The Dashboard is the central location for all content management options and settings in WordPress. Once authenticated you will be taken directly to the dashboard for the site you logged into. The Dashboard is only available to individuals that have been given permissions to edit the content for specific Elon University websites.

Each site in WordPress has its own unique Dashboard containing all the content, pages and media that make up that particular site. Pages and media are not shared between different sites.

Below is a brief summary of all the options available to you.

Image showing an example of the WordPress Dashboard

 

  1. My Sites: Hovering over My Sites will display a dropdown list of the sites you have permissions to edit. Clicking on one of the sites listed in this dropdown will take you to that site’s Dashboard. Hovering over one of the site names will display links to that site’s Dashboard and a link to view the site’s home page.Image showing an example of the my sites dropdown menu
  2. Current Site: The name listed next to the house icon is the name of the site you’re currently editing. This is the best way to identify which site Dashboard you’re currently accessing.
  3. Dashboard: Link to the current site’s Dashboard. Hovering over the Dashboard menu item will display two more sub-menu items:
    1. Home: Link to the same Dashboard as its parent menu item.
    2. My Sites: Link to an admin page with all the sites you have access to, similar to the My Sites dropdown menu.
  4. Media: Link to the current site’s Media Library where images, videos and documents that have been uploaded are stored. Hovering over the Media menu item will display two more sub-menu items:
    1. Library: Link to the same Media Library as its parent menu item.
    2. Add New: Link to add a new image, video or document.
  5. Pages: Link to the current site’s list of pages that have been created. Hovering over the Pages menu item will display two more sub-menu items:
    1. All Pages: Link to the same pages list as its parent menu item.
    2. Add New: Link to the new page creation screen.
  6. Components: Link to the current site’s custom Components. Hovering over the Components menu item will display two more sub-menu items:
    1. All Components: Link to the same Components list as its parent menu item.
    2. Add New: Link to the new Component creation screen.
  7. Sidebars: Link to the current site’s Sidebars, where you can create and manage WordPress Sidebars and Widgets. Hovering over the Sidebars menu item will display four more sub-menu items:
    1. All Sidebars: Link to the same Sidebars list as its parent menu item.
    2. Add New Sidebar: Link to the new Sidebar creation screen.
    3. Edit Sidebars: Link to manage the Widgets located in each of the available sidebars. (If you have previous WordPress experience, this is the same as the “Appearance > Widgets” admin page.)
    4. Menus: Link to the Menu management screen. (If you have previous WordPress experience, this is the same as the “Appearance > Menus” admin page.)
  8. Profile: Link to your user profile. Unlike the WordPress sites you may be used to, this admin page is mostly useless since your account is managed through Elon’s single sign on service.
  9. My Sites Dashboard Widget: A Widget that contains a list of all the sites you have access to. This is a custom Widget that was created for content managers that are responsible for numerous sites, where you might find the My Sites dropdown and My Sites admin page difficult to use.