AppSuite:Theming

API status: In Development

Theming

Abstract. In this article, you can learn how to create customized themes and use them to change the look of you appsuite installation.

LESS.JS

Appsuite used LESS as dynamic stylesheet language. LESS extends CSS with dynamic behavior such as variables, mixins, operations and functions.

Please read LESS.JS documentation first.

Using less.js

If your theme depends on less.js, you will need one more step to make it work. Why? To accelerate the login, compilation of LessCSS files was moved from the login process in the browser to the installation process on the backend.

Backend packages for themes and any apps which ship .less files require the following changes:

1. Add "skipLess=1" to the build command in *.spec and in debian/rules:

  sh /opt/open-xchange-appsuite-dev/bin/build-appsuite app skipLess=1

2. Add %post and %postun sections to *.spec:

  %post
  if [ "$1" = 1 ]; then
  UPDATE=/opt/open-xchange/appsuite/share/update-themes.sh
  [ -x $UPDATE ] && $UPDATE
  fi
  %postun
  UPDATE=/opt/open-xchange/appsuite/share/update-themes.sh
  [ -x $UPDATE ] && $UPDATE

For multiple binary packages, the %post and %postun sections should apply only to backend packages which contain .less files.

3. Add debian/postinst and debian/postrm containing the same content:

  #!/bin/sh
  UPDATE=/opt/open-xchange/appsuite/share/update-themes.sh
  [ -x $UPDATE ] && $UPDATE

For multiple binary packages, the postinst and postrm files should apply only to backend packages which contain .less files.

Note: Since 7.2.1, LessCSS files must have the file extension .less to be usable with the 'less' RequireJS plugin (module dependencies of the form 'less!filename.less'). Previously we were more lenient and dealt with .css, too.

File structure

A theme basically consists of two files located in apps/themes/THEME_ID/. These files are described in this and the following sections.

THEME_ID is a unique identifier for your theme, which is not visible to users. By convention, it is best derived from a domain name you control, e.g. com.example.prettytheme.

definitions.less

This file can be used to override variables described in the "Variables" section of this article.

style.less

This file can be used to define any CSS you like. Before doing this, check, if there really is no variable that can be used to achieve the same thing.

Referencing paths

Since 7.2.1, all URLs are relative to the source .less file in which they are contained. This means that unless a theme changes an image it does not need to include that image anymore.

Old themes must be updated if they change an image from the default theme: All styles from the default theme which refer to a changed image must be overwritten in the custom theme. This way the URLs resolve to the new image.

Variables

Naming of the variables should be straight forward. Variables containing the word Background will always refer to the background color. Variables containing Color will refer to the foreground color of an element, like color of a font. Hover in most cases means "hovered" elements. Selected relates to the currently selected item. Elements that are supposed to catch the users eye can use the Highlight class and the variable contains this word.

Basic

Font

Variable	Default	Description
@sansFontFamily	"Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif
@serifFontFamily	Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif
@monoFontFamily	Monaco, Menlo, Consolas, "Courier New", monospace
@baseFontSize	14px
@baseFontFamily	@sansFontFamily
@baseLineHeight	20px
@altFontFamily	@serifFontFamily
@touchFontSize	15px
@headingsFontFamily	inherit
@headingsFontWeight	bold
@fontSizeLarge	@baseFontSize * 1.25
@fontSizeSmall	@baseFontSize * 0.85
@fontSizeMini	@baseFontSize * 0.75
@vgridFontSize	13px

Colors

Variable	Default	Description
@bodyBackground	@white
@textColor	@grayDark
@linkColor	#08c
@linkColorHover	darken(@linkColor, 15%)
@linkAccentColor	#ffad00
@linkAccentColorHover	darken(@linkAccentColor, 15%)
@badgeColor	@white
@badgeBackground	#555
@headingsColor	inherit
@black	#000
@grayDarker	#222
@grayDark	#333
@gray	#555
@grayLight	#aaa
@grayLighter	#eee
@white	#fff
@blue	darken(#049cdb, 5%)
@blueDark	#0064cd
@blueLight	lighten(#049cdb, 25%)
@green	#1A8D1A
@greenLight	#92D050
@red	#cc0000
@yellow	#F8E400
@orange	#f89406
@pink	#E01CD9
@purple	#7E16CF

Space

Variable	Default	Description
@paddingLarge	11px 19px
@paddingSmall	2px 10px
@paddingMini	0 6px
@baseBorderRadius	4px
@borderRadiusLarge	6px
@borderRadiusSmall	3px

Pagination

Used where pagination is done, for example in the Calendar weekview, each week is on one "page"; one can switch the week using a pagination widget styled with these variables.

