Edit a dashboard (new experience)

You are viewing documentation for the new dashboards experience.

Edit a dashboard

A dashboard is made up of:

• Sections to structure the layout.
• Widgets to display the data and content you need in the form of charts and grids.

Start by adding a section, then add widgets to that section.

Don't worry about making accidental changes that users see. Your changes aren't applied until you publish them.

Switch between viewing and editing

Dashboards have two modes:

• View lets you use the dashboard. You can interact with widgets, such as apply filters and focus on entities.
• Edit lets you change the dashboard layout and contents. You can add, move, resize, or remove sections and widgets.

Use the toolbar in the top-right corner to switch modes. The toolbar is blue in View mode and yellow in Edit mode.

If you create a new dashboard, it opens in Edit mode.

As soon as you make a change, the Discard and Publish buttons appear.

When you open an existing dashboard, it opens in View mode.

To edit the dashboard, click Viewing and select Edit.

When you finish editing, you can switch back to View mode.

Click Editing and select View.

If you have unpublished changes, a message appears. You must either publish or discard your changes before you can return to View mode.

Choose one of the following options:

• Publish: Save your changes and switch to View mode.
• Discard changes: Remove your changes and switch to View mode.
• Keep editing: Stay in Edit mode and continue working on the dashboard.

The following steps assume you're in edit mode.

Undo and redo changes

Use Undo () and Redo () while you're in edit mode.

• Undo reverses your last change. This option is only available during the current edit session.
• Redo reapplies a change you undid.

Manage sections

Sections control your dashboard layout. Each section holds one or more widgets.

When you create a new dashboard, it contains one section by default. If it's layout doesn't meet your needs, you can change it or remove it and add a new one with a different layout.

Add a section

Click Add section and choose a layout:

• Structured: Adds four widget placeholders on two rows to get you started.
• Custom: Adds a section without rows or widget placeholders. This option gives you the most flexibility.

The section is added to the dashboard. It has a yellow background in edit mode.

Adding a structured section to a dashboard

Duplicate a section

Click the section's menu button (top-right corner) and select Duplicate section, then choose where to add the copy:

• This tab: Adds the copy to the bottom of the current tab.
• An existing tab: Choose another tab in the dashboard to add the copy to.
• New tab: Creates a new tab and adds the copy to it.

Rename a section

Click the section name or the Edit button to make it editable, then enter a new name.

Press Enter or click away to save.

Change the layout

Hover over a section to display the layout buttons on the right and bottom of the section.

Depending on the current layout, you can:

• Add or remove columns. The section always fills the available width, so widgets automatically become wider or narrower.
• Add or remove rows.
• Increase or decrease the section height. Widgets automatically become taller or shorter.

Remove a row from a section

Rearrange a section

Click the section's Move button (top-left corner), then drag the section to the new location.

Remove a section

If you've just added a section, click Undo.

Otherwise, click the section's menu button (top-right corner) and select Delete section.

Manage widgets

A widget is a single item on a dashboard. It can display a chart or grid.

You build the widget's data using data from Flex Modes or Financial Statements.

Add a widget

There are two ways to add a widget, depending on the layout.

In the section, start adding a widget:

• Preset layout: Hover over the placeholder, then click Add widget.
• Custom layout: Click Add widget in the top-right corner.

After you click Add widget, the widget setup panel opens. Use this panel to select your data, choose how it is displayed, and configure the widget before adding it to the dashboard.

1. Select the application you want to use to get the data for the widget. This determines the tools available to analyze and display the data. You can choose between Flex Modes (Analytics) or Financial Statements.
2. Select the database that contains the widget's data.

   • By default, Phocas selects the first database in your site's database list.
   • Your selection is retained, so the same database is selected the next time you add a widget.
3. Use the grid to select the data that you want to display in your widget See the Dashboard widgets page for more information.
4. Configure the widget settings. See the Dashboard widgets page for more information.
5. Enter the widget name, and an optional description.
6. Click Add to dashboard.

Duplicate a widget

Duplicate a widget to quickly create similar widgets with different data or settings. For example, you might want several summary widgets, each one based on a different dimension or measure.

Hover over the widget and click Duplicate.

Edit a widget

1. Hover over the widget.
2. Choose how you want to edit:

• Rename: Click the widget name or the Edit button to make it editable, then enter a new name.

  Press Enter or click away to save.
• Configure (chart widgets only): Opens the chart configuration options. Update the settings, then click Save.
• Edit data (chart and grid widgets): Opens the widget setup panel. Update the underlying data and settings, then click Update widget.

