Cloudscape Design System
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  • Foundation
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Cloudscape Design System
  • Get started
  • Foundation
  • Components
  • Patterns
  • Demos
  • GitHub 
  • About

Patterns


  • General

    • Actions
      • Global actions
      • In-context actions
    • Announcing new features
    • Announcing beta and preview features
    • Communicating unsaved changes
    • Data visualization
      • Chart metric drill down
    • Density settings
    • Disabled and read-only states
    • Drag-and-drop
    • Errors
      • Error messages
      • Validation
    • Empty states
    • Feedback mechanisms
    • Filtering patterns
      • Saved filter sets
      • Filter persistence in collection views
    • Hero header
    • Help system
    • Image magnifier
    • Loading and refreshing
    • Onboarding
      • Hands-on tutorials
    • Selection in forms
    • Service navigation
      • Side navigation
      • Top navigation
    • Service Dashboard
      • Static dashboard
      • Configurable dashboard
      • Dashboard items
    • Secondary panels
    • Timestamps
    • User feedback

  • Generative AI patterns

    • Pattern abstraction
    • Generative AI chat
    • Ingress
    • Generative AI output label
    • Generative AI loading states
    • Progressive steps

  • Resource management

    • Create resource
      • Multipage create
      • Single page create
      • Sub resource create
    • Delete patterns
      • One-click delete
      • Delete with simple confirmation
      • Delete with additional confirmation
    • Edit resource
      • Page edit
      • Inline edit
      • Attribute editing
    • View resources
      • Table view
      • Card view
      • Split view
      • Table with expandable rows
    • Resource details
      • Details page
      • Details page with tabs
      • Details page as a hub
  1. Cloudscape Design System
    • Patterns
    • General: Service navigation
    1. Cloudscape Design System
    2. Patterns
    3. General: Service navigation

    Service navigation

    Provides a structural view of the service's navigation, and offers globally accessible functionality.

    Published: October 28, 2021

    On this page

    1. Patterns
    2. Key UX concepts
    3. Criteria
    4. Configurations
    5. General guidelines

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    Patterns

    Depending on your needs, you can opt for one of two independent navigation types, or combine them.

    Top navigation

    Top navigation provides global controls that help users use the product or service. It’s comprised of a collection of global functionalities that are separate from the product's structural navigation.

    Side navigation

    Provides a structural view of a services's navigation, allowing users to easily navigate sections and pages within the service.

    Key UX concepts

    The service navigation should be organized to best support the information architecture (IA) of the service, and used to provide access and visibility to global functionality. It provides two types of navigation. First the side navigation, which can be paired with breadcrumbs and provides four types of information-architectural structures of various hierarchies to form the structural navigation. Second the top navigation, which should be used to support the user’s global navigation requirements such as search and utility navigation.

    Top navigation
    The Cloudscape top navigation component provides global functionalities for services.

    Criteria

    Top and side navigation Side navigation onlyTop navigation only
    Structural navigationYesYesNo
    Utility navigationYesNoYes
    Global searchYesNoYes

    Structural navigation

    The side navigation houses the structural navigation and should be organized to best support the information architecture (IA) of the service, the user’s primary use cases, and the mental modal of the involved resources.

    Utility navigation

    Housed in the top navigation component, this type of navigation is a collection of functionalities that are separate to the service's structural navigation. This provides controls that help users navigate the service.

    For example: Notifications, service settings, user profile management, and sign out.

    Global search

    A global search provides the ability for users to locate content within a system, or jump to a particular area of a service. Positioned in the same place on every page of a service it provides a global persistent position in the service.

    Configurations

    There are three possible configurations achievable with the top and side navigation, depending on your services needs.

    Top navigation and side navigation

    Use this pattern for your navigation if your service has the need for users to access various hierarchical structures of the service's information architecture (IA). And also requires additional functionality such as utility navigation and search.

    For example: A service that allows users to move between multiple pages, and manage settings and resources.

    Side navigation only

    Use the side navigation paired with breadcrumbs for your navigation if your services does not need utility navigational functions such as search, notifications, service settings, and sign out.

    For example: A native desktop app that does not require a sign in or service settings functionality.

    Top navigation only

    Use the top navigation on its own if your service does not have the need for users to move between multi pages of a service.

    For example: A one-page service that uses search as its primary navigational function.

    General guidelines

    Do

    • Follow branding guidelines where necessary.

    Don't

    • Don't place utility navigation (such as links to account, settings, or sign out) in the side navigation. Users expect to find this in the top navigation.

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