Updated: September 8, 2023

Object Page Floorplan

Information
This article contains general guidelines for the object page floorplan. Note that some features may not be available if you are using the SAP Fiori elements implementation.

For the latest information on SAP Fiori elements, see the documentation and SAP Community wiki. You can also refer to the SAP Fiori elements feature map to see which controls and capabilities are supported for object pages.

Intro

The object page floorplan is used to display and categorize all relevant information about an object. Categorized content can be accessed quickly using anchor or tab navigation, and users can switch from display to edit mode to change the content. To create a new object, users can switch to create mode.

The object page floorplan comes with a flexible, responsive layout and a dynamic page header that can be adapted to display simple and complex business objects. This allows you to adjust the layout to a wide range of use cases.

Object page floorplan
Object page floorplan

Warning

  • Always build the object page using the dynamic page header and not the former object page header. Using the old object page header creates issues that can’t be fixed retrospectively. Using the dynamic header will also ensure consistency across all floorplans and provide greater flexibility. For details, see the Header section below.
  • Do not use the current implementation of the “page variant” feature in SAP Fiori elements. This feature is technically available for object pages, but we are still working on the final design.

When to Use

Use the object page floorplan if:

  • Users need to display, create, or edit an object.
  • Users need to get an overview of an object and interact with different parts of the object.

Do not use the object page floorplan if:

Use instead:

  • Users need to edit several items at the same time.
  • Users need to find relevant items without knowing the exact item details.

List report floorplan
  • Users need to be guided through a series of steps when a new object is created.
  • The creation process for a new object is not linear, but can have different paths, depending on the information selected.
Wizard floorplan
  • Users need to find one specific item, where the item or an identifying data point is known to the user (such as a code identified by a scanner).
Initial page floorplan
  • Users need a way to analyze data step by step from different perspectives. They need to drill down to investigate a root cause and act on transactional content within one page.
  • Users need to interact with interdependent chart and table views (rather than using charts for visualization only).
Analytical list page

Components

The object page consists of the following elements:

  • Dynamic page header (mandatory)
  • Navigation bar (optional)
  • Content area (mandatory)

The image below provides an overview of the object page components.

Schematic visualization of the object page
Schematic visualization of the object page
  1. Dynamic page header
  2. Navigation bar
  3. Content area
  4. Shell bar
  5. Breadcrumbs
  6. Global actions
  7. Header content
  8. Footer toolbar

The following sections explain these components in more detail.

Dynamic Page Header (mandatory)

The dynamic page header contains key information about the object and provides the user with the necessary context. The header initially expands in display mode. It also contains global actions for the object, such as Edit or Delete.

The header consists of the following elements:

  1. Breadcrumbs (optional)
  2. Title (mandatory)
  3. Subtitle (optional)
  4. Object marker (optional)
  5. Header toolbar with global actions (optional)
  6. Visual indicator for header features (mandatory if the header can be collapsed and expanded)
  7. Header content (optional)
Object page with the expanded dynamic page header
Object page with the expanded dynamic page header
Object page with the collapsed dynamic page header
Object page with the collapsed dynamic page header

If the object page is used in the flexible column layout, it can also contain layout actions.

Please note:

  • To display images and placeholders in the header, use the avatar control.
  • The subtitle is now below the title. (In the former object page header it was next to the title.)

For more information, see the Dynamic Page Header section for the dynamic page layout.

Warning
Always build the object page using the dynamic page header and not the former object page header. Using the old object page header creates issues that can’t be fixed retrospectively. Using the dynamic header will also ensure consistency across all floorplans and provide greater flexibility. For details, see the Header section below.
Developer Hint
To use the dynamic page header in SAP Fiori Elements, set the class “objectPageHeaderType” to “Dynamic”.

Breadcrumbs

A breadcrumb is displayed above the object title. Limit the breadcrumb to the drilldown levels within the object page.

Header Content (optional)

The header content displays app-specific contextual information. You build the content using containers, called facets.

The facets are arranged inline with a left float. Each facet adapts its size to the content and makes optimal use of the space without truncating the texts. If the facets do not all fit on one line, those on the right wrap to the line below.

The header content is hidden by scrolling down the page or clicking the collapse indicator.

There are several types of header facets for different kinds of data. The facets must be implemented by the app team for standalone object pages. For SAP Fiori elements, they are predefined.

