Page's menu settings affects where pages will show in menus used for website navigation. Due to their level of flexibility, menu settings are complex and can impact other areas of the website. If unsure about what changes to make in a page's menu settings, please contact Foxbright Support for clarification.

For the majority of pages, the default menu settings shouldn't be changed. 

Common Menu Types


The above graphic shows the most common menu types used in Foxbright website designs. Most websites also include a Footer Menu (not pictured) which behaves similar to the Header Menu, except that it is in the bottom section of pages. Websites can use a combination of Focus, Header, Quicklinks and Footer menus but not all designs contain all of them and some may display them in slightly different locations than the above example.

Pages (links) are never displayed in the Focus, Header, Quicklinks or Footer menus by default. To add links to any of these menus, a page needs to be assigned to the menu(s) from the website page menu settings, as explained later in this article.

Setting a page to show in Focus, Header, Quicklinks and Footer menus applies to the entire website (for most designs) and use should be limited to select pages. If in any doubt, contact a Web Administrator prior to assigning a page to these areas.

Main and Side Menus

The Main Menu and Side Menu are the only menus that pages will be displayed in by default, in accordance to their location in the page tree.

Main Menu - Pages created at the main level of the page tree (directly below the home page) will show in the Main Menu by default, and will be in the Main Menu across the entire website, unless certain areas are subsited. Pages deeper in the page tree can be set to "Show" in the main menu if desired, but this is not recommended. Website designs can only accommodate a certain number of items in the Main Menu and should be reserved for the most important sections of the website.

Side Menu - Sub pages automatically display in the side menu of their parent page. In the above graphic, Eastern High School is the parent page for the sub-pages being displayed in the side menu. The sub-pages are siblings to each-other.

Changing Menu Settings for a Page

Most of the time menu settings from a page shouldn't be changed from their default. The most common changes in menu settings are either to have a page show in Header, Footer, Focus, or Quicklinks menus, or to hide a page from Main or Side menus.

Getting to the Menu Settings

  1. From the page tree, click the gear icon next to a page and choose Settings
  2. Click to expand the block called Menu Settings to reveal the Menu Settings for that page

There is an Is Subsite setting in the Layout Settings area used to designate a section as a sub-site. If selected, all menus "start over" for this section of the website. Sub-sites are typically setup by Foxbright during website implementation and should be used with discretion.

  • Main Level - This column is where most menu setting changes will be made.
  • Sub Levels - This column affects the main drop menus / mobile menus only and shouldn't be changed, but can be used to hide a page from the drop menu.
  • Root - Only used for the Side Menu. Rooting a menu will be explained in the next section of this article.
  • Base URL - Only used for the main menu, this setting will reset the Main Menu to only show items below the page selected as the Base URL. This is similar to making a page a subsite except it doesn't reset other menus in the area. This is an advanced setting and is primarily setup by Foxbright for pages like a building homepage when a subsite is not appropriate. 

Each drop-down in the Menu Settings contains a selection for Default, Show, and Hide. The Default setting will be acceptable for the majority of situations. The Default option allows a page to show in areas the page exists (side or main menus, respectively) and doesn't show in auxiliary menus such as quicklinks or focus menus where pages need to be specifically set to show.

  • Show - Choosing the Show option in the Main Level column will cause a page to show on a certain menu. To have a page show in a Header, Footer, Focus, or Quicklinks menu, change the setting for the appropriate menu to Show in the Main Level column.
  • Hide - Hide is primarily used for Main or Side Menus.
    • Main Menu: If a page is created in the main level of the page tree but should not show on the main menu, set the Main Menu setting to Hide  in the Main Level column. Selecting Show for the main menu allows pages not at the main level of the tree to be shown in the main menu - this is rarely used.
    • Side Menu: To hide a sub-page from the Side Menu, select Hide for the Side Menu in the Main Level Column. This is most commonly used if a page is being added to a Header, Footer, Focus, or Quicklinks menu and doesn't need to appear in the side menu as well. Sometimes a page is hidden from the side menu if it needs to be created but not visibly available to the public, such as a page in development or if it is linked to from elsewhere. Selecting Show for the side menu will cause a page to show in all side menus across the website and generally should be avoided.
    • Main Menu Drop Menu: To hide a sub page from the main menu drop menu select Hide for the Main Menu Sub Levels Column.

Other Menus

  • Schools Menu - Not all websites use a Schools Menu and this setting is only used for school buildings and are typically set up prior to a website launch. This setting shouldn't be changed for most situations.
  • Other Menus - Menus such as the breadcrumb or subpages menus shouldn't be changed from their defaults.

Using the Root Menu Option for Side Menus

Rooting a Side Menu can be useful for pages that have a lot of sub-pages or siblings to keep the side menu from getting too long. Rooting a Side Menu makes the side menu only display the sub-pages for the rooted page. The below image shows Human Resources, within departments, and hasn't been rooted.


The below image shows the same page after its Side Menu has been rooted. Note that the other departments that are siblings to Human Resources no longer show in the side menu.


To Menu Root a page, check the box in the Root column in the Side Menu row. Rooting is not typically used in the other types of menus.

Final Thoughts

  • As with other page changes in the Foxbright CMS, a page needs to be published before menu settings changes will display on the live site.
  • Use the 'Preview' function to verify menu changes are having the desired effect.
  • Menu Settings are a more advanced feature that should be left in their defaults for most pages.
  • When in doubt, please contact Foxbright Support or a Web Administrator prior to making changes in the menu settings.
  • Foxbright Support can be reached at: 616.988.2400 x 1