Administrator Back-End
1012_doc_icon

Type:

com_admin

Access:

http://www.yourdomain.com/administrator

or

Front Page=>Main Menu=>Administrator

User Level:

Manager; Administrator; Super Administrator.

Screenshot:

Administrator Back-end Control Panel

The Administrator Back-end

Description:

For clarity we will call the Administrator 'home page'  the Control Panel. It will often be seen to be called a variety of other titles, especially in the forums, such as:

  • Administration Panel
  • Back-end Panel
  • Control Page
  • Administrator (the correct name)
  • Administration Page

...or indeed a combination of these and others! 

The Administrator Back-end (Control Panel) is the first page displayed when an administrator, be they a Manager, Administrator, or Super Administrator, logs in to the Back-end of the Joomla! web site

This Help screen assumes that the demonstration content has been loaded in to the database during installation.

The actual content of the Control Panel that each level of administrator sees depends upon their Access Level. A Manager sees less than an Administrator, who in turn sees less than the Super Administrator (who sees it all!). This difference extends to the actual functions that each can carry out.

At any time when the Menu bar is available (when no editing of an Item or Function is being carried out) return to the Control Panel by clicking the Home button in the top menu bar. 

The Administrator Menu Bar

Type: mod_fullmenu

Located at the top of the Control Panel the buttons on this menu opens links - via cascading menus - to all the Back-end functions of Joomla!

note icon NOTE: The menu bar will become 'greyed out' on occasions and will not allow access to its options. This will happen when an Item - of whatever description - is open in an edit mode, for example whilst creating a new Content Item.

The buttons found in the Menu Bar on the standard installation of Joomla! are:

Home: Click this button from anywhere in the Back-end to return to the Control Panel.

Site: Provides access to all the configuration and site wide functions.

Menu: Provides access to the controls for the Menus created on the web site via the Menu Manager.

note icon NOTE: In addition, the standard Joomla! installation creates the following menus that can be accessed directly from here

note icon NOTE: Any new Menus that are created at a later date will also be listed here.

Content:

Components: Provides access to the Components installed on Joomla! By default the following items are installed and activated. These Components are configured during the installation process if the Super Administrator chose to install the example data to the MySQL database. New Components that are subsequently installed would normally be appended to this Menu. Modules: Provides access to the main control pages for the installed Modules in both the Front-end and Back-end of Joomla!. These Modules are configured during the installation process if the Super Administrator chose to install the example data to the MySQL database. Mambots: Provides access to the main control screen - the Mambot Manager - of the installed Mambots. These Mambots are configured during the installation process if the Super Administrator chose to install the example data to the MySQL database. Installers: Provides access to the installer managers allowing new functions to be uploaded and installed to the Joomla! installation.

Messages: Provides access to the Administrators mail boxes for system messages and messages from other administrators.

System: Provides access to essential functions and information required for the administration of a Joomla! web site.

Help: Provides access to these Help Pages, together with a Search facility, and links to other Joomla! related information.

Workspace:

Beneath the menu bar the remainder of the page is known as the Workspace this area will change according to the particular function that is selected, it may for example, display the Control Panel - as is the default, an editor screen, or a manager screen. You will always note that the Title Bar, Menu Bar, and Pathway displays remain in place. They just change to reflect the content of the screen being displayed.

Control Panel Quick Icons:

Type: mod_quickicon 

On the Control Panel are 12 Quick Icons that allow easy access to the frequently used functions of the Administrator Back-end. These Quick Icons duplicate some of the functions that are available via the above Administrator Menu buttons.

Add New Content: Click the Add New Content icon to access the Content Items: New screen. Create a new Content Item.

Content Items Manager: Click the Content Items Manager icon to access the Content Items Manager . Control the Static Content Items that appear on the web site from this screen.

Static Content Manager: Click the Static Content Manager icon to access the Static Content Manager. Control the Static Content Items that appear on the web site from this screen.

Front Page Manager: Click Front Page Manager icon to access the Front Page Manager. Control which Content Items appear on the web site Front Page from this screen.

Section Manager: Click the Section Manager icon to access the Section Manager. Control the existing Sections and create new Sections from this screen.

Category Manager: Click the Category Manager icon to access the Category Manager. Control the existing Categories and create new Categories from this screen.

Media Manager: Click the Media Manager icon to access the Media Manager . Control the existing Media and upload new Media from this screen.

Trash Manager: Click the Trash icon to access the Trash Manager. Control the contents of the web site Trash. Either permanently delete or restore any (all) items in the Trash Manager.

Menu Manager: Click the Menu Manager icon to access the Menu Manager. Edit the existing Menus and create new Menus from this screen.

Language Manager: Click the Language Manager icon to access the Language Manager. Control the available Languages installed on the system and upload new Language files.

User Manager: Click the User Manager icon to access the User Manager screen. Control existing Users. Create new Users. Control the Access Level for each User.

