The Sites section is shown by default when you open SharePoint Designer, and was shown earlier in Figure 1-2. The four primary regions in the Sites section are:

Open Site and New Site each have two large buttons. "Open Site" and "New Blank Web Site" are for opening or creating a general purpose SharePoint site. The "Customize My Site" and "Add Subsite to My Site" buttons are dedicated to working with the My Site feature of SharePoint.

If you have opened other SharePoint sites in the past, they appear in the Recent Sites region of the Sites dialog. You may click the name to select it. Double-clicking a site name in the Open Site dialog drills you into that site and allows you to choose a child site to open (if any). After you have selected a site to open by any of these methods, click the Open button to open the site in SharePoint Designer. You may be prompted to enter credentials for the website, either upon drilling down, or after clicking the Open button.

Until you close all instances of SharePoint Designer, any other site you open in the same URL domain will attempt to use the same credentials. You are prompted again if the account used does not have sufficient permission to open the new site. You may determine the current ID you are using for the open site, or log in as a different user, by clicking the small "person" icon at the far left of the status bar.

SharePoint Designer can only have one site open within an application window. If you attempt to open another site while one is currently open, the new site opens in a new instance of SharePoint Designer.

All SharePoint sites are created based upon a site definition, or template. A template defines the features available by default in that particular type of site. These typically include pre-defined lists and libraries, special pages, and default content. The Site Templates area shows certain common SharePoint templates that you may use to create a new site. Other templates may be available depending upon a server's configuration. Clicking the More Templates icon allows you to browse to a SharePoint server and retrieve the list of templates available in that installation.

The Pages section of the SharePoint Designer Backstage (File tab) enables you to retrieve recently opened files, or browse for other files to open or import. For the purposes of this section, the word "pages" is very loosely defined, and may also include layouts, style sheets, or other file types.

Figure 1-7 shows the Pages section.

Figure 1.7. Figure 1-7

When you have a SharePoint 2010 site open, you have the ability to open and edit files, not only within the current site, but from other locations as well — even those that are not SharePoint 2010 sites.

The Add Item section of Backstage gives you a convenient place to create pages and various other SharePoint artifacts without first drilling into the section dedicated to a particular type. The types of items available may vary depending upon the site you have open. Figure 1-8 shows a typical array of choices for Add Item.

You can find brief introductions to these artifacts throughout this chapter. Later chapters describe in detail how SharePoint Designer allows you to manipulate most of them.

Figure 1.8. Figure 1-8

The Help section of Backstage, shown in Figure 1-9, provides tools and information relating to SharePoint Designer itself.

Figure 1.9. Figure 1-9

The right half of the page is taken up by the "about" information. This tells you the precise version and patch level of SharePoint Designer. It also includes copyright information, as well as what licensing mode the product is in (such as Trial, or Activated).

The Support zone gives links to different kinds of help, from classic-style pop-up window help to online support resources. Certain aspects of this help are only available if you are connected to the Internet.

The Tools zone allows you to check for newer versions of SharePoint Designer, or change various program settings. These settings are described in more detail in the next section.

The General page of the SharePoint Designer Options dialog is shown in Figure 1-10.

Figure 1.10. Figure 1-10

One option on this page is the Color Scheme. Your choice of Silver, Black, or Blue for the tabs and trim in SharePoint Designer also impacts Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

The General page also contains two buttons: Application Options and Page Editor Options. Chapter 2 covers the Page Editor Options. Clicking Application Options summons the dialog shown in Figure 1-11.

Figure 1.11. Figure 1-11

This dialog has two tabs: the General tab (shown — and yes, many tabs are called General in SharePoint Designer) and the Configure Editors tab. Most of the items in the General tab are SharePoint Designer settings such as whether to open the most recent site automatically; they are simple checkboxes and should be self-explanatory.

The Proxy Settings button allows you to quickly access your PC's settings for connecting to files on the Internet. These settings are actually controlled by Internet Explorer and shared across most applications on the PC.

The Configure Editors tab, shown in Figure 1-12, allows you to determine which application(s) you want used to edit files of various types.

Figure 1.12. Figure 1-12

Most file types you will encounter when editing SharePoint sites are already defined. Many are set by default to be edited within SharePoint Designer. Files created by Microsoft Office applications default to using the application that created them. If you want, however, you may add new types or reassign existing file types for editing by any application installed on your PC.

Figure 1-13 shows the Language page of the SharePoint Designer Options dialog.