The following header facets are available:

Form Facet (Dataset)

You can use the form facet to display datasets.

A form facet consists of:

  1. Title (optional)
  2. Label-text pair (no more than 5 in a group)
  • The labels can be invisible, but need to have a text for accessibility purposes.
  • The labels can be icons, but need to have a text for accessibility purposes.
  • Each text can hold a link.
Developer Hint
For non-SAP Fiori element object pages only:

For each label-value pair in the form header facet, use a sap.m.Label and a sap.m.Text or sap.m.Link, nested within an sap.m.HBox.

Header facet - Form facets
Header facet - Form facets

Plain Text Facet

You can use the plain text facet to display a continuous text in the header.

A plain text facet consists of:

  1. Title (optional)
  2. Text

You can have links inline in the continuous text. They can navigate to another page or open a quick view. The text can contain more than one link, with different actions.

The default width of the facet is 320 px. The width of the facet doesn’t adapt to its content, but when the headline is broader than the facet width, the header wraps. You can also set a specific width to make optimal use of the given space.

Developer Hint
For non-SAP Fiori element object pages only:

To set the width of the plain text facet, nest the text within an sap.m.HBox and set the property:width of the sap.m.HBox.

Header facet - Plain text facet with default width
Header facet - Plain text facet with default width
Header facet - Plain text facet with custom width
Header facet - Plain text facet with custom width

Image Facet

You can use the image facet to show a picture of the object or a user profile. The header can have either one image facet or no image facet. The position of the image facet is fixed to the left. The image can have a press event. The default press event enlarges the image. When the header collapses, the image facet moves to the left of the title and becomes smaller.

Guidelines
Always use the avatar control for the image in the header. This applies to both expanded and collapsed images.
Header facet – Image facet specification
Header facet – Image facet specification

Key Value Facet

You can use the key value facet to highlight important data or KPIs.

A key value facet contains:

  1. Title (mandatory)
  2. Text or number in a larger font size

If the key value facet is used with a text, such as a status, you can also display an icon to the right of the text. This icon must only be used as a visual cue for the text it relates to, and not to add more information.

Developer Hint
For non-SAP Fiori element object pages only:

Larger value texts are now possible following the introduction of new properties for the object status and object number.

Header facet – Key value facets with KPIs and a status
Header facet – Key value facets with KPIs and a status

Micro Chart Facet

A micro chart facet consists of:

  1. Title (mandatory)
  2. Subtitle (optional)
  3. Micro chart (mandatory)
  4. Footer (optional)

To display the unit used in the micro chart, use the footer.

The following micro charts can be used in the micro chart facet:

The micro chart facet can have a click event on the chart itself. This can lead to a page with a bigger chart or open a quick view, for example.

For more information, see Micro Charts.

Header facet – Micro chart facets
Header facet – Micro chart facets

Progress Indicator Facet

A progress indicator facet consists of:

  1. Title (mandatory)
  2. Progress indicator
  3. Subtitle (optional)
  4. Footer (optional)

For more information, see Progress Indicator.

Header facet - Progress indicator facet
Header facet - Progress indicator facet

Rating Indicator Facet

You can use this facet to display a rating indicator, which can be modified to fit your use case.

A rating indicator facet consists of:

  1. Title
  2. Rating indicator
  3. Supplementary texts (1-2)

We recommend the following property settings when using the rating indicator in header facets:

  • 5 symbols as the default.
  • Use the Favorite icon as the symbol.
  • Display half-stars to represent decimal values.

The rating indicator facet can be used for two different use cases: aggregated rating and single-value rating.

Aggregated rating:

A typical example of an aggregated rating is the average of several user reviews for a product.

The aggregated rating facet consists of:

  1. Title (mandatory)
  2. Subtitle (optional): Indicates the amount of data being aggregated.
  3. Rating indicator
  4. Footer (mandatory): Displays the exact aggregation value. Use the format “<average rating> out of <maximum rating>”. For the average rating, use the exact value with one decimal place.

Single value rating:

The single value rating facet consists of:

  1. Title (mandatory)
  2. Subtitle (optional): Displays supplementary text
  3. Rating indicator
Header facet - Rating indicator facet with aggregated rating and single value rating
Header facet - Rating indicator facet with aggregated rating and single value rating

Navigation Bar (optional)

If your content is simple and you need only one section, use the dynamic page layout. In the dynamic page layout with one section, the header area can’t be edited when the page is in edit mode.

