Create an Interface

Before you start

Each interface is for a specific audience, and each audience needs something different. For example, a field technician may only need to log site visits. A finance lead wants a summary of spend across all projects.

First decide who the interface is for and what they must do. This makes the rest of the setup easier. It tells you which records to show, which actions to give and who gets access.

If you do not know where to start, complete this sentence:

I'm building an interface to [action] for [audience].

For example: "I'm building an interface to triage incoming support tickets for our customer success team."

Keep that answer near you during the setup below. Use it to decide what goes in the interface and what to leave out.

Create a new interface

1. Open your base. Find the Interfaces section in the left sidebar.
2. Click New interface. The guided setup opens.

On a base that has no interfaces, the guided setup opens automatically the first time you go to Interfaces.

Step 1: Name your interface

You share interfaces with other people, so give the interface a name that your team can use. You can also customize:

You can change these settings later from the interface context menu. See Actions on an interface.

Step 2: Choose a layout

Select the layout for the first page of your interface. For a guide to each layout, see Page layouts.

Step 3: Connect to a table

Most layouts show data from a table. In this last step, select the table that the page connects to. Some layouts have more settings:

Layouts that do not show table data, for example Overview, skip this step.

For the Table and Record review layouts, you can also copy settings from an existing view of the connected table in this step.

After NocoDB creates the interface, the interface opens in the interface builder. You can then start to design it.

Copy settings from a view

The table may already have a view that looks the way you want the page to look. In that case, you do not have to make its filters, sorts and field settings again. When you create a Table or Record review page, the Connect to a table step has a Copy settings from a view option. This option starts the new page with the settings of a view of the connected table.

1. In the dropdown, select the source view. The list shows all views of the connected table, except Form and Map views.
2. Click Choose settings.
3. Turn on the settings to copy, or click Select all. The button shows the number of selected settings.
4. Create the page as usual. NocoDB applies the copied settings to the page. You can change them later in the builder, as on any other page.

You can copy the same settings as in the Copy another view's configuration dialog: Field visibility, Field order, Column width, Row height, Filter condition, Group, Sort and Row coloring.

You can copy across types. For example, a filtered Grid view can be the source for a Gallery page. NocoDB offers only the settings that the destination layout can use:

Settings that the selected view cannot give are grayed out. If you change to a source view or visualization that does not support a selected setting, NocoDB removes that setting from your selection automatically.

Add pages to an interface

An interface can have many pages, but your plan may limit the number. To add a page:

1. Put the pointer on the interface in the sidebar, or use the page list in the builder.
2. Click New page.
3. Select a layout. If the layout needs a table, connect it to a table. The setup is the same as for a new interface, but without the naming step.

The interface navigation shows the pages in the listed order. You can drag pages to change their order, rename them inline or hide them from the navigation. Hidden pages stay available for contextual use. For example, a record detail page opens when a user clicks a record.

Availability

• Only base creators and owners can build interfaces.