Navigation Bars

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Navigation Bars (or "NavBars", for short) are the menu option panes that appear on the left side of the page in the classic SL1 user interface.

SL1 allows you to add new entries to the NavBar panes that appear on some pages. You can add new entries to the NavBar panes for the following top-level tabs:

  • System
  • Registry
  • Reports
  • Preferences

NOTE: Advanced users can associate a custom-written Java executable with a navigation bar entry. Contact ScienceLogic for information on creating a new navigation bar entry using a Java executable.

Viewing the Navigation Bar Editor Entries

You can view the list of all existing entries in each navigation bar for the tabs listed above in the Navigation Bar Editor page. The Navigation Bar Editor page contains two panes:

  • The Navigation Bar Editor, where you can create and edit custom Navigation Bar entries.
  • The Navigation Bar Registry, where you can view a list of all Navigation Bar entries, including the default entries defined by ScienceLogic.

NOTE: You cannot edit the NavBar entries that are included in SL1 by default.

This section will discuss the Navigation Bar Registry pane. To learn more about the Navigation Bar Editor page, see the section Editing a Navigation Bar Entry. To view the list of all existing navigation bar entries:

  • Go to the Navigation Bar Editor page (System > Customize > Navigation Bars).
  • The Navigation Bar Editor in the lower half of the page displays the entries for each tab. By default, the registry pane displays a list of entries that appear under the System tab. You can view the entries for other tabs by using the Interface Filter drop-down.
  • The Navigation Bar Registry pane displays the following about each entry:

  • Interface. The top-level tab in SL1 where the NavBar entry will appear. The choices are:
  • System
  • Registry
  • Reports
  • Preferences

  • Sub-Menu. Sub-heading within the navigation bar, under which the navigation bar entry will appear.
  • Name. Name of the navigation bar entry.
  • Access. Users who will be allowed to access the navigation bar entry, based on the type of user account. The choices are:
  • Administrators. Only users with account type "administrator" are allowed to access this navigation bar entry.
  • Users. Both users with account type "user" and users with account type "administrator" are allowed to access this navigation bar entry.
  • Pre-Order. Defines the sort order for the sub-menu.
  • Sub-Order. Sort order for the entries in each sub-menu. The lowest numbered entry appears first under the sub-menu; the highest numbered entry appears last in the sub-menu.
  • Edited By. Name of the user who last edited this entry.
  • Last Edited. Date and time entry was last edited.

Filtering the List of Entries in the Navigation Bar Registry

The Navigation Bar Editor page includes an Interface Filter option to view entries for only a specific tab: System, Registry, Reports, Preferences, or Knowledge.

To filter the list of entries in the Navigation Bar Registry:

  1. Go to the Navigation Bar Editor page (System > Customize > Navigation Bars).
  2. In the Navigation Bar Registry pane, select the Interface Filter field to filter the list of entries by a specific tab. The choices are:
  • System. Only NavBar entries that appear in the System tab will be displayed.
  • Registry. Only NavBar entries that appear in the Registry tab will be displayed.
  • Reports. Only NavBar entries that appear in the Reports tab will be displayed.
  • Preferences. Only NavBar entries that appear in the Preferences tab will be displayed.
  • Knowledge. Only Navigation Bar entries that appear in the Knowledge tab will be displayed.
  1. After selecting one of the filter options, the entries in the Navigation Bar Registry pane will be filtered to display entries from only the selected tab.

Creating a Navigation Bar Entry

A new navigation bar entry functions similarly to a custom Navigation Tab. You can create a custom navigation bar entry to link to an external website or page in SL1. You can create a custom navigation bar entry from the Navigation Bar Editor page.

To create a new navigation bar entry:

  1. Go to the Navigation Bar Editor page (System > Customize > Navigation Bars).
  2. In the Navigation Bar Editor page, select the Reset button to clear any fields in the Navigation Bar Editor pane.
  3. In the Editor pane, define values in the following fields:
  • Sub-Menu. Top-level category in the navigation bar under which the new entry will appear. This category is not a link itself, but instead is a heading under which to group links. For example, for the NavBar entry that leads to the current page, this value would be "Customize". You can specify an existing sub-menu or define a new sub-menu. This field can contain any combination of alphanumeric characters, with a maximum length of 32 characters.
  • Name. Name of the link as it will appear in the NavBar. This field can contain any combination of alphanumeric characters, with a maximum length of 32 characters.
  • Interface. The top-level tab in SL1 where the NavBar entry will appears. The choices are:
  • System
  • Registry
  • Reports
  • Preferences

  • Target. Specifies the HTML "target" for the new link. This field specifies how the URL will be displayed. The choices are:
  • Embedded. Includes a browser plug-in in the current window.
  • Popup. Opens the URL in a separate window, on top of the current page.
  • iframe. Opens the URL in a frame within the current page.
  • _self. Opens the URL in the currently active window (usually the frame to the right of the navigation bar).
  • _blank. Opens the URL in a new window.