If your content is complex and you need several sections, use the object page layout. You can only have several sections in the object page layout. In the object page layout with several sections, it’s also possible to edit the header area when the page is in edit mode. However, try to avoid having an editable header and move the content from the header to the sections instead.

If you need only one section, but require an editable header, use the object page layout. An object page with only one section doesn’t have any anchor bars. However, a temporary anchor bar and section for editing the header content should be added when edit mode is triggered.

If the content is complex there are two ways to structure it:

  • Anchor bar navigation (default)
  • Tab bar navigation

Anchor Bar Navigation

The anchor bar consists of a series of links, which are arranged horizontally at the top of the page. The anchors represent sections or subsections of the page. Clicking a link navigates to the respective section. The anchor bar remains visible when the user scrolls down the page.

Use anchor bar navigation when the content belongs together but users might want to jump to specific parts directly.

For more information, see Anchor Bar Navigation below.

Tab Bar Navigation

The tabs are a series of links to subpages, arranged horizontally at the top of the page. Clicking a link navigates to the respective subpage. The tabs remain visible when the user scrolls down the page.

Use tab bar navigation if your page covers different topics that each have complex content, such as long tables or lists.

For more information, see Tab Bar Navigation below.

Anchor Bar Navigation

The anchor bar is the default navigation control for the object page. It consists of a series of anchor links, which are arranged horizontally at the top of the page. The anchors represent sections or subsections of the page. Clicking on these links directs the user to specific sections of the page. The anchor links remain visible when the user scrolls down the page.

Developer Hint
Make sure that the UpperCaseAchorBar property is disabled and that you enter the anchor bar labels in title case (for example: Contact Information).

Overflow

If there are more anchors than the screen can accommodate, the remaining anchors move into an overflow menu. The overflow button on the right of the navigation bar () opens a hierarchical dropdown list of all sections and subsections. When the user scrolls down the page, the anchor links scroll horizontally to ensure that the active anchor is always visible.

You might also see a small right arrow on the anchor bar. This arrow allows you to scroll horizontally to reveal any hidden content, and only appears when you hover over the overflow menu. In the meantime, this arrow has been replaced by the overflow menu button, but is still supported technically for legacy reasons.

Responsiveness

On small screens, the anchor bar becomes a dropdown list. The text field of the dropdown list shows the section currently selected. Clicking the dropdown menu opens a hierarchical list with all the sections and subsections of the page.



Object page – Anchor bar
Object page – Anchor bar
  1. Active anchor
  2. Inactive anchor
  3. Subsection dropdown
  4. Subsection
  5. Subsection dropdown indicator
  6. Overflow carousel button
  7. Overflow menu button
  8. Overflow menu dropdown
  9. Section (hover) in overflow menu
  10. Section in overflow menu
  11. Subsection in overflow menu

Behavior and Interaction

Click / Select: Action:
Anchor link Scrolls page directly to the content of the selected section (not to the title).
Arrow next to section anchor with several subsections Opens the submenu.
Item in the overflow list Scrolls the page to the content of the respective section or subsection (not to the title).
Keyboard left and right arrows Move between anchor links.
Fade area to the left or right of the anchor bar Causes an overflow arrow button to appear (compact mode only). The overflow arrow button is always visible in cozy mode.
Overflow scroll button (right arrow) Scrolls the anchors horizontally to bring anchors that are hidden in the overflow into view.
Overflow menu button () Displays a hierarchical dropdown list with all the sections and subsections of the page.

Tab Bar Navigation

As an alternative to the anchor bar, you can also use the tab bar for navigation. The tab bar works in a similar way to the icon tab bar, but is not the same control. The tab bar navigation for the object page is a variant of the anchor bar, and is handled by the object page layout control.

If you set the tab bar property (useIconTabBar = “true”), the navigation bar displays tabs instead of anchors. The object page only supports text-only tabs; icon tabs and icon/text tabs are not available. The object page sections and subsections are reflected in the tab navigation: sections of the object page become the tabs, and subsections become the internal content of the tab. The tabs can have an item counter, which is displayed in parentheses next to the title of the tab.

