Add a theme to the Communities configuration file 

After defining a custom theme, you need to add it to the Communities configuration file, communities-config.xml.


Before starting


To edit configuration files, use the IBM WAS wsadmin client. See Starting the wsadmin client for information about how to start the wsadmin command-line tool.


About this task


The list of themes displayed in the theme palette in Communities comes from list of themes defined in the Communities configuration file, communities-config.xml. When you define a new theme, add a corresponding theme entry to the configuration file for it to display in the user interface. The placement of the theme in the configuration file list matches its placement in the Communities theme palette. Typically, you might add new themes to the end of the list, but if you want to make your new theme the default community theme, you need to add it to the beginning of the list. This placement means that the theme is used whenever another theme has not been explicitly set.


Procedure


To add a theme to the Communities configuration file...

  1. From the dmgr host:

    If prompted to specify a service to connect to, type 1 to pick the first node in the list. Most commands can run on any node. If the command writes or reads information to or from a file using a local file path, pick the node where the file is stored.

  2. Check out the Communities configuration files using the following command:

      CommunitiesConfigService.checkOutConfig("<working_directory>", "<cell_name>")

      where:

      • <working_directory> is the temporary working directory to which the configuration XML and XSD files are copied. The files are kept in this working directory while you make changes to them.

          Note: AIX and Linux only: The directory must grant write permissions or the command will not run successfully.

      • <cell_name> is the name of the WAS cell hosting the IBM Connections application. This argument is required. If you do not know the cell name, you can determine it by typing the following command in the wsadmin command processor:

          print AdminControl.getCell()

      For example:

      CommunitiesConfigService.checkOutConfig("/opt/my_temp_dir", "CommServerNode01Cell")

  • Open communities-config.xml in a text editor.

  • Add a new <comm:theme> element to include the properties for the new theme in the list of themes that are already defined in the file:

      For example:
      <comm:theme>
      <comm:themeUuid>corporate</comm:themeUuid> <comm:displayNameKey>label.theme.name.corporate</comm:displayNameKey> <comm:isScriptKey>false</comm:isScriptKey> <comm:cssUrl>/nav/common/styles/corporateTheme/corporateTheme.css</comm:cssUrl> <comm:cssRtlUrl>/nav/common/styles/corporateTheme/corporateThemeRTL.css</comm:cssRtlUrl> <comm:thumbnailUrl>/images/corporate.png</comm:thumbnailUrl> </comm:theme>

        where:

        • <comm:themeUuid> is the unique identifier of the theme that is stored in the database when the theme is selected. It should not contain spaces or special characters. It must be 36 characters or less.

        • <comm:displayNameKey> is the resource key for the display name. For information about how to create property strings for the displayNameKey, see Add custom strings for widgets and other specified scenarios.

        • <comm:isScriptKey> is set to true when the display name is found in a JavaScript resource file.

        • <comm:cssUrl> is the location of the theme stylesheet.

        • <comm:cssRtlUrl> is the location of the theme stylesheet for right-to-left languages, such as Arabic and Hebrew.

        • <comm:thumbnailUrl> is the location of the thumbnail image that is displayed in the Theme Palette. The image must be included in the following location:

            /customization/communities/images/

      1. Save the communities-config.xml file.

      2. After making changes, check the configuration files back in, and do so during the same wsadmin session in which you checked them out for your configuration changes to take effect. You must also stop and restart the Communities server. See Apply property changes in Communities for information about how to save and apply your changes.


    What to do next

    1. Test your changes by refreshing the web browser.

    2. When you are ready to make the custom theme available to others, refer to steps 6-8 of Customize the user interface for information about how to publish your changes and make them permanent.


    Parent topic

    Add a custom theme to Communities

    Related tasks
    Define a community theme
    Remove community themes
    Apply property changes in Communities
    Customize the user interface
    Add custom strings for widgets and other specified scenarios

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