Before you can get started on your app, you’ll want to have a solid understanding of how the Knack builder works. In this article, we’ll cover all the basics you need to know before diving into your app.

Introduction to the Knack Dashboard

Think of your dashboard as your Knack "home page." It’s here that you can manage all your apps, as well as your account and billing settings.

From the Apps tab, you can view, share, or delete current apps, add a new app, or view apps that have been shared with you. You’ll also see an overview of your plan usage:

From the Account tab, you can set your account name and URL. This is used in the URLs for all of your apps that aren’t embedded or using a custom domain. You may also temporarily freeze or delete your account from this page.

The User tab manages your Knack user settings. Click "edit" to change your profile (name and email) or password:

Finally, your Billing tab allows you to manage your Knack billing details. From here, you can update payment information, upgrade your plan, and access past receipts.

Note that you can return to your Knack dashboard from any of your apps by clicking the user icon in the upper right-hand corner, then selecting Account:

You can also access the Knack dashboard from the dropdown menu under the app’s name:

Introduction to the Data Section of the Builder

The data section of your builder is where all of your app’s data is stored. It’s also where you define and organize that data.

In Knack, data is separated into groups called objects. Think of an object as a spreadsheet or a database table. You’ll see your app’s objects listed along the left-hand side of your data section.

Each object includes various fields. Fields define specific attributes of an object, similar to columns in a spreadsheet. Knack has several different field types.

Knack apps also offer the option to add user roles. These define groups of users who will have access to your app. User roles are similar to objects. They’re also found in the data section of your builder and are broken down into various fields.

1. Your objects are listed on the left. Click an object to activate it for editing. Edit, copy, or delete an object by clicking the gear icon. Add a new object with the "+ADD" button at the top.

2. All the fields for the selected object are listed here. Click on a field to edit it. Add a new field by selecting the correct field type from the top menu.

3. All the user roles for your app are listed here. Add or edit fields just as you do with objects. Note that user roles have several fields that cannot be deleted: Name, Email, Password, User Status, and User Roles.

Records

All the records for each object are also available in the data section of your builder. Records can be added here directly or with forms in your live application.

You can view the records in an object by clicking the Records tab near the top of the page:

1. Edit each record by clicking directly onto the field you’d like to change.

2. Click the "Add Record" button to add records manually.

3. The top bar contains options to import or export records, run a batch update, or delete records.

Click here for more on working with the data section of your builder.

Introduction to the Pages Section of the Builder

The pages section of your builder is where you add the visual elements of your app. These may include forms, tables, lists, and calendars. This is how you enable your users to view and update records.

Pages and Views

A view is a visual element that you add to a page of your app. Views work with the records in your data section. Types of views include:

• Forms to add or edit records

• Tables, lists, and calendars to display multiple records

• Searches to find specific records

• Details to view a specific record

• Reports to view summaries and calculations of multiple records

Views are grouped together on pages. Your users will begin on a start page and navigate to other pages through links and menus.

Here’s the pages section of a Contact Directory app:

1. All the pages are listed on the left. Click the "+Add" button to add a new page.

2. Click on a specific page to see that page’s views. In the above examples, the views on the selected page Companies are displayed.

You can click on each view to edit different options. Each view will work with fields from one of your objects. For example, here you can control which fields from the Companies object display as columns in the table:

Each view works with records from a specific object. When you add a new view, you can choose which object you want that view to work with. Knack will always present you with the best options:

Click here for more on working with the pages section of your builder.