Variable	Default	Description
@paginationBackground	#fff
@paginationBorder	#ddd
@paginationActiveBackground	#f5f5f5

Buttons

Variable	Default	Description
@btnBackground	@white
@btnBackgroundHighlight	darken(@white, 10%)
@btnBorder	#bbb
@btnPrimaryBackground	@linkColor
@btnPrimaryBackgroundHighlight	spin(@btnPrimaryBackground, 20%)
@btnInfoBackground	#5bc0de
@btnInfoBackgroundHighlight	#2f96b4
@btnSuccessBackground	#62c462
@btnSuccessBackgroundHighlight	#51a351
@btnWarningBackground	lighten(@orange, 15%)
@btnWarningBackgroundHighlight	@orange
@btnDangerBackground	#ee5f5b
@btnDangerBackgroundHighlight	#bd362f
@btnInverseBackground	#444
@btnInverseBackgroundHighlight	@grayDarker

Dropdowns

Variable	Default	Description
@dropdownBackground	@white
@dropdownBorder	rgba(0,0,0,.2)
@dropdownDividerTop	#e5e5e5
@dropdownDividerBottom	@white
@dropdownLinkColor	@grayDark
@dropdownLinkColorHover	@white
@dropdownLinkColorActive	@white
@dropdownLinkBackgroundActive	@linkColor
@dropdownLinkBackgroundHover	@dropdownLinkBackgroundActive

Foldertree

Variable	Default	Description
@foldertreeSidepanelBackground	#333
@foldertreeSectionTitleColor	#888	Color for sectiontitles in foldertree (like "Public" folders)
@foldertreeActiveLabelColor	#ccc	Active means, user can perform an action on this item
@foldertreePassiveLabelColor	#ccc	Passive means, user can not perform any action with this item
@foldertreeHoverBackground	#888
@foldertreeSelectedBackground	#222
@foldertreeBadgeBackground	@bagdeBackground	see #Colors for definition of @badgeBackground
@foldertreeBadgeColor	@badgeColor	see #Colors for definition of @badgeBackground

Calendar

Appointment

Variable	Default	Description
@appointmentReserved	#08c /* blue */	Appointment status color
@appointmentTemporary	#ffbb00 /* yellow */	Appointment status color
@appointmentAbsent	#913f3f /* red */	Appointment status color
@appointmentFree	#8eb360 /* green */	Appointment status color
@appointmentPrivate	#555 /* gray */	Appointment status color
@appointmentDeclinedFont	#888 /* dark gray */	Font color for declined Appointments
@appointmentUnconfirmedAlpha	0.4	Transparency value for unconfirmed Appointments
@appointmentDeclinedAlpha	0.3	Transparency value for declined Appointments
@appointmentHoverPct	15%	Percentage increase of the dark pigment content on hover effect

Week View

Variable	Default	Description
@weekviewAppointmentLasso	#aeaeff	Lasso frame color
@weekviewDayIn	#fff /* white */	Default background color in week view
@weekviewDayOut	#e0e0e0 /* grey */	Background color outside of the mean working time
@weekviewTimeline	#f00 /* red */	Color of the Line indicating the current time
@weekviewTimeWith	58px	With of the time labels on the left side
@calendarToolbarHeight	41px	Height of the control toolbar

Month View

Variable	Default	Description
@monthviewAppointmentOut	#aaa /* light gray */	Color of appointments, which are not in focus
@monthviewToday	#daefff /* light blue */	Background color of the current day
@calendarToolbarHeight	41px	Height of the control toolbar

Area names

The variables sometimes refer to common areas. To identify which area is located where, see the following annotated screenshots.

