Use the admin area
The admin area is where the people who run a site or an app write content, manage contacts, send email and change settings. This page is a map of it. Each area links to the page that explains it.
Get in
Sign in with an admin account and open /admin/dashboard. The menu is on the left. The button at its top collapses it to its icons and opens it again; it stays in place while the menu scrolls, and the browser remembers the choice. On a phone the menu is hidden behind the menu button, in a bar that stays at the top of the screen. The first person to sign up on a new install becomes the admin (see Create the first admin); other roles are described in Users and roles.
What you see in the menu depends on the features the site has. A feature that is switched off has no menu item, no page and no settings tab. See All features.
The menu
Items appear in this order. Items marked with a feature are left out when that feature is off. An app's own items appear just before Profile, and an app can also reword, hide, add or move items, for every role or some (see Change the admin menu).
| Menu item | What it is for | Feature | Read more |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dashboard | Cards for the site at a glance: Google Analytics numbers (once connected), how much content and media there is, and growth and leads such as total users and sign-ups. | Always on. The content cards and recent activity need content, the form cards and recent waitlist sign-ups need forms, the Total Signups card needs audience. | Analytics |
| Signup Forms | The list of signup forms. After it, each form has a group of its own, named after the form: Dashboard, Users, Audience & emails, Tags and Email Templates. | forms | Signup forms |
| Media Manager | Uploaded images and files. | Always on | Media |
| Content | Content types, authors, and one entry list for each content type, including Info Pages for the standard pages. | content | Content, Authors and tags |
| Users | The people who have accounts, and their roles. | Always on | Users and roles |
| Audience | Contacts, Lists, Tags, Fields and App users. | audience | Audience, App audience |
| Email + SMS (shown as Email when SMS is off) | Brand Kit, Composer, Broadcasts, Drip Campaigns, Announcements, Email Logs and SMS Logs. | Brand Kit, Composer and Email Logs are always on. Broadcasts, Drip Campaigns and Announcements need email-marketing. SMS Logs needs sms. | Email engine, Email marketing, SMS |
| Feedback | The inbox for messages, voice notes and screenshots sent with the feedback button, and the switch that turns the button on. | Always on | Feedback button |
| Messages | What people sent with the contact form on your site, under New, Done and Possible spam. | contact | Contact form |
| Products | What you sell. | payments | Payments |
| Transactions | Payments received. | payments | Payments |
| Data | Export Data, Import Data, Export Files and Import Files. | data | Data import and export |
| Profile | Your own account details. | Always on | Users and roles |
| Settings | Everything configurable, in the tabs below. | Always on | See below |
| About | Opens the Arc CMS website in a new page. | Always on | |
| Logout | Ends your session. | Always on |
Settings
Settings is a hub of tabs. Tabs of a feature that is off are left out.
| Tab | What you set | Feature |
|---|---|---|
| About | Site name, URL and address. | Always on |
| Email Settings | The email provider, such as SMTP, and the sender. | Always on |
| Integrations | Third-party API keys and services. | Always on |
| Analytics | The Google Analytics connection. | Always on |
| Payments | The payment provider and payment emails. | payments |
| User Settings | Signup and role settings. | Always on |
| SMS | Text messages for phone sign-in. | sms |
| Global Messages | A message shown across the site. | Always on |
| Site Usage | The site usage banner, its message and style. | Always on |
| Localization | The site's languages and the default language. | Always on |
| Search | What is searchable, and the index tools. | search |
| Discoverability | AI crawlers, llms.txt and IndexNow. | seo |
| App audience | Your app's users, read live. | audience |
| Automations | Emails and actions when something happens. | Always on |
| Miscellaneous | Branding and media upload. | Always on |
Where each setting is explained: Email engine, Search, SEO and discoverability, Languages, Automations, Analytics and Banners.
What members see
People who are not admins use the member area instead. See What members see.