Global Configuration: Click the Global Configuration icon to access the Global Configuration. Edit any of the Joomla! installations'  primary controls and settings.

Any of the web site Components that are added after the initial installation of Joomla! may also add a Quick Icon to this panel. The Quick Icon panel itself can be modified to suit personal preferences.

Administrator Modules

On the right side of the screen there is a display containing five tabbed segments:

Logged: This displays a list of Users currently logged on (both in the Back-end and the Front-end sections of the web site).

Type: mod_logged

  • Identifies the Access Level that the individual Users have been assigned.
  • Click on a username to go to the User Edit page for that User.
  • Click on the Log Out Icon log out icon to disconnect a particular User.
note icon NOTE: Super Administrators will not be displayed in this list.

Components: Click this tab to display a list of all the installed Components that this web site has. This includes those that may not be published.

Type: mod_component 

  • The display show the name of the main Component plus all the additional Menu Items that may be associated with it.
  • Access a Component, or one of its additional elements, directly by clicking upon the name that will be highlighted as a URL link. This will open the Components' main control screen, or the appropriate Menu Item display selected.

Popular: Click this tab to display a screen that lists the Top Ten most popular Content Items on the web site.

Type: mod_popular 

  • The tab displays the date the Content Item was created.
  • It displays the number of individual hits the main Item has received and not just the number of times its Intro has been viewed as part of another page, for example the Front Page.
  • It provides a shortcut to the Content Item enabling it to be edited with ease. Simply click upon the Content Item name.

Latest Content: Click this tab to access a display that lists the Content Items most recently added to the web site.

Type: mod_latest

  • The display shows the creation date and the author of the Content Item.
  • It provides a shortcut to the Content Item enabling it to be edited with ease. Simply click upon the Content Item name.

Menu Stats: Click this tab to access a display that lists all the installed Menus and the number of Menu Item links to each Menu.

Type: mod_stats 

  • The number of Menu Item links is the total created, not just the total that are published.
  • Click the name of a Menu to open the Menu Manager for that Menu.

Other Features:

There are four other regions of the Control Panel worthy of comment:

Pathway:

Type: mod_pathway

The pathway is the address line that displays to the top left (in the basic Joomla! installation) of the Control Panel, just below the Menu Bar. It shows the current directory and function that an administrator is currently in, within the site. It can be used for basic navigation by clicking on an active URL link within the pathway. Caution needs to be exercised in its use this way as any Item currently being edited will remain checked-out and, more importantly, there is a risk that any changes made to a page will be lost as well!

Version Checker:

The Version Checker that is particularly boldly positioned on the Control Panel displays the 'age' of the current installation that this web site is running. It also provides a link to the main Joomla! web site page that details the current Stable Release of Joomla! that is available. This is the Version that should be in use on this web site to ensure that all security and bug fixes are operable. In addition a cut-down variant of the Version Checker is displayed at the foot of every page.

note icon NOTE: It is possible to control whether this display is shown or not by editing the Parameters in the Modules=>Administrator Module - Quick Icons Module.

note icon NOTE:The Version Checker has been removed from the 1.0.12 release as this is the final intended release of the 1.0.x series of Joomla! The next anticipated release will be the 1.5.x series.

Warning Message Box: If, during installation of this web site, one of the essential parameters or accessibility settings was highlighted as being inappropriate, for example:  Joomla! RG_EMULATION setting is `ON` instead of `OFF` in file globals.php, then a block message highlighting this will be displayed on the Control Panel and within the Global Configuration screen until it is corrected or the warning is disabled (not recommended).

note icon NOTE: It is possible to control whether this display is shown or not by editing the Parameters in the Modules=>Administrator Module - Quick Icons Module. This does not alter the display of the warning in the Global Configuration panel.

The Information Bar:

Type: mod_mosmsg

The mail_ic Mail icon is located in the Information Bar at the top right of the screen and displays on most pages of the Administrator. When any system created messages arrive this icon will show the number awaiting attention. Click on the icon to access the Mail Box. Caution should be exercised when clicking this icon whilst editing any Content or settings as any changes made without saving will be lost by clicking this icon. It is best to right click the icon and select "open in another tab" or "open in another window".

Type: mod_online

The Users Online Users Online icon is also located in the Information Bar as above. It displays the total number of Users connected to the Front-end of the web site at that time (at least a close indication!). It will not include Super Administrators connected to the Back-end.

Logout username, again in the Information Bar, provides a shortcut for the current administrator to log out of the Administrator Back-end of the web site. Simply click upon the displayed username to log out. By default the display will now change to the Front-end, Front Page screen.

Related Information:

The Administrator Manual

The Official Joomla! 1.0.11 User Manual

note icon NOTE: If you have any comments or suggestions regarding this Help screen then please post them in the Suggestions, Modifications, and Corrections forum in the User Documentation Work Group.

Thank you!

 

The User Documentation Team

Last Updated ( Monday, 09 April 2007 )