You know those days when admins are in CA deleting web applications just having fun … but then the phone rings? Any users are getting 404? And somebody just deleted the whole production web application? Yeah, not fun.
Anyway, changing the theme color for Central Admin can be a safe way to make PROD look different and encourage admins to be careful. Simple enough. However, Central Admin lacks that snazzy “change the look” button which Team Sites enjoy.
You can still get there by typing in “/_layouts/15/designgallery.aspx” to launch Change The Look. From here, pick our a unique color to make PROD stand out. Click “try” and then “keep.” Voila! You now have a unique look on PROD Central Admin which can help mitigate against “whoops” mistakes by admins. I personally keep all lower environment in default blue and PROD in green.
You can even do fun stuff like Sea Monster …
UPDATE – Give your farm a name!
Another trick I like is to update the homepage text of Central Admin. This gives the farm a “name” and makes it easier to reference when speaking with other SharePoint engineers. Saying “PROD” might be vague if you have multiple farms (Collaboration, Intranet, Extranet, Custom Application, etc.). Clearly marking the farm with a “name” on the Central Admin homepage makes it easier for everyone to remember.
- Modify Site Title
- Site Settings
- Title
- Enter farm name and click OK to save
- Modify Quick Launch
- Site Settings
- Quick Launch
- Edit “Central Administration” link
- Enter farm name and click OK to save
UPDATE – Populate top nav!
One more trick I like is to add top navigation links to Central Admin. This gives admins a quick way to “jump” between pages without as much navigation effort clicking through default menus. Enjoy!
Add-PSSnapIn microsoft.sharepoint.powershell
function AddTopLink ($webUrl, $linkUrl, $linkTitle, $isExternal) {
Write-Host "CREATING $webUrl $linkUrl $linkTitle"
$web = Get-SPWeb $webUrl;
$newLink = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Navigation.SPNavigationNode -ArgumentList @($linkTitle, $linkUrl, $isExternal);
$web.Navigation.TopNavigationBar.AddAsLast($newLink);
$web.Update();
}
$caUrl = (Get-SPWebApplication -IncludeCentralAdministration |? {$_.IsAdministrationWebApplication -eq $true}).Url
$caUrl = $caUrl.TrimEnd("/")
$upsID = (Get-SPServiceApplication |? {$_.TypeName -eq "User Profile Service Application"}).Id
$srchID = (Get-SPServiceApplication |? {$_.TypeName -eq "Search Service Application"}).Id
AddTopLink $caUrl "$caUrl/_admin/Server.aspx" "SOS" $true
AddTopLink $caUrl "$caUrl/_admin/BramNuyts/GetCorrelationId.aspx" "ULS" $true
AddTopLink $caUrl "$caUrl/_admin/sphealth/ListDatabaseSizes.aspx" "DB" $true
AddTopLink $caUrl "$caUrl/_admin/Solutions.aspx" "WSP" $true
AddTopLink $caUrl "$caUrl/_layouts/15/ManageUserProfileServiceApplication.aspx?ApplicationID=$upsID" "UPS" $true
AddTopLink $caUrl "$caUrl/SearchAdministration.aspx?appid=$srchID" "SRCH" $true