Replacing the logo

One of the most common theme changes which requires editing style.css is changing the logo in the top right corner. The logo is displayed as the background image for an element with the ID io-ox-top-logo-small. A theme can therefore change the size and URL of the image:

#io-ox-top-logo-small {
    width: 60px;
    height: 22px;
    margin: 8px 13px 0 13px;
    background-image: url(mylogo.png);
}

The file mylogo.png is expected to be in the same directory as style.css. If you want to place the image somewhere else, then use a relative path in url().

Remember that images in OX App Suite are served by the web server and not by the application server. This means that images need to be packaged separately (for dedicated web servers) and installed in /var/www/appsuite/ (or similar, depending on the target platform) instead of /opt/open-xchange/appsuite/. Direct support for multiple packages is coming in version 7.4.1. Until then, use the build system from the develop branch to initialize the packaging if your theme contains images.

Mixins

In LESS, it is possible to include a bunch of properties from one ruleset into another ruleset. So say we have the following class:

Sample

.border-radius(@radius: 0px) {
    -webkit-border-radius: @radius;
    -moz-border-radius: @radius;
    -ms-border-radius: @radius;
    border-radius: @radius;
}

#menu a {
  color: #111;
  .border-radius(5px);
}

Read LESS Mixins

global OX Mixins

they can be found at definitions.less

Mixin	Sample	Description
.box-sizing(@boxmodel)	.box-sizing(border-box)
.user-select(@select)	.user-select(none)
.border-radius(@radius)	.border-radius(3px)
.box-shadow(@shadow)	.box-shadow(3px)
.vertical-gradient(@startColor, @endColor)	.vertical-gradient(#888, #555)
.radial-gradient(@color1, @color2, @color3)	.radial-gradient(#111, #222, #333)
.transition(@transition)	.transition(background-color 0.2s linear)
.animation(@animation)	.animation(slidein 300ms)
.animation-name(@name)	.animation-name(slideright)
.ellipsis	.ellipsis
.overflow(@type)	.overflow(hidden)
.overflow-x(@type)	.overflow-x(hidden)
.overflow-y(@type)	.overflow-y(hidden)
.backface-visibility(@type)	.backface-visibility(hidden)

How to activate a theme during development

When creating a new theme, you will want to test changes quickly without building packages reinstalling them. The trick is to use appserver.

1. First, you need to add the theme to the list of available themes on the backend. Simply create a new file in /opt/open-xchange/etc/settings/ with the extension .properties and add a line for your theme to it: <pre<noinclude></noinclude>>io.ox/core/settingsOptions//themes/ID=Theme Name</pre<noinclude></noinclude>> Replace ID by the identifier (directory name) of your theme, and Theme Name by the human-readable name which should appear in the UI.
2. The server needs to be restarted to read the new settings.
3. Now, you can use appserver (with a local web server if your theme includes images) to get your theme in combination with the UI which is already installed on the backend.
4. Finally, activate your theme the list in the Settings -> Basic view behind the option Theme.

In case you also want to access the same backend without appserver while your theme is selected, that theme (or at least some empty .less files) should be also installed on the backend to avoid errors. To just use an empty theme, run the following as root:

touch /opt/open-xchange/appsuite/apps/themes/ID/definitions.less
touch /opt/open-xchange/appsuite/apps/themes/ID/style.less
/opt/open-xchange/appsuite/share/update-themes.sh

The value of ID here must be the same as in your .properties file.

Theming the login page

The login page is a little bit special. If you don’t use the form login (and provide your own login page), you might want to theme the login page, too. Learn how to do this here.

Best practice

To be really safe, it’s best to only define your own values for the variables shown above. If this really breaks anything, we consider this a bug, please report it [1] in our bugzilla.

Of course, using CSS in style.less file to define your own styles is also possible. Make sure to test your style in such cases more carefully. It is most likely safe to change minor things using this file, but if you plan to change any positions of larger elements, this might break the complete design. So please be careful when overwriting the default CSS rules.

Links

Responsive design

LESS

Caveats

It is not recommended to change the size of elements or their position. If you really want to do so, please check on all devices and in all browsers and make sure you didn’t break anything. You even have to be careful when changing the font, because this might have effects on positioning, too.

As mentioned before, changing colors should be safe.