On small screens, the tab bar uses the same horizontal carousel overflow pattern as the icon tab bar. This differs from the dropdown approach used for the anchor bar.

Subnavigation

To make it easier to reach specific content on a long tab page, tabs can have subnavigation. Subnavigation is optional, but the default state is set to “true” and a dropdown arrow is shown next to the tab. Clicking on the dropdown arrow displays a dropdown menu with the subsection anchors for that tab. Applications can decide which tabs are enabled for anchor subnavigation by setting their property to “true”.



Object page – Tab navigation
Object page – Tab navigation
  1. Anchor/tab bar navigation
  2. First section
  3. Second section

Content Area

The object page content consists of sections and subsections arranged in a column layout.

Sections

Sections are containers for subsections. They provide the basic structure for navigation and are directly reflected in the navigation bar.

The first section doesn’t have a title.

All the following sections consist of:

  1. Title with item counter (counter is optional)
  2. Subsections

Sections cannot contain controls.

If a section contains only one subsection, the title of the subsection is used as the name of the section. In this case, there is no subsection submenu in the anchor bar.

Sections can only contain subsections, not content. Because of this, the object page only provides toolbars for local actions at the subsection level.

Subsections

Subsections are containers for actual content.

A subsection consists of:

  1. Title with item counter (counter is optional)
  2. Toolbar with actions (optional)
  3. Content
  4. Mixable related content (optional)
  5. Controls inside subsection (optional)

If the subsection contains a table or a chart and the title is the same, you have the option to hide the subsection title.

Subsection content is arranged according to the column layout approach for the respective screen size.

Subsections have a progressive disclosure mechanism to show and hide content. App developers can specify which content is shown initially, but the user can always choose to display everything by selecting the toggle button Show More / Show Less at the bottom right of the subsection.

Responsiveness

The content blocks in a subsection display in a row. The width of the row depends on the column layout for the respective screen size. If there is not enough space to display a content block, it wraps to the line below.

Object page – Content responsiveness
Object page – Content responsiveness

Forms

Forms follow the standard layout of the object page:

  • Extra large: 4 columns
  • Large: 3 columns
  • Medium: 2 columns
  • Small: 1 column

Forms are located within subsections. They follow the column design of the object page, whereby each form group is arranged into a column. The title of the form is given by the subsection header. Only use the form title if you are using several forms within the same subsection.

Use top-aligned labels for form fields. Top-aligned labels are known to reduce completion times and are the best approach for forms requiring localization or long labels. Using top-aligned labels also avoids issues with the spacing between the label and form field, which can occur with left- and right-aligned labels.

If you are using the object page without object page blocks, you can use the column layout for forms, which automatically distributes form groups across the columns in the object page.

You can enable users to show and hide forms, groups or label-value field pairs using the Show More / Show Less toggle button.

SAP Fiori elements provide an option to show or hide fields on small screen devices based on their importance.

Developer Hint
You can set the importance of a field using the UI.Importance annotation. Based on the annotation type ("High", "Medium", or "Low"), the fields are shown or hidden depending on the screen size. If you do not specify the UI.Importance annotation, the default is set to "High" and the field is shown on all device types.

Blocks

Layout blocks allow content to be aligned within the columns as follows:

  • Layout 1: Occupies the maximum available horizontal space of one column.
  • Layout 2: Occupies the horizontal space of only two columns. If there is only one column available, it occupies one column.
  • Layout 3: Occupies the horizontal space of three columns. If there is only one column available, it occupies one column. If there are only two columns available, it occupies two columns.

To show and hide blocks, you can use a Show More / Show Less toggle button. Do not use the panel container in the object page content area.

Object page – Blocks
Object page – Blocks

Tables

If a section or subsection contains only one table and no other content, remove the table title to avoid having duplicate titles for the table. In this case, the section or subsection title acts as the table title.

Depending on the number of table items, use one of the following loading behaviors:

Number of Table Items: Use:
Up to 20 Items can be displayed right away
Up to 100 Lazy loading
More than 50-100 but less than 400 Tab navigation
More than 400 or tab approach is unsuitable Navigation to list report

If a table is expected to have more than 20 items, use one of the 3 options below for long tables.

For all three options, we recommend providing a search, and if feasible, sort and filtering for the table in the object page. Avoid grouping.