Here, you can install new proofing tools and select the user-interface languages for SharePoint Designer. The languages available depend upon the working languages installed on both your client PC and with SharePoint Designer.

Figure 1.13. Figure 1-13

Figure 1-14 shows the Customize Ribbon page of the SharePoint Designer Options dialog.

Like the Quick Access Toolbar, the ribbon in SharePoint Designer 2010 is highly customizable. You use steps similar to those used in the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) Try It Out later in this chapter.

One major difference between customizing the QAT and customizing the ribbon is the fact that the QAT is a single, linear array of icons. The ribbon, on the other hand, is a hierarchical structure. In other words, the ribbon is made up of containers, which contain other containers, and so on, until you ultimately find the icons for the commands.

Figure 1.14. Figure 1-14

The two main levels of the ribbon container are Tab and Group. Tabs are shown across the top of the SharePoint Designer window, just below the title bar. Within a tab are one or more groups of command icons.

The Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) is a constantly visible toolbar containing a customizable set of icons. The same Quick Access Toolbar Options page lets you choose the position of the QAT. By default, it appears "above the ribbon" within the title bar of your application, as shown in Figure 1-15.

You can also set the QAT to appear below the ribbon, where it displays in the full width of your SharePoint Designer window, as shown in Figure 1-16.

Figure 1.15. Figure 1-15

Figure 1.16. Figure 1-16

SharePoint Designer allows you to install add-ins to enhance its functionality. You manage any add-ins you may have on the Add-Ins page of the SharePoint Designer Options dialog; however, no add-ins are included with SharePoint Designer or installed by default. If you acquire an add-in, its author should include documentation relating to its installation and use.

The Trust Center page of the SharePoint Designer Options dialog, shown in Figure 1-17, displays a "splash" screen that provides links to various Microsoft-hosted websites.

The sites listed detail the latest privacy and security policies and information related to Microsoft products, including SharePoint Designer. If you look carefully, however, you will notice the Trust Center Settings button. Clicking this button summons the dialog shown in Figure 1-18.

This is the actual Trust Center configuration dialog. Here, you can configure what potentially unsafe actions and content are allowed in SharePoint Designer. Most of the options in this dialog are self-explanatory, but use caution before changing them. The defaults are set to minimize the risk of untrustworthy code (for example, viruses, worms, or even just badly written code) damaging or infecting SharePoint Designer, or using SharePoint Designer as a vector for damage or infection of other systems.

Figure 1.17. Figure 1-17

Figure 1.18. Figure 1-18

When viewing the Site Summary page, you will have access to the Site ribbon tab, and its functions will be available for selection.

Four groups of icons are in the Site ribbon tab, as shown in Figure 1-20: New, Edit, Actions, and Manage.

Figure 1.20. Figure 1-20

The icons in the New group allow you to create a new item of the specified type. Most of these (for example, lists, libraries, and workflows) are discussed in detail later in the book in the relevant chapters. Clicking the Subsite icon in this group summons the dialog shown in Figure 1-21.

The actual list of site types available is based upon a number of factors, and will be queried from the SharePoint server. Therefore, it may vary slightly from the items shown in Figure 1-21.

Figure 1.21. Figure 1-21

The Edit section of the Site ribbon tab contains two icons: Delete Site and Rename. Delete Site is only available if the current SharePoint site is a subsite of another site. If it is available, clicking this icon will summon an alert warning you that deleting the site is permanent, and will impact all the content contained therein. Click Yes if you really want to delete the site.

Clicking the Rename icon directs focus to the Title field shown in the Site Information block (described later).

The icons in the Actions group of the Site ribbon tab are Reset to Template and Add Users/Groups. The Reset to Template icon allows you to revert individual pages, or the entire site, to the site definition files upon which they are based. When you click it, you are prompted with a confirmation alert. If you click the Yes button, a browser window opens that shows the Reset to Site Definition management page in SharePoint. To understand this function better, see the discussions of "ghosted" or "customized" files in Appendix A and Chapter 3.

Clicking the Add Users/Groups icon summons the Add Permissions dialog shown in Figure 1-22.

This dialog allows you to select individual users, as well as already-existing groups, and assign them permission to resources. In this instance, you are working with an entire SharePoint site, but the same dialog (or portions thereof) is used wherever SharePoint Designer needs you to assign permissions to a resource.

Figure 1.22. Figure 1-22

As indicated in the dialog's descriptive text, you can enter a user or group ID in the text field provided. Clicking the small icon containing the checkmark validates your entries against the SharePoint membership provider. If an exact match is not found, you may be able to select from a list of similar members (if any).

