An administrator can change global CSS or system properties to alter the look and feel of the default instance interface. Functionality is not affected.

For example, organizations often use multiple instances to separate development, testing, and production activities. To help users avoid accidentally changing the wrong instance, administrators can configure each with a visually distinct theme. Several approaches are available for defining an instance theme.

CSS Properties

Navigate to System Properties > CSS.

The following properties are available through CSS Properties.

Note: Colors are specified using predefined color names, RGB decimals, or RGB hexadecimals.
  • Banner text color
  • Banner and list caption background color
  • Font used in forms and lists (this is a global font setting)
  • Button styles (background color, border color, border width, text color)
  • Field status indicator colors (including the indicators for Changed, Mandatory Populated, Mandatory Unpopulated, and Read-only)
  • List cell vertical alignment
  • Navigator menu styles (text font size, background color, text color)
  • Header font name and size
  • List and form caption color override
  • Global text search background color (both for catalog results and knowledge base results)

UI properties

Navigate to System Properties > UI Properties.

The following properties are available through UI Properties.

  • Icons used in the activity formatter
  • Background colors for Additional Comments and Work Notes
  • Button placement on forms
  • Icons used in the Task Activity formatter
  • Background colors for Incident Additional Comments and Work Notes

CSS class support

In Core UI (UI16), CSS properties and how they affect the platform UI change depending on the release.

Table 1. CSS class support for Xanadu
CSS classDescriptionHow to configureAffected area
$navpage-header-bg Header background color Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Header background color Header background
$navpage-header-color Color for header text and the global search icon Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Banner text color Banner text color
$navpage-header-button-color Color for logged in user name text, and the global search Connect, Help, and settings icons Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Header with User name and Connect, Help, and settings icons highlighted
$navpage-header-divider-color Header divider color Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Header divider stripe color Header divider striper
$navpage-button-color Color for the following icons in the sidebars
  • Expand/collapse
  • Create a conversation (in the Connect sidebar)
  • Open Connect workspace
 Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Connect sidebar with arrow pointing to the plus icon
$navpage-button-color-hover Color for the following icons when a user points to the control:
  • Global search
  • Help
  • Settings
  • Clear text icon in the navigation filter
 Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Point to the Help icon to show that it is blue when a user points to it

Point to Clear option in the Application Navigator to show that it is also blue on point to
$search-text-color Color of the search text, both in the navigation filter and the global search fields Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Search in application navigator showing "incident" in white
$navpage-nav-border Border color for the navigation filter and the conversation filter Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Border color for UI16 Filter navigator
$nav-highlight-main Highlights the module after the user has clicked it. In the Connect workspace, highlights the selected conversation. Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Selected conversation in the Connect Workspace showing the correct color
$subnav-background-color Background for expanded navigation items Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Navigation background expanded items Application with expanded modules to show the difference in color
$navpage-nav-bg Header and footer for navigator and sidebars. Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Navigation header/footer Navigation
$navpage-nav-bg-sub Background for navigator and sidebars Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Background for navigators and sidebars Navigator, sidebars
$navpage-nav-color-sub Text color for modules in the main navigation Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Application navigator with Incident open and the modules beneath incident showing the text color is white
$navpage-nav-mod-text-hover Text color when hovering over items in the main navigation Not supported Not supported
$nav-hr-color Navigator separator color Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Navigation separator color Separators
$nav-highlight-bar-active Line under the active tab in the application navigator. This color is also used as part of the theme preview on the Themes tab under system settings. Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Navigation selected tab divider bar color Application navigator with the All Applications tab selected and an arrow indicating the fact that the line under the tab is blue
$nav-highlight-bar-inactive Line under the inactive tabs in the application navigator Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Navigation unselected tab divider bar color Application navigator with the All Applications tab selected and an arrow point to the other tabs to indicate that the line is a different color
$navpage-nav-selected-bg Navigation selected tab background color Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Navigation selected tab background color Selected tab
$navpage-nav-selected-color Currently selected Navigation tab icon color Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Currently selected Navigation tab color for UI16 Navigation icon
$navpage-nav-unselected-color Unselected navigation tab icon and favorite icons color Navigate to System Properties > Basic Configuration UI16 > Unselected navigation tab icon and favorite icons color Favorite icon color
$connect-latest-message Color of the currently selected message in Connect Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Connect sidebar with selected message pointed out by arrow
$nav-timeago-header-color Timestamp header backgrounds in History tab Not supported Not supported
$navpage-nav-app-text Core content text color for items such as applications and the empty state text for the Connect sidebar. Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Application navigator with arrow pointing at Service Desk to show that the text is white
$navpage-nav-app-text-hover Text color for a selected module Add the CSS property to the CSS field of a theme. For more information, see Create or customize a theme. Incidents > Open module selected to show the selected color