1. Lazy Loading Behavior (“More” button)

If you expect up to 100 items, use the More button of the responsive table. The initial number of items shown depends on the height of the rows. We recommend initially showing 5 to 10 items, but not more than 20. If there is more than one table in the object page, only use this option for tables with up to 50 expected items.

2. Tab Navigation

If you expect to have more than 50 to 100 items, but less than 400, using the object page with tab navigation instead of anchor navigation also solves the problems associated with long tables. To enable the scroll-to-load behavior, the table must be the only or last element within a tab.

3. Navigation to List Report

For tables with more than 400 items, or when the tab approach is unsuitable, restrict the size of the table in the object page to a reasonable number of items. We recommend only showing a preview of no more than 20 items. Ideally, you should have about 10 items. This can be achieved by prefiltering and/or sorting the table, and, if necessary, setting a fixed number of items (such as the top 10). To enable the user to work with the entire table, offer navigation to a separate list report containing the full table. To do this, place a right-aligned link below the table with the label Show All (x), where x represents the total number of items in the table.

Table with navigation to a separate list report
Table with navigation to a separate list report

The object page loads in a “growing” mode. This means that the object page loads section by section to show users some content before the whole page is loaded. Scrolling down the page triggers loading for the sections below. Hidden items in sections are only loaded (and rendered) by clicking the Show More button for the section.

If the loading takes a long time, a busy indicator is shown on top of the section or item until the content it loaded and visible.

Busy indicators for sections still loading
Busy indicators for sections still loading

Representation of Child Pages

In object pages with drilldown navigation, child pages are represented in two ways:

  • Breadcrumbs: A breadcrumb is displayed above the object title. Limit the breadcrumb to the drilldown levels within the object page.
  • Paging buttons: Up and down arrows in the layout action area allow the user to navigate between subitems without going back to the original list.

Footer Toolbar

The footer toolbar is used in edit and create mode for closing and finalizing actions, such as Save, Post, Accept, Reject, and Activate.

Behavior and Interaction

The basic layout of the object page in terms of header, navigation, and content remains the same in all modes (display, edit, create).

Edit

In edit mode, the object page can contain a mixture of editable and read-only content.

If the user needs to edit elements in the header, a header section is added in the content area to enable editing.

Use the same content layout for both display and edit mode. Content should not change location when the user switches between display and edit modes.

For global and local editing guidelines, see Manage Objects – Create, Edit, Delete.

Editing the Header

The object page header can be edited in two ways:

  • Global edit
  • Partial edit

Global Edit

The header can be edited when the entire object page is in edit mode.

Because the header snaps on scroll, there are no editable forms in the header itself. Instead, a temporary header section is added before the other sections of the page. The title bar information and all editable fields from the header container move from the header to the new editable header section. Any non-editable content displays as read-only in the new header section. You can leave out header content that doesn’t make sense in edit mode (for example, aggregated values that are calculated from several sources, KPIs, or micro charts).

If only a few fields in the header are editable, and they match an existing section, they are moved to that section. In this case, no editable header section appears.

If your object page has no anchor bar in display mode, and the header section has only a few editable fields, do not add navigation in edit mode.

The header container in edit mode may contain independent facets that are not included in the header content in display mode. They provide information to assist editing.

If the entire object page is in edit mode, but there is no editable information in the header, no editable header section is added.

Any changes made to the header are not reflected until the user saves them.

Partial Edit

The user can edit the header content separately by pressing the Edit Header button.

If there are only a few elements to edit, the partial edit triggers a dialog.

If there are too many elements to fit in a dialog, the partial edit triggers a subpage. The subpage contains all editable information from the header. However, it differs from the “Header” section in global edit mode in that it has no action buttons in the toolbar, no navigation, and no breadcrumbs.

Create and Edit Subobjects

The following options are available for creating or editing subobjects:

  • Navigation to a subobject page
  • Inline create or inline edit in a table
  • Dialog containing the fields of the object

To enable users to create subobjects inline, offer an Add or Create button on the table toolbar. Clicking the button creates a row at the top of the table. Pressing CTRL+ENTER has the same effect.

If the subobject has less than 8 fields, use a dialog or the inline create/edit option (no separate page for the subobject). Exceptions can apply if additional content for the subobject is available but not part of the edit process, or if other apps need to offer deep links to the subobject page.

