Updated: May 21, 2021

Busy Indicator

sap.m.BusyIndicator

Intro

The busy indicator informs the user about an ongoing operation.

Busy indicator - Medium and Large
Busy indicator - Medium and Large
Busy indicator - Small
Busy indicator - Small

Usage

Use the busy indicator if:

The ongoing operation covers only part of a screen that has multiple controls, and:

  • You need to display additional information, or,
  • The user needs to be able to cancel the operation.

Examples

  • File Upload: The file upload dialog contains multiple upload operations. The user must be able to cancel each operation. Since the operation is related only to one row and not to the full app, there is no need to block the whole screen. The user still needs to interact with the system, in this case to select the next file to be uploaded.
Example: Busy indicator for file upload
Example: Busy indicator for file upload
  • Table Rows: Each row in the table has an action related to the table item. Clicking the Run button in a specific row changes status of the current item. The user is still able to work on the other items or cancel the current operation.
    Since each SAPUI5 control provides a busy state by default, you could also set the busy state at row level. In this case, however, there would be no option to cancel the operation.
Example: Busy indicator in table rows
Example: Busy indicator in table rows

Do not use the busy indicator if:

  • The operation takes less than one second.
  • You need to block the screen because the user is not supposed to start another activity. In this case, use the busy dialog.

Components

The busy indicator is a blue circle and can also display a text description.

Busy indicator text
Busy indicator text

Guidelines

  • Do not change the mouse cursor to indicate the ongoing operation.
  • Do not use a custom progress indicator icon.
  • Try to avoid showing multiple busy indicators at once.

Properties

The size of the busy indicator can also be changed.

Busy indicator sizes
Busy indicator sizes

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

Implementation