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Understanding Project in BarrierBreak A11yNow

In BarrierBreak A11yNow, a project is the foundation of all accessibility activity.
Every accessibility scan, identified issue, compliance report, and progress metric exists within a project.

A project acts as a central workspace where accessibility testing is planned, executed, and monitored over time. It enables teams to move beyond one-time audits and establish continuous accessibility validation across digital products.

Creating a project is required before any accessibility scan can be performed in A11yNow.

What Is a Project in BarrierBreak A11yNow​

A project represents a defined accessibility scope for a website or application. It brings together configuration, scanning, and tracking in one place, ensuring accessibility efforts remain structured and measurable.

A project defines:​

  • Testing scope
    Selected pages, sections, or URLs that are included in accessibility testing.

  • Accessibility checks
    Automated and validated checks that identify accessibility issues and provide clear recommendations for remediation.

  • Compliance alignment
    Use of global accessibility standards to consistently identify, classify, and report issues.

  • Progress visibility
    Historical scan data, issue trends, and remediation progress tracked across time.

Each project becomes a living record of accessibility health, supporting long-term improvement and governance.

Why Creating a Project Is Important​

Creating a project is a mandatory step in BarrierBreak A11yNow.

A project is required to:

  • Run any accessibility scan
  • Store and track identified issues
  • Apply accessibility standards consistently
  • Measure improvements across scans
  • Support collaboration between teams

Without a project, accessibility testing cannot be initiated or tracked.

Project Creation Methods​

BarrierBreak A11yNow supports two methods for creating a project, depending on testing needs and scope.

1 Website Crawling​

Website Crawling automatically discovers pages under a specified domain and builds the project based on the site structure.

Ideal for:

  • Complex websites
  • Applications with frequent content updates
  • Ongoing accessibility monitoring
  • Broader and more consistent coverage

Steps to create a project using Website Crawling

2️ Add URLs Manually​

This method allows specific page URLs to be added directly to a project.

Suitable for:

  • Targeted testing of specific pages
  • Smaller or static websites
  • Focused accessibility validation

Steps to create a project by adding URLs manually

Global Accessibility Standards​

BarrierBreak A11yNow supports global accessibility standards to ensure consistent evaluation and reporting.
Projects can be configured to test against:

  • WCAG 2.0, 2.1, and 2.2 (Level A and Level AA success criteria)
  • Section 508
  • EN 301 549

Enterprise customers can also define custom accessibility standards aligned with organizational or regulatory requirements.

Automated and Continuous Scanning​

Projects support automated scanning, enabling accessibility checks to continue as websites evolve.
Automated scanning helps teams:

  • Detect newly introduced accessibility issues
  • Maintain consistent accessibility coverage
  • Reduce manual testing effort
  • Track accessibility trends over time

This ensures accessibility is treated as an ongoing responsibility, not a one-time task.

Headers and footers often appear across many pages and can lead to duplicate issues if scanned repeatedly.
A11yNow automatically handles headers and footers to prevent duplicate issue reporting.

Key behaviour:​

  • Header and footer elements are scanned only once
  • Issues related to these elements appear as a single instance
  • The scan is based on the domain URL selected after crawling
  • Reports remain cleaner and easier to review

Header and footer elements are scanned only on the selected domain URL after crawling.
Selectors are used to identify these elements accurately.
Learn How to find selectors

Website Crawling Capabilities (Pro and Enterprise)​

A11yNow includes advanced crawling capabilities designed for modern websites.

These capabilities support:

  • Automated discovery of pages under a domain
  • Consistent coverage across site structures
  • Reduced manual setup
  • Scalable accessibility testing

Advanced crawling features are available for Pro and Enterprise plans.

Authentication Support (Pro and Enterprise)​

Many applications include pages behind login screens. A11yNow supports authenticated scanning for protected content.

Authentication support enables:

  • Testing of dashboards and internal tools
  • Accessibility validation of user journeys
  • Coverage of gated workflows

Authentication capabilities are available for Pro and Enterprise plans.
Learn more about authentication setup

Built with Accessibility at Its Core​

Project creation in BarrierBreak A11yNow follows accessibility best practices, including:

  • Keyboard-accessible navigation
  • Clear labels and instructions
  • Logical flow across configuration steps
  • Screen reader compatibility

Accessibility is embedded in both the platform and the process.