Unsaved Changes

If draft handling has been implemented, documents are automatically saved as draft versions in the background. An editing icon to the right of the object title indicates that a draft version exists. In other words, either the current user or another user has made changes, but not yet actively saved the document (“unsaved changes”). Do not show the editing icon for unsaved changes if draft handling is not supported.

Selecting the editing icon invokes a popover with more information about the unsaved changes. This normally states:

  • Who made the changes
  • When the last changes were made

The popover closes when the user clicks outside the popover.

Unsaved changes popover
Unsaved changes popover

Create

Create mode is similar to edit mode, except that the user creates a new object and defines a title for it. Until the new object title is known, dispaly the placeholder text “New ” (for example, New Purchase Order). Replace the placeholder text with the actual name or ID of the new object as soon as this has been entered or generated.

Consider using the wizard floorplan instead of the object page floorpan if:

  • You need to guide the user through a series of steps when a new object is created.
  • You need a progressive disclosure approach for the creation process.
  • The creation process is not linear, but can have different paths, depending on the information selected.
  • The user is not familiar with the creation task.

Responsiveness

The object page floorplan is responsive and supports all SAP FIori screen sizes: small (S), medium (M), large (L), and extra large (XL). The layout for size XL contains four columns.

Object page – Size S
Object page – Size S
Object page – Size M
Object page – Size M
Object page – Size L
Object page – Size L

The default layout for size L (desktop) contains three columns. If you want to display two content elements that require an equal amount of space, you can also use an optional two-column layout (for example, two tables next to each other). Do not use the two-column layout with forms.

Object page layout – Size L
Object page layout – Size L

The layout for size M (tablet) contains two columns.

Object page layout – Size M
Object page layout – Size M

The layout for size S (smartphone) contains one column.

Object page layout – Size S
Object page layout – Size S

Guidelines

Dynamic Page Header

Use the header to set the context. Ensure that it is clearly structured and contains only essential information. Too much information impedes the main purpose of providing clear context.

Developer Hint
How to achieve a small header:

  • The header container is always optional. If there is no important data to be displayed, you can omit it. In this case, only the header title bar is shown.
  • Omit the image if it is not necessary. It is generally the tallest element in a header container.
  • Use a light theme to reduce the emphasis on the header if it doesn’t contain much information.
  • Consider moving information from the header into a general information section.

Actions

Arrange the actions in the header toolbar with care, and consider what matters most to the user:

  • Highlight actions that are common or most important.
  • Differentiate between secondary and generic actions.
  • Use either a text button or an icon for an action, but not both.
  • Use icons only for generic actions (such as  for Share). For all business actions, use text buttons.
  • Place the most important actions on the left (actions go into the overflow from right to left).
  • Establish a coherent visual approach.

For more information, see Action Placement.

Image Facet

If you intend to use images in the object header, consider the following:

  • How will the user manage the images?
  • How will the system block people without permission from editing images?
  • How will these images be reflected in other floorplans if they are part of the object?
  • If there are a large number of items, how would a user be able to manage images without having to navigate from page to page?
  • Will the organization be able to manage the images?

Tab Navigation

If you have a complex object page, use the tab navigation approach. This can be useful when a complex object page has performance issues in a flat view, or in response to a specific user preference.

Content Area

  • Avoid using the object page as a universal container for masses of information. Use the object page in accordance with the SAP Fiori principles: role-based, coherent, simple, and adaptive.
  • Give your users quick and easy access to the information they need to complete their task(s). Use a progressive disclosure strategy to keep your interface clean. You can always provide additional information on request.
  • Only present your users with information that makes sense for their industry, role, activity, and task.

Dynamic Side Content

You can offer dynamic side content alongside the object page under the following conditions:

  • Use the side panel only for contextual content. Do not place finalizing or global actions in the side panel. This is because opening the side panel occupies the whole right side of the screen. There is no way to show it only below the header and anchor bar.
  • Do not place object information in the side panel. This information should always be in the content area of the object page.

Standard Naming Conventions

For all objects, follow the standard conventions for action buttons, the object name, and the title in the shell bar. For more information see Manage Objects – Naming Guidelines and Launchpad Shell Bar – Page Title and Navigation Menu.

Resources

Want to dive deeper? Follow the links below to find out more about related controls, the SAPUI5 implementation, and the visual design.

Elements and Controls