6.3 Creating and Maintaining Shared Pages

The process of creating and maintaining shared pages involves the following steps:

  1. Create a new shared page or select an existing shared page, as described in Section 6.3.1, Creating Shared Pages.

  2. Add content (in the form of portlets) to the page, as described in Section 6.3.2, Adding Content to a Shared Page.

    You might also want to delete content from the page, as described in Section 6.3.3, Deleting Content from a Shared Page.

  3. Choose a portal layout, as described in Section 6.3.4, Modifying the Layout of a Shared Page.

  4. Arrange the order and position of content on the selected layout, as described in Section 6.3.5, Arranging Content on the Shared Page.

  5. Display the new page by entering the shared page URL in your browser, as described in Section 6.3.6, Displaying a Shared Page.

Shared Pages and Layouts

Shared pages are not tightly bound to portal layouts. That means you can switch layouts for shared pages without losing any page contents. When a new layout is applied, any portlets that have been added to the page are automatically displayed using the new layout. You might need to fine-tune the content placement in the new layout.

6.3.1 Creating Shared Pages

You can create shared pages from scratch or by copying existing pages. This section describes both procedures.

To create a shared page from scratch:

  1. On the Page Admin page, select Maintain Shared Pages.

    The Maintain Shared Pages panel displays:

  2. Select the New page action (in the bottom left section of the panel).

    An untitled, uncategorized shared page is created.

  3. Specify the page properties of the shared page:

    Property

    What to do

    Page Link Name (URI)

    Specify the URI name for the page (as it is to appear within the user interface URL). For example, if you specify the URI:

    
    MySharedPage
    

    it appears within the URL like this:

    
    http://myappserver:8080/IDM/portal/cn/MyContainerPage/MySharedPage
    

    Page Name

    Specify the display name for the page. For example:

    
    My Shared Page
    

    You can click Localize to specify localized versions of this name for other languages.

    Navigation Priority

    Specify one of the following:

    • None if you don’t need to assign a priority to this shared page.

    • Set value to assign a priority to this shared page, relative to other shared pages. The priority must be an integer between 0 and 9999, where 0 is the highest priority and 9999 is the lowest.

      Setting priority values is useful if you want to ensure a particular order when pages are listed by priority, or if you want to ensure a particular selection when multiple default pages exist (in the case of a user who belongs to multiple groups).

    Parent Page

    If you want this shared page to be the child of another shared page, click Select Parent. Make sure that both the parent and child pages belong to the same categories (to prevent display problems).

    At runtime, the end user sees this relationship when using the Shared Page Navigation portlet. When displaying the list of shared pages, it shows children indented under their parents.

    Child pages do not inherit content, preferences, or settings from their parent pages. Conversely, parent pages do not automatically display the content of child pages along with their own content.

    Assign Categories

    Select zero or more of the following categories in which you want the page to belong:

    • Administration

    • Directory Management

    • General

    • Guest Pages

    • Information Management

    • Password Management

    Assigning categories is useful if you want to ensure proper organization when pages are listed by category, or if you want to ensure an appropriate subset when pages are filtered by category.

    NOTE: Guest Pages is a special category used to identify shared pages that can be displayed prior to user login but not after. For more information, see the section on the Shared Page Navigation portlet in Section 10.0, About Portlets.

    Description

    Type text that describes the page.

  4. Click Save Page (at the bottom of the page properties section).

To create a shared page by copying an existing page:

  1. On the Page Admin page, select Maintain Shared Pages.

    The Maintain Shared Pages panel displays as shown in .

  2. In the list of shared pages, select the page you want to copy.

    If the list is long, you can refine it (by category or starting text) to more easily find the desired page.

  3. Select the Copy page action (in the bottom-left section of the panel).

    A new shared page is created with the name Copy of OriginalPageName.

  4. Specify the page properties of the shared page as described in .

  5. Click Save Page (at the bottom of the page properties section).

6.3.2 Adding Content to a Shared Page

After you create a shared page, the next step is to add content by selecting portlets to place on the page. You can use prebuilt portlets supplied with the Identity Manager User Application or other portlets you have registered.

  1. Open a new or existing page on the Maintain Shared Pages panel, then click the Select Content page task (at the bottom of the panel).

