methods have the same effect: they define the path value that will be recorded.


3. The relationship between path and url

Key rules

The URL remains an attribute of the page: it is not the primary key. The path — or the default URI — is the main key recorded in Eulerian systems.
This implies the following rules:
Rule
Description
One-to-one relationship path → url
A path can have only one URL associated with it at a time
Stable URL change
If the URL changes permanently, the new URL will be associated with the existing path
One path, one URL
At any given time, a path is linked to one and only one URL
One URL, multiple possible paths
In cases of strong client-side customization, the same URL may be associated with several different paths

Relationship diagram

path  (primary key)
  └── url  (attribute, only 1 at a time)



4. What happens depending on the type of change

Case 1 — The path changes, meaning the page is renamed

The page name is modified in the collector tag or via Live Tagging.
Result: Eulerian creates a new page with the new name. The old page and the new page are two separate entries in the system.
Before: path = "/home"      → URL = https://site.com/home
After:  path = "/home-v2"   → URL = https://site.com/home  (same URL)

→ Two pages are created: "/home" and "/home-v2"

[!WARNING]Warning: changing the path does not rename the existing page; it creates a new one.


Case 2 — The URL changes, for example by adding parameters

The page URL changes in a way that is stable over time — new parameter, URL restructuring, and so on.
Result: The new URL is associated with the existing path. This change is retroactive and will be visible in the page history in reports.
Before: path = "/product-page"  → URL = https://site.com/product?id=42
After:  path = "/product-page"  → URL = https://site.com/product/shoes

→ A single page, "/product-page", with the new URL now associated with it
→ The old URL no longer appears in reports

[!NOTE]Note: if the URL change is not stable, for example fluctuating dynamic parameters, the behavior may be inconsistent. In this case, it is recommended to define a fixed path.


5. Impact on the page traffic report

The main report affected is the Page Traffic Report. It provides two segmentations:

“By page” segmentation

Displays statistics aggregated by page name (path), regardless of the URL.
Page "/product-page"   →  2,340 visits
Page "/home"           →  8,120 visits


“By URL” segmentation

Displays the URLs associated with pages, but only the most recent URL linked to each path.
[!WARNING]Older URLs are not displayed, even if they generated historical traffic.

Summary table

Segmentation
Display key
URL displayed
Full history?
By page
path
Most recent URL
Check Mark Button Yes
By URL
Most recent URL
Current URL only
Warning No


6. Summary table

Situation
Eulerian behavior
Tag triggered without path
The URI is used as the page identifier
Tag triggered with path
The path value is used as the identifier
path modified, stable change
A new page is created, while the old one remains unchanged
URL modified, stable change
New URL associated with the existing path, visible historically
URL modified, unstable/dynamic
Risk of inconsistency — recommended to define a fixed path
One URL, multiple paths
Possible in cases of strong client-side customization


7. Best practices

  • Check Mark Button Always define an explicit path for important pages, so you do not depend on the URI.
  • Check Mark Button Use stable paths — avoid dynamic or temporary identifiers.
  • Check Mark Button Anticipate URL changes: if a URL is likely to change, make sure the path remains constant to preserve data continuity.
  • Warning Do not rename a path lightly: this creates a new page and breaks historical continuity.
  • Warning In Live Tagging, document path changes to avoid unintended duplicates.

Renaming the pages of your site

There is also a feature available in the Eulerian tool called “Rename the pages of your site”.
This feature makes it possible to retrieve the historical statistics of an old page and associate them with a new page. It therefore allows a page to be fully renamed without losing its historical statistical data.
It is especially useful when a page changes URL, name, or position in the site tree, while preserving continuity in the analyses and performance data associated with that page.