  • URL/Link. The URL of the page that is displayed when a user selects the navigation bar item. This can be the URL of a page in SL1 or the URL of a page outside SL1. This field can contain any combination of alphanumeric characters, with a maximum length of 128 characters. Forward slash ( / ), underscore ( _ ), and question mark (?) are allowed.
  • Access. Users who will be allowed to access the NavBar entry, based on the type of user account. The choices are:
  • Administrators. Only users with account type "administrator" are allowed to access this navigation bar entry. 
  • Users. Both users with account type "user" and users with account type "administrator" are allowed to access this NavBar entry.

  • Parent Item. This field is not currently used.
  • Note/Comment. Any notes or comments about the entry.
  • Pre-Order. Sort order for the sub-menu. The lowest numbered sub-menu appears first in the navigation bar; the highest numbered sub-menu appears last in the navigation bar. If all sub-menus in a navigation bar have the same number, SL1 sorts the sub-menus alphabetically.

    • Note: When creating a new entry in a navigation bar entry and in an existing sub-menu, you must retain the pre-order already defined for the sub-menu.

  • Sub-Order. Sort order for the entries in each sub-menu. The lowest numbered entry appears first under the sub-menu; the highest numbered entry appears last in the sub-menu. If all entries in a sub-menu have the same number, SL1 sorts the entries alphabetically.
  • Access Key(s). The access key required to access the entry in the NavBar. Access Keys define the tabs and pages users have access to and the actions that a user may perform. These Access Keys are defined by the system administrator from the Access Keys page (System > Manage > Access Keys). To learn more about Access Keys, see the Access Permissions section.
  1. Select the Save button to save the new entry. To view the new entry, go to the page where the new entry resides and refresh the page. The new entry will appear in the NavBar.

Creating a New Navigation Bar Entry From an Existing Entry

You cannot edit a default NavBar entry. However, you can create a new navigation bar entry from an existing default entry. For example, if you wanted to create a new navigation bar in the "Customize" sub-menu, you could add an entry by selecting an existing NavBar and editing its information. To create a new NavBar entry from an existing entry:

  1. Go to the Navigation Bar Editor page (System > Customize > Navigation Bars).
  2. Use the Interface Filter field to find the existing entry you want to copy. In the Navigation Bar Registry pane (at the bottom of the page), find the entry you want to use as a template and select its grayed-out wrench icon ().
  3. The Editor pane at the top of the Navigation Bar Editor pane will be populated with the values from the selected entry. You can edit one or more of these fields. For a description of each field, see the section on Creating a Navigation Bar Entry.
  4. To save the new navigation bar entry, select the Save As button. The information for the original, existing NavBar entry you selected will not be overwritten.
  5. To view the new entry, go to the page where the new entry resides and refresh the page. The new entry will appear in the NavBar.

Editing a Navigation Bar Entry

In the Navigation Bar Editor page, you can edit a custom entry for a NavBar. You cannot edit a default entry for a navigation bar.

To edit a custom entry for a navigation bar:

  • Go to the Navigation Bar Editor page (System > Customize > Navigation Bars).
  • In the Navigation Bar Editor page, use the Interface Filter field to find the entry you want to edit.
  • In the Navigation Bar Registry pane, find the entry you want to edit. Select its wrench icon ().
  • The Navigation Bar Editor pane will be populated with values from the selected entry. You can edit any of the fields described in the section Creating a Navigation Bar Entry.
  • To save your edits, select the Save button.
  • To create a new NavBar entry without overwriting entry you selected, click the Save As button.

Deleting a Navigation Bar Entry

In the Navigation Bar Editor page, you can delete a custom entry from a NavBar. You cannot delete a default entry from a NavBar.

To delete a custom entry from a NavBar:

Use caution when deleting an entry from a NavBar. If you decide to delete an entry, be sure to note its field values, so you can restore the entry if necessary.

  • Go to the Navigation Bar Editor page (System > Customize > Navigation Bars).
  • In the Navigation Bar Editor page, use the Interface Filter field to find the entry you want to delete.
  • In the Navigation Bar Registry pane, find the entry you want to delete. Select its bomb icon ().
  • You will be prompted to confirm the NavBar entry. Select the OK button to delete the entry from the NavBar. Select the Cancel button to cancel the deletion and return to the Navigation Bar Editor page.