You also have the option of clicking the address book icon beside the text box. This summons the SharePoint Contacts dialog shown in Figure 1-23.

Figure 1.23. Figure 1-23

In the SharePoint Contacts dialog, you can enter part of the name you want to find in the text field at the top of the form, and press the Enter key. Any matching results appear in the list. You can then highlight individual entries and click the Add button. You can repeat this process as often as needed before clicking the OK button, which then moves your selections into the Add Permissions dialog.

The Manage section of the Site ribbon tab contains five icons. Of these, three of them — Administration Web Page, Save as Template, and Recycle Bin — redirect you to the appropriate SharePoint web UI for that element.

The Preview in Browser button allows you to view your site in one of the web browsers installed on your PC. As Figure 1-24 shows, you can also force the browser window to a particular size.

Figure 1.24. Figure 1-24

The final icon in the Site ribbon tab is Site Options. Most of the settings here relate to general web management and are beyond the scope of this book. However, two areas merit your attention.

Figure 1.25. Figure 1-25

The first item is that, when you initially click the icon and summon the Site Settings dialog, you see the Parameters tab as shown in Figure 1-25.

Two of the parameters listed — vti_siteusage-totalvisits and vti_siteusagetotalbandwidth — are actually "reports." They tell you the total number of visits to your site, and the total amount of data that has been transferred. Although not comprehensive, observing the changes in these values over time can help you get a quick feel for the popularity of your site.

The second relevant area is the Advanced tab, where two settings are called out in Figure 1-26.

Figure 1.26. Figure 1-26

Callout 1 is an option for showing a "web page view" in the file dialog for Microsoft Office applications. This view provides easy and direct navigation to the document libraries on your site. Deselecting this option forces Office applications to use a standard "file and folder" style dialog to navigate your site, which may expose elements you would rather leave hidden.

Callout 2 highlights the Delete Files button in the Temporary files section. As you work in SharePoint Designer, it will keep temporary copies of many files in a cache on your hard disk for quicker access. If this cache becomes too full or corrupt, performance of SharePoint Designer can deteriorate. Clicking this button clears the cache and gives SharePoint Designer a fresh start.

The content area of the Site Summary page contains several blocks of information. The exact content of these blocks, of course, varies depending on various aspects of the open SharePoint Site.

The first block in the left column is labeled Site Information. The Site Information block tells you the following:

Figures 1-27 and 1-28 show the Site Information blocks from the root site of a collection, and a subsite, respectively.

Figure 1.27. Figure 1-27

Below the Site Information block is the Customization block. This block contains two links. On non-publishing sites, the Edit Site Home Page opens the home page in the SharePoint Designer Page Editor, which is described in the next chapter. On publishing sites, this link produces a warning that publishing page content cannot be edited in SharePoint Designer, and you are given the opportunity to edit the page layout upon which the home page is based. The Change Site Theme link opens the Site Theme page in the web user interface.

Figure 1.28. Figure 1-28

The final block in the left column is the Settings block. The three options here allow you to determine whether to show the Quick Launch or tree view on the site, and whether to allow RSS feeds of list and library information.

The top block in the right column lists the Permission groups currently active in your site. This block may have a New button in the title bar. If so, clicking it will summon the same dialog you get when clicking the Add Users/Groups icon in the ribbon.

If you are on a subsite, the button may say Stop Inheriting instead of New. In this case, permissions are inherited from the site's immediate parent, and normally managed from there. Clicking Stop Inheriting breaks this inheritance and allows you to manage permissions for the current subsite alone.

Within the Permissions list, clicking one of the groups summons the dialog shown in Figure 1-29.

Figure 1.29. Figure 1-29

This dialog allows you to determine which permission levels are applied to members of that group. A group may be assigned multiple permission levels. See the description of the Site Groups view in the next section, as well as Appendix B, for more information about managing permissions in SharePoint and SharePoint Designer.

The Subsites block also contains a New button in the title bar. Clicking the New button summons the same dialog you get when clicking the corresponding button in the ribbon, as described earlier in this chapter.

In the Subsites block, clicking on a subsite summons the "Subsites" ribbon tab (described later in this chapter). Double-clicking a subsite in this list opens the site in a new SharePoint Designer window.

Lists and libraries are the fundamental units of storage in SharePoint. Figure 1-30 shows the lists and libraries that make up a basic Team Site in SharePoint 2010.

