Dashboard Overview

Learn how to use the Directus admin dashboard to manage your content and data

The Directus admin dashboard is your central hub for managing content, monitoring analytics, and configuring your project. The dashboard provides a powerful, intuitive interface to work with your data without writing code.

Key Features

The admin dashboard includes several core modules to help you manage your Directus project:

Content Module

Browse, create, edit, and manage items across all your collections.

Insights

Visualize data with customizable dashboards and analytics panels.

Files

Upload, organize, and manage all your media assets.

Settings

Configure your data model, permissions, workflows, and project settings.

Navigation

The admin dashboard uses a sidebar navigation to organize different modules:

• Content - Work with your data collections and items
• Insights - View analytics dashboards and metrics
• Files - Manage media and file assets
• Settings - Configure your project (admin only)
• Users - Manage user accounts and roles

Use the search bar at the top to quickly find collections, items, or settings.

User Interface

The dashboard interface includes:

Header Bar

The top header contains:

• Search - Global search across all content
• Actions - Context-specific action buttons
• User Menu - Access your profile, preferences, and logout

Sidebar Navigation

The left sidebar provides:

• Module Icons - Click to switch between different modules
• Collections - Nested list of your data collections (in Content module)
• Dashboards - Your custom analytics dashboards (in Insights module)

Main Content Area

The center area displays:

• Data Tables - Browse and filter items in collections
• Forms - Create and edit individual items
• Dashboards - Visual panels showing analytics and metrics

Getting Started

To begin using the admin dashboard:

1. Log in to your Directus instance

   Navigate to your Directus URL and enter your credentials.

2. Explore the Content module

   Click Content in the sidebar to view your collections and start managing data.

3. Create your first item

   Select a collection, click the + button, and fill out the form to create a new item.

4. Set up Insights dashboards

   Click Insights to create custom dashboards with analytics panels.

Permissions

What you can see and do in the dashboard depends on your user role and permissions:

• Admin users have full access to all modules and settings
• Regular users see only collections and features they have permission to access
• Permissions are configured in Settings → Roles & Permissions

If you don’t see a module or collection, contact your administrator to request access.

Next Steps

Explore the dashboard modules in detail:

Content Module

Learn how to manage your data collections and items.

Insights & Analytics

Create dashboards to visualize your data.