A GUIDE TO SHAREPOINT 2007 CUSTOMIZATION OPTIONSHeather Solomon, WSS MVP

SharePoint Customization Options

What is “customization”? Branding, look and feel, images, colors Functionality, features, navigation Lists, libraries, content

SharePoint has provided several ways to customize the user interface

A method can be selected based on site requirements, target audience, timelines and available resource skill set

Options are the mostly the same for MOSS 2007 and WSS v3, implementation of the options differ

SharePoint Customization Options

Options can be broken down into one of two categories: Options that create customization Options that package up and deploy customization

Ultimately, there is no “right way” to customize a site, there are just different ways to do it.

Customization Options

Master Pages (used in conjunction with Page Layouts)

Custom Site Definitions

Custom Site Templates

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)

Extensible Style Sheet Language (XSL)

Themes

JavaScript

Customization Options

Master Pages (used in conjunction with Page Layouts)

Package and deploy customization Custom Site Definitions

Defines customization Custom Site Templates

Package and deploy customization Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)

Defines customization Extensible Style Sheet Language (XSL)

Defines customization Themes

Package and deploy customization JavaScript

Defines customization

Master Pages

Master Pages are an ASP.NET 2.0 feature that provide a way to centrally control the layout and design of a web page

SharePoint site collections can utilize multiple Master Pages A Master Page can alter the layout, branding and physical

content organization on a web page A Master Page does not include additional functionality, but

can reference a JavaScript file SharePoint utilizes Page Layouts (content pages) to display

the content Both Master Pages and Page Layouts are stored in the

content database Create custom Master Pages based off an existing Master

Page or from scratch

Master Pages

Suggested uses: Change the branding and look and feel of any site

Benefits: Easy to create, edit, delete and manage Does not require access to the web server, all changes can be done

through the site interface or SharePoint Designer Allows for drastic alterations of the default SharePoint look and feel

Drawbacks Requires a web savvy resource to design and create Application of one Master Page will not affect all site pages

In summary, Master Pages are a solid and great way to update the look and feel of any SharePoint site

Custom Site Definitions

All sites are based off a Site Definition Site Definitions are stored on the web server in the

SiteTemplates folder Custom Site Definitions can be created and customized to

fit needs. Creating a custom Site Definition is fairly simple: Copy a Site Definition Edit an XML file on the web server Reset IIS Create new site

Edits to Site Definitions appear across entire SharePoint farm

Custom Site Definitions

Suggested uses: Incorporate a lot of custom functionality Create a “clean slate” definition to start all sites from Create a custom “site template” to be used over and over

Benefits Very thorough and complete way to implement customizations Available for site creation from anywhere in the environment

Drawbacks Can be labor intensive Once created, a site can’t alter what site definition it is based on Editing Site Definitions after they have been created and used for sites

is discouraged In summary, creating a custom Site Definition is a soup to nuts

approach for handling site customizations

Custom Site Templates

Site Templates tracks navigation, web part, list, library and content changes

Creating a Site Template takes a snapshot of the site and stores a copy in the content database

Site Templates are used to create new sites Site Templates can be used for creating Role Based

Templates Stored in the content database, only exist as a

concrete file when saved locally as a STP file

Custom Site Templates

Suggested uses: Role Based Templates Quickly duplicate changes made in one site into a new site

Benefits Fast to create Can be created by site managers; does not require administrator

access Complete management through the user interface

Drawbacks Can’t be updated once created Handled individually in the site template gallery

In summary, custom Site Templates are a quick and efficient vehicle to spread basic content and list customizations made to a SharePoint site

Site Template Sample

CSS and XSL

SharePoint heavily utilizes styles for content and page element display

Styles can be overridden for a low overhead solution for updating the look and feel of a site

Styles can be accessed and edited by using SharePoint Designer

Styles are stored on both the web server and the content database, in multiple .CSS and .XSL files

XSL is used to modify the display of XML data, most notably present in the Content Query Web Part and the Summary Links web part

CSS and XSL

Suggested uses: (CSS) Brand a site quickly by changing out default colors for

company or project colors (CSS) Use in Master Pages, Site Definitions and Themes for

customizations (CSS) Override default SharePoint styles to customize look and feel

of select elements (CSS) Create multiple versions of one design scheme (XSL) Use to customize display of Content Query Web Part (CQWP)

data Benefits

(CSS) Quick way to change out colors and images of the existing layout

(CSS) Can specify different CSS files for different sites (XSL) Extensible way to customize content in the CQWP

CSS and XSL

Drawbacks (CSS) Limited to working with the existing styles in

regards to some of the default SharePoint content (XSL) Requires a resource with XML/XSL skills

In summary, nearly any situation or other customization method could and would benefit from customizing the styles. It is a very efficient way to change the SharePoint design from the default look to a branded and custom look.

CSS Samples

XSL Samples

Themes

Custom design that can be saved and applied to WSS sites

Consists of design and color changes that are applied to a site after the site is created

Affects all existing and new pages in a site Has to be individually applied to every site Themes are stored on the web server and consist of CSS

and images Does not store changes to content Create themes in SharePoint Designer

Themes

Suggested uses: Brand several sites differently while using one base Quickly update the look and feel of a site

Benefits Quick way to create multiple designs based on the same layout Extend customization functionality of Master Pages and Site Definitions Available to any WSS site in the environment

Drawbacks Has to be applied to each site individually Doesn’t allow for list, library, web part attribute or content changes Sometimes cumbersome to create

In summary, themes are a good way to apply various image and color changes to a single or multiple web sites.

Theme Samples

So How Do I Select a Method?

What is the product(s) you are using?

What is skill sets do you have available? Do you have a budget for design?

What do you really need to update?

How many sites do you need to customize?

Do you need to integrate a lot of custom functionality and code?

Does your design change often?

So How Do I Select a Method?

What is the product(s) you are using? Themes are WSS only

What skill sets do you have available? Do you have a budget for design? Some options require heavy coding and design

What do you really need to update? Many options can accomplish what you need without altering site

layout How many sites do you need to customize?

One site, can do nearly any option; many sites, look at streamlined approaches for ease of maintenance

Do you need to integrate a lot of custom functionality and code? Then you may need to look into a custom site definition

Does your design change often? If so, select a method that centrally stores design changes

Heather Solomonme@HeatherSolomon.comwww.SolomonCreative.com

A Guide to SharePoint 2007 Customization Options