    The Content Selector displays in a new browser window:

    Illustration
  2. If you want to display a specific category of available content, select a category from the Filter drop-down list.

  3. Select one or more portlets from the Available Content list.

    Hold down the Ctrl key to select multiple non-contiguous portlets from the list; use the Shift key to make multiple contiguous selections.

  4. Click Add to move your choices to the Selected Content list.

  5. You can click Content Preferences to edit the preferences of any portlet you have selected for your shared page. The preference values you specify take effect for the instance of the portlet that appears on your page.

  6. Click Save Contents.

Now that you have chosen the content for your shared page, you can select a new layout as described in Section 6.3.4, Modifying the Layout of a Shared Page, or arrange the content on the current layout as described in Section 6.3.5, Arranging Content on the Shared Page.

6.3.3 Deleting Content from a Shared Page

In the process of creating shared pages, you might want to delete content by removing portlets from a page. You can use the Content Selector or Layout Selector, as described in the following procedures.

  1. Open a page on the Maintain Shared Pages panel, then click the Select Content page task (at the bottom of the panel).

    The Content Selector displays in a new browser window as shown in Section 6.3.2, Adding Content to a Shared Page.

  2. Select a portlet you want to delete from the Selected Content list and click Remove.

    The portlet is removed from the page.

  3. Click Save Contents.

To delete content from a shared page by using the Layout Selector:

  1. Open a page on the Maintain Shared Pages panel, then click the Arrange Content page task (at the bottom of the panel).

    The Layout Selector displays in a new browser window, showing the portlets on that page:

    Illustration
  2. Click the X button for a portlet you want to remove.

  3. When you’re prompted for confirmation, click OK.

    The portlet is removed from the page.

  4. Click Save Layout.

6.3.4 Modifying the Layout of a Shared Page

When you modify the layout of a shared page, existing content is shifted to accommodate the new layout. In some cases, you might need to fine-tune the end result.

To modify the layout of a shared page:

  1. Open a page on the Maintain Shared Pages panel, then click the Select Layout page task (at the bottom of the panel).

    The Portal Layouts list displays in a new browser window:

    Illustration
  2. Scroll through the choices and select the layout you want.

  3. Click Select Layout.

6.3.5 Arranging Content on the Shared Page

After you have designated the content and layout for your shared page, you can position the content in the selected layout, add other portlets in specific locations, or delete portlets.

To arrange content on a shared page:

  1. Open a page on the Maintain Shared Pages panel, then click the Arrange Content page task (at the bottom of the panel).

    The Layout Selector displays in a new browser window, showing the portlets on that page:

    Illustration
  2. If you want to add a portlet to the page:

    1. Click Add Content in the desired layout frame.

      The Portlet Selector displays in a new browser window.

    2. If you want to display a specific category of available content, select a category from the Filter drop-down list.

    3. Select a portlet you want from the Available Content list.

    4. Click Select Content.

      The Portlet Selector closes and the portlet you selected appears in the target layout frame of the Layout Selector.

  3. If you want to move a portlet to a different location in the layout, follow these browser-specific steps:

    Browser

    What to do

    Internet Explorer

    1. Move your cursor over the title bar of the portlet until the cursor changes to a hand shape.

    2. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the portlet to the desired location in the layout.

    Mozilla Firefox

    1. Click the portlet you want to move.

    2. Click inside the destination layout frame.

    The portlet moves to the destination.

  4. If you want to remove a portlet from the layout:

    1. Click the X button for the portlet you want to remove.

    2. When you’re prompted for confirmation, click OK.

      The portlet is removed from the layout.

  5. If you want to edit the preferences of a portlet:

    1. Click the pencil button for the portlet you want to edit.

      The portlet’s Content Preferences display in your browser.

    2. Change preference values, as appropriate.

      The preference values you specify take effect for the instance of the portlet that appears on your page.

    3. Click Save Preferences.

  6. Click Save Layout to record your changes and close the Layout Selector.

6.3.6 Displaying a Shared Page

To display your shared page, go to this URL in your Web browser:

http://server:port/IDM-war-context/portal/pg/shared-page-name

For example, to display the shared page named MySharedPage:

http://myappserver:8080/IDM/portal/pg/MySharedPage