Figure 1.30. Figure 1-30

Workflows in SharePoint allow you to automate processes such as document approval and feedback collection. SharePoint Designer allows you to supplement the stock workflows with custom workflows.

The Site Pages library on most SharePoint sites is a Wiki library that shows you each page in your site as a separate document. This library is different from the Pages library on a SharePoint publishing site. Although they perform similar functions, fundamental distinctions exist between these libraries and the pages they contain. You'll learn how to tell the difference, as well as how to edit these pages, in Chapter 3. Figure 1-31 shows the Site Pages library on a Team Site.

Figure 1.31. Figure 1-31

Site assets are files that can be used in multiple places within the site. Assets may include images, style sheet files, even videos. Figure 1-32 shows a Site Assets library that contains several image files.

Figure 1.32. Figure 1-32

A content type defines the default set of fields that a particular list or library item contains. The Content Types page allows you to manage (add, edit, or remove) the content types defined in the site. As shown in Figure 1-33, the content types are grouped into broad categories such as documents, folders, or list items.

You learn more about using SharePoint Designer to modify content types in Chapter 6.

Site columns define a particular field type that can be used in lists or libraries throughout your site. You can create your own reusable columns, such as a common calculated field (for example, assembling a label address from separate street, city, state, and zip columns) or a pre-defined choice field. Figure 1-34 shows some of the many site columns already defined in SharePoint 2010.

Figure 1.33. Figure 1-33

External content types are a function of Business Connectivity Services (BCS) that allows you to treat information hosted outside of SharePoint as if it were a native SharePoint list. Several chapters in this book deal with accessing external data.

The Data Sources page allows you to manage both SharePoint and non-SharePoint data sources, making them available for use in data views. Data sources can be managed by BCS or individually.

Figure 1.34. Figure 1-34

The Master Pages and Page Layouts pages allow you to view and edit the master pages and page layouts in your site. The page layouts view is only available in SharePoint sites that have the Publishing feature activated.

Master pages control the overall look and feel of your SharePoint site. You can significantly change the style of your site without impacting its function or content simply by swapping to a different master page. Page layouts work within the master pages to control the presentation of content on different page types within a SharePoint publishing site.

Chapter 4 provides details about using SharePoint Designer 2010 for the creation of master pages and layouts.

SharePoint allows site owners to manage user access to their sites. Appendix B describes how this is performed through the web interface. The Site Groups page of SharePoint Designer provides an enhanced user experience for managing site security groups and their memberships. When you initially click on this page, you are presented with a list of groups. Clicking on an individual group shows a summary page similar to that shown in Figure 1-35.

Figure 1.35. Figure 1-35

From this screen, you can edit all the key information about the group in one place. The following descriptions refer to the callouts in Figure 1-35.

The first block in the left column (Callout 1) is an informational block. As with the Site information block described in the previous section, the Name and Description blocks are directly editable. Clicking the Group Owners link provides a user selector dialog as described earlier in this chapter. Clicking the Permissions link summons a dialog that lets you choose which permission levels you want to assign to the group.

The second block in the left column (Callout 2) allows you to set who can view or modify the membership of the group.

The first block in the right column (Callout 3) shows you the current membership of the group. Clicking in this block summons the Group Members contextual ribbon tab, shown in Figure 1-36.

Figure 1.36. Figure 1-36

Adding, removing, and viewing member information are self-explanatory commands, and are available both from the ribbon and in the block itself. You add a user through the Add Users button and use the same user selector described earlier in this chapter. You can see a user's details by clicking on his name, or right-clicking anywhere on the row and selecting View Member Information from the context menu. You can also delete a member from the group from the right-click context menu.

The final block (Callout 4) lets you control whether a user can request or withdraw his membership in the group. You may also allow requests for addition or deletion to be automatically approved by SharePoint. The final field allows you to enter an e-mail address to which SharePoint will forward membership requests. Unlike most user entry forms, this does not include access to the user selector dialog. You may enter any freeform e-mail address in this box.

A site or web in SharePoint can contain other sites. When the site on which you are working has such children, they will be listed in the Subsites page. Clicking on one of these subsites opens it in a new instance of SharePoint Designer.

The All Files page gives you a traditional file and folder view of the contents of your site. You can also find most of the artifacts found in the other Site Object view pages in the All Files page. The main difference is that this view reflects the URL path the user would see when accessing your site through a web browser. Figure 1-37 shows the all-files view with the Site Pages folder open, and the Site Objects list group closed.

Figure 1.37. Figure 1-37