Resize a widget

1. Hover over the widget.
2. Drag the resize handle in the bottom-right corner.

You can't resize widgets in equal width sections.

Delete a widget

1. Hover over the widget.
2. Click Delete.

The widget is deleted immediately.

Click Undo to restore it.

Manage tabs

Use tabs to organize a dashboard into separate views, so you can group related information together and move quickly between different views of your data. Each tab can contain its own sections and widgets. For example, you might have one tab for sales performance, another for inventory, and another for finance.

Tabs display in a bar at the bottom of the dashboard. Dashboard-level filters apply to all tabs, so you can use filters to focus the data across the whole dashboard.

A dashboard must have at least one tab, so you cannot delete the last remaining tab. When you duplicate a tab, the duplicate includes the same sections, widgets, and widget configurations as the original tab.

Each tab also has its own Shared filters setting (the globe icon in the dashboard toolbar), which is turned on by default when you add a new tab. See Share filters across tabs for more information.

Add a tab

1. Select the + button in the tab bar at the bottom of the dashboard.
2. Double-click the default tab name, enter a new name, then press Enter.
3. Add sections and widgets to the new tab.

Rename a tab

1. Select the Edit button (pencil icon) next to the tab name.
2. Enter a new name, then press Enter.

Reorder tabs

Drag the tab to its new position in the tab bar.

Duplicate a tab

Duplicate a tab when you want to create a similar view without starting from a blank tab. The duplicate includes the same sections, widgets, and widget configurations as the original tab.

1. Select the menu button (three dots) on the tab you want to duplicate, or right-click the tab.
2. Select Duplicate tab.
3. Rename the duplicate tab, if required.
4. Make your changes.

Delete a tab

Delete a tab when you no longer need it. Deleting a tab permanently removes the tab and all its sections and widgets. If you delete a tab by mistake, you can always undo the action.

1. Select the menu button (three dots) on the tab you want to delete, or right-click the tab.
2. Select Delete tab.

Edit the dashboard format

In the toolbar, click Format to open the Format panel where you can change the dashboard appearance, including the widget colors, dashboard theme (light or dark), and the logo displayed in full-screen view.

Dashboard format options

Widget theme

The widget theme controls the accent colors used in charts, indicators, and other visual elements within widgets.

Select the color theme used for widgets on the dashboard.

Dashboard theme

The dashboard theme affects the background color and general visual style of the dashboard. For example, the Light theme displays widgets on a light background.

Select the overall background theme for the dashboard.

Logo

Upload a logo to display when the dashboard is viewed in full-screen mode. This logo is useful when dashboards are shared on large displays, such as TVs or wallboards.

1. Click Upload new.
2. Select the image file you want to use.

Once uploaded, the logo is stored and can be reused on this dashboard.

Previously uploaded logos

View logos that have already been uploaded to the dashboard.

Select one of these logos if you want to reuse it instead of uploading a new file.

Add notes

Add notes to provide information or context for dashboard users. For example, you might:

• Explain how the dashboard is structured.
• Provide instructions for using the dashboard.
• Explain where the data comes from or what it represents.
• Add hyperlinks to related favourites, dashboards, or other Phocas content — a useful way to build a list of related items, since list widgets aren't currently available.

1. In the toolbar, click Open notes. The Notes panel opens.
2. Click Add note.
3. Enter your note.
4. Click away or move your mouse away from the note card to save your note.

Users can view the notes by opening the Notes panel while viewing the dashboard.

Share the dashboard

In the toolbar, click Share.

See Sharing and folders for more information and detailed steps.

View and restore previous dashboard revisions

Each time you publish a dashboard, a snapshot of the dashboard is saved as a revision. This gives you a history of previously published versions that you can return to if needed.

Revisions are created when you publish a dashboard. Changes you make while editing a draft do not create revisions.

View the revision history

To see previously published versions of the dashboard:

1. Click Revision history () in the toolbar.
2. Review the list of previous revisions. Each revision represents the state of the dashboard at the time it was published.

Revision history list

Users can view previous revisions of the dashboard by clicking Preview this revision ().

Restore a previous revision

If you want to return the dashboard to an earlier published version:

1. Open Revision history ().
2. Find the revision you want to restore in the list.
3. Click Restore this revision ()

You can also restore a previous version of a dashboard by clicking Restore in the revision preview.

Next step

When you're finished editing the dashboard, publish your changes.