Website > Themes > Set Default Themes

Set Default Themes

The Themes Manager page allows you to select your default theme for your store.  If you want to customize a theme or create a new one, please see Managing Theme Files.

Keep in mind that the values you select here are simply defaults that will be used if there is no alternate theme specified for the individual page being displayed.  If you so desired, you could create individual themes for every page in your store, although we wouldn't recommend this practice.

AbleCommerce also provides Themes for the Merchant Administration, because sometimes a merchant needs a change too! 

Themes

The files that make up a theme are located in the corresponding sub-folders of the \App_Themes\ directory.  After selecting the theme you wish to use for your store, you may want to make a copy of the theme before making changes.  You can do this by using the Themes File Manager.

A theme is composed of Cascading Style Sheets (.css) and Asp.Net Skin (.skin) files which allow you to customize the look and feel of your store.  The purpose of this documentation is not to explain skinning or style sheets in detail.  So, if you are not familiar with .CSS files or .SKIN files, you may want to search on Google for some more information.

An AbleCommerce theme also includes the images used throughout your store.  This includes the logo, add to cart buttons, and much more.  You can view the \images\ folder for your selected theme to see which images are available.  Replace these images with your own for a custom store appearance.

Setting the Store Theme

AbleCommerce provides built-in store themes samples.  The themes are very similar in layout and design.  The main differences are the colors and styles used.    

  1. From the Themes page, or from the top-menu, go to Website > Themes.

  2. A partial Themes list is shown in the example below -


  3. In the first column, the currently selected Default theme is indicated by the symbol.  In our example, it is the Computer theme.  To change the selected theme to a different one, click the CHANGE DEFAULT button.

  4. A pop-up form will appear.  Select a different theme from the list and click the OK button when finished.

  5. Any page in your store using the default theme will be updated immediately.  You can preview any store theme by clicking on the magnifying glass icon.

Setting the Admin Theme

If you create your own merchant administration theme or want to use one of the built-in AbleCommerce themes, you can select it here.

  1. From the Themes page, or from the top-menu, go to Website > Themes.

  2. At the top of the Store Theme list, click the ADMIN THEME button.

  3. A pop-up form will appear.  


  4. Select a different theme from the list and click the OK button when finished.  The selected Admin Theme will be immediately displayed.

The screenshots used in this documentation are coming from the "AbleCommerce